May 31: Tanapat Pichaikool showed that he was over with his days of struggle with the game when the Thailand star won the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026 on Sunday by two shots.

The 26-year-old started the final round leading by two shots after a magnificent eight-under-par 64 round on Saturday and managed to end it with the same margin on top of the leaderboard following a battling two-under 70.

Tanapat left a good-looking birdie putt inches short of the cup on the 18th hole, but the par was good enough as none of his nearest rivals could make a move.

Runchanapong Youprayong (70) started three shots behind Tanapat and finished third at -14, while Bangladesh’s Siddikur Rahman jumped ahead of him with a birdie on the last hole in his 67.

That birdie on the 18th proved crucial because it sealed Rahman’s place in next week’s US$500,000 am green Bharat Classic, an Asian Tour event at the same Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort venue.

American Henry Chung (67) was in solo fourth place at -13, with the Hong Kong duo of Matthew Cheung (69) and Hoho Yue (70).

Tanapat Pichaikool of Thailand. Picture courtesy: IGPL

The last time Tanapat won was on his 25th birthday in November 2024, when he clinched the Toyota Tour Championship. Even though he held the sole lead throughout the final day, he said it wasn’t easy to get over the line.

Tanapat narrowly missed out on a full card on the Asian Tour last year when he finished 69th in the Order of Merit, as he struggled with his swing, but feels he is close to playing his best golf now.

“I was nervous. For the past five hours, it was all up and down. Golf isn’t that easy when you come down to the last couple of holes trying to win a tournament. You know others want to sneak up and shoot five or six under. I knew I just had to stay in the moment,” said Tanapat.

“Lots of changes in the last 18 months. I just kept believing that the choices I made were good choices.

“Swing-wise, I worked a lot on my downswing. I’ve been doing quite a bit of work for the past two months, and I wasn’t getting the result I wanted. And then, all of a sudden this week, all the things are working.

“I switched the driver shaft (to Mitsubishi Tensei Blue 6X on his PING G440 LST) and I think that’s a fantastic decision I made last week. I changed it probably three days before I flew here. It’s new, but it just clicked. I just saw a couple drive which were straight and all of a sudden, it was just robotic.”

Siddikur Rahman of Bangladesh. Picture by Jason Butler/Asian Tour

Tanapat added that he was very excited about next week’s Asian Tour event.

“Excited, very excited indeed. It’s on the same course, and I feel I know it inside out. I will just try to play the same golf as I did this week, and hopefully, the result is the same again,” he added.

Rahman may have fallen short by a couple of shots, but he still had the smile of a winner after finishing solo second. The 41-year-old Bangladeshi legend, winner of two Asian Tour titles, is in Morocco with his family and will now have to change his air tickets after gaining an entry into next week’s event.

“Honestly, I really enjoyed myself this week. My family is with me, so I really enjoyed my work without any expectation. I thought I would not get into the next two tournaments because I was so down on the waiting list, I had to change my tickets,” said the 2013 Indian Open champion, who lost his Asian Tour card last year after finishing 94th in the Order of Merit.

“I did not expect much and spent the time taking my baby to the swimming pool and the sea. I think it was the experience of playing without much expectation. So, yes, it was really very important to me to play well this week, and I am happy that I get into the next week.”

Runchanapong Youprayong of Thailand. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour

Runchanapong was eyeing that spot, which eventually went to Rahman, and he would rue the finish as he could not convert a single birdie after making three in his first eight holes and getting to within one shot of Tanapat. He then made a bogey on the 10th hole and finished with eight straight pars.

“I felt like I handled myself well out there. I gave myself a lot of chances, but the putter kind of went cold on the back nine. My distance control also felt a bit off with the wind, but it was a great experience overall to be in the last group and be in contention,” said Runchanapong, who improved to third place in the Order of Merit, one ahead of Tanapat.

“I am just trying to take it one tournament at a time. I have finished 12th on the ADT Order of Merit two times (2023 and 2024). That definitely stings a little bit and I’m just trying to improve that.

“I’m just gonna stick around another week, and hopefully, I can sneak in somehow. Let’s see if there are any withdrawals next week so that I get to play because I love this golf course.”

Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, built on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic, a US$500,000 tournament on the Asian Tour. That will be followed by the US$2 million International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco. The next ADT event is the US$100,000 DigiPlus Philippine ADT Open from June 17th to 20th.

May 30: Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool shot a solid eight-under-par 64 to gain a two-shot advantage going into the final round of the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026.

Pichaikool made an early eagle on the par-5 third hole on a windy Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort course, but immediately dropped a shot on the next hole. That was his only mistake as he added seven more birdies after that to reach 15-under par 201 total, two ahead of Argentina’s Franco Scorzato, who shot a bogey-free 67.

Another Thai star, Runchanapong Youprayong, shot a second 67 of the week to reach 12-under and was in solo third place.

American Carson Herron, son of four-time PGA Tour winner Tim, showed his golfing pedigree and shot the lowest round of the tournament. With nine birdies in his bogey-free 63, Herron jumped up 32 places to tied fourth alongside overnight leader Agusti Quinquilla Madalena of Spain (73) and Italy’s Michele Ortolani (66).

Carson Herron of the United States. Picture courtesy: IGPL

The tournament is the fifth leg of the Asian Development Tour (ADT) and is co-sanctioned with the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL). Among the IGPL players in the field, Syed Saqib Ahmed (70) was the leading contender at seven-under and in tied 14th position.

The 26-year-old Tanapat finished tied sixth in a PGT of India Tour event earlier this year – his only top-10 finish of the season – and is now hoping to get his third ADT win in a tournament that is co-sanctioned by another Indian body – the IGPL.

Having narrowly missed out on a full card on the Asian Tour last year when he finished 69th in the Order of Merit, Tanapat is looking to bounce back to the form of 2024 when he won the Toyota Tour Championship in Malaysia. He has won thrice on the All Thailand Golf Tour since then.

“It was a great round. It was a bit up and down, but I got some good breaks. The game was a bit off for the next few holes and I picked it up with a birdie on the seventh hole and managed to keep up the momentum until the end of the round,” said Tanapat, who finished second to Itthipat Buranatanyarat in the 2024 ADT Order of Merit.

“The last few months have been a lot of swing changes, and a lot of equipment changes as well. That’s why I did not get good results, but I’ve been patient through all those times for this to come. So hopefully, I can keep this going tomorrow.

“I feel that I have been executing pretty well for the past three days, so hopefully tomorrow I can execute the same things. Let’s see what happens.”

Franco Scorzato of Argentina. Picture courtesy: IGPL

Rookie Scorzato, who has not finished outside the top-23 in his last three ADT starts, will try and seal his best finish on the Tour. His previous best was a tied 8th at the Nam A Bank Vietnam Masters.

The 23-year-old made the turn in three-under with three birdies, and then kept bogeys away on the back nine with two more birdies.

“Today was a good round with no bogeys, which is always great. I hit almost every shot from the fairway, giving myself good birdie opportunities. There wasn’t much more to it than that; it was a very clean round, to be honest,” said Scorzato.

“I’m very happy to be in the last group. I think that reflects how well this week has gone, but at the same time, it doesn’t change anything about golf, and my mindset has to stay the same. I have to stay focused and committed to every shot, which is something I think I’ve been doing very well.”

The 23-year-old Herron has missed every cut in Official World Golf Ranking-recognised events this year, but Saturday was a walk in the park after making it to his first weekend of the season.

“I started in the back nine and I was able to put together a bunch of good shots and make a lot of putts. I kind of cooled down a little bit on the front nine. I kept trying to keep the pedal down, and that’s what I want to do tomorrow and just see what I can do.

“I started the week kind of slow, but I started hitting the ball better than I was in my last few tournaments. So, I kind of found something that clicked. I was just trying to hit some good wedge shots and just do well to square the clubs, and just piece it together.”

This week is the fifth stop of the 2026 season on the ADT. Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, built on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic. The International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco, will bring the exciting North African adventure to a conclusion in three weeks.

May 29: Spain’s Agusti Quinquilla Madalena shot the lowest round of the tournament so far to take a four-shot lead at the halfway stage of the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026.

On Friday at the stunning Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, the 25-year-old Madalena took full advantage of the softer morning conditions. His bogey-free round had eight birdies, and it could have been even better but for a missed eagle putt from six feet on the 18th hole.

The eight-under par 64, added to his 68 in the opening round, took him to 12-under par going into the weekend rounds. He was four ahead of the Hong Kong duo of overnight leader Hoho Yue (70) and Matthew Cheung (68), and Argentina’s Franco Scorzato (68).

Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool (67) and Runchanapong Youprayong (70) were also in the hunt, tied fifth at seven-under, where they were joined by Indian teenager Kartik Singh (66).

The fifth leg of the Asian Development Tour event is co-sanctioned with the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL). Among the IGPL players in the field, Raghav Chugh and Syed Saqib Ahmed (both 70) were leading contenders at five-under and in tied 12th position, while the leading Moroccan player was Ayoub Id-Omar (68) in tied eighth place.

Agusti hasn’t had a single top-10 finish in Official World Golf Ranking events in his five years of playing as a pro, but that could all change after a flawless round of 64.

Hoho Yue of Hong Kong. Picture courtesy: IGPL

The Spaniard was two-under after nine holes, but had a brilliant stretch of three holes from the 10th onwards. He hit his second shot to tap-in distances on both 10th and 11th holes and then converted a 15-feet birdie putt on the 12th hole to get to five-under par for the day.

He then birdied the 14th and 16th, before his only ‘mistake’ of the day of not converting the eagle putt on the 18th hole.

“That was really good, I think the best golf I have ever played. No mistakes, just a perfect round. I made some good putts, very happy. I struggled to make par on the 17th hole, but it was a good two putt from a very long distance before I missed from about two meter for eagle on the 18th.

“I like the golf course. I think my playing style has adapted to this course layout very well.

“I will try to play the same over the weekend, but maybe, I will not be able to score this well. But I’m feeling good on the golf course, so I am hoping I can keep playing like this.”

“Honestly, I found the course was playing a little easier today. I had the first tee time of the day, so the wind wasn’t too strong, but I didn’t have the best day,” said the 26-year-old.

“I knew it was not going to be as smooth as yesterday. I had to make some adjustments, stay patient, and kind of recover from a rocky start. I felt like nothing was really going my way in the front nine. But I got to give credit to myself for being patient with my game and just let the putts drop.

“I’m pretty happy. It’s definitely not the best ball-striking round of the week, probably, but I’m glad about the score.”

Cheung finished tied second at the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open earlier this month and continued his good form from there.

“It feels good. The weather’s been beautiful for me. It was quite calm this morning, so we had some good scoring conditions and I played very consistent. Very happy over the last two days,” said Cheung.

“It’s a great golf course. I like it a lot. It gives you enough space off the tees, but you must hit good shots, because if you lose your golf ball into any cactus, you’re just praying out there. So I’ve been hitting a good off the tee, and hopefully I can continue in the same vein over the weekend.

“I actually switched to a broomstick putter the week before Taiwan. I putted it well there, and I’m putting pretty good here. So, I guess it’s working.”

This week is the fifth stop of the 2026 season on the ADT. Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, built on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic. The International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco, will bring the exciting North African adventure to a conclusion in three weeks.

May 28: Hoho Yue made a birdie on his final hole to edge ahead by one shot in the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026, which is being played at the stunning Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort and is co-sanctioned with the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL).

In Thursday’s opening round, the Hong Kong player made a sensational eagle on the par-5 seventh hole – where his second shot from 260 yards lipped out for an albatross – and six birdies to finish on six-under par 66.

One behind Hoho at five-under par were American Nathan Han and Thailand’s Runchanapong Youprayong. An eclectic group of four players – Sven Maurits of the Netherlands, Argentina’s Franco Scorzato, Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung and Spaniard Agusti Quinquilla Madalena – were tied for fourth place at 68.

India’s Raghav Chugh, Syed Saqib Ahmed, Trishul Chinnappa and Sudhir Sharma were the best placed among the IGPL players at three-under 69, while Ayoub Id-Omar was the best among the local Moroccan players, tied 17th at two-under 70.

Yue, 26, played for the University of Oregon while pursuing college in the US. He had five top-10 finishes in different tours, including the Egyptian Open on the ADT, last year, and is looking to get his first win as a professional.

Playing in the afternoon session when the wind picked up compared to the morning tee times, Yue started with a birdie but quickly gave up the gain on the very next hole.

“It was good. It was a long day, and I knew the golf course was going to play hard. I woke up this morning, and I could feel the wind walking out. I knew it was going to be a grind and I had zero expectations. I knew I was just trying to go out there and stay as present as I could, which I did very well,” said Hoho.

Nathan Han of the United States. Picture courtesy: IGPL

“I started off the day with some fears. I was like, ‘Oh, the wind’s blowing in a tougher direction. The course is playing a lot tougher than it played during the practice rounds’. But I knew it would take a bit of momentum and a couple of good shots to get it going. Fortunately. I got hot pretty early, so I just felt like I had nothing to lose. I just had to pedal down the whole day.”

On the eagle on the seventh hole, he added: “Oh yeah, that was pretty sick. My whole group was pretty surprised to see that. The wind was blowing left to right very strong, and I just hit it a left, let the wind take it, and it was my day. The ball ended up lipping out from 260 yards and I made the five-feet putt.”

American Han, who is playing only his second recognised professional tournament, got off to a blistering start. The 25-year-old from New York, who played for Pepperdine University in NCAA Division I competition until last season, showed his class after getting fast off the block with six birdies in his first eight holes. He then ran into trouble on the 18th hole to make a double bogey seven on the par-5 hole, completely against the run of play. He was solid on his back nine for two birdies and a solitary bogey to finish on five-under-par 67.

“I started at 8:05am and I was feeling good, the body was feeling good. I didn’t do anything special, just stuck to my game plan. I hit drives the way I wanted it to, hit some good iron shots, and made a lot of putts,” said Han

“I was six-under through eight, but unfortunately doubled the 18th, my ninth hole of the day. I hit it into the ice plants and would advise that never hit it out of the ice plants if you’re in there. But I did not falter after that, and I just kept the momentum going. I’m happy with how I finished.”

Runchanapong Youprayong of Thailand. Picture courtesy: IGPL

Runchanapong, who finished second in the opening event of the schedule and is currently fourth in the ADT Order of Merit, was solid through the day, except for a solitary bogey on the par-5 14th hole, which was his fifth hole of the round having started from the 10th tee.

“I started off well until I made a bogey on the par five, and then kind of picked myself up again and made a few more birdies. I just hung tight into the round with all the wind going on, but overall it was solid,” said the Thai star.

“It’s fun playing in a place like this. Every time I make a good swing or a bad shot, I can still look out at the views and see the ocean and stuff. It’s very beautiful out here.”

This week is the fifth stop of the 2026 season on the ADT. Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, on Morocco’s Atlantic coast, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic. The International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco, will bring the exciting North African adventure to a conclusion in three weeks.