The Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership ended in dramatic fashion today after Kammalas Namuangruk holed out on the second playoff hole to snatch victory after a close-fought battle with Amarin Kraivixien at Red Mountain Golf Club in Phuket.

Sinking to his knees after the ball rolled in, Kammalas celebrated a brave fight back which saw him come from two shots behind to claim his spot in the play off at the THB3 million co-sanctioned event by the Asian Development Tour and the All Thailand Golf Tour.

Starting the final round tied at 13 under par, the pair battled throughout the day with the lead changing hands on several occasions. Kammalas birdied the opening hole, while Amarin could only make bogey, however within three holes they were back level.

Amarin, with a birdie on the sixth hole, again took the lead which he held until the ninth, when a bogey allowed Kammalas back in and they made the turn paired at 14 under par.

Both players parred the first four holes of the back nine, then Amarin edged ahead with birdies on holes 14 and 16 to take the lead by two shots heading into the last.

A dramatic finish for Kammalas on the final hole – holing a 10-foot putt for eagle while Amarin could only make par – meant both players finished tied with a score of 69 and the tournament was to be decided by a playoff.

Kammalas was excited by his win, and the way in which he managed to fight back and put himself in contention made him confident about his progress within Asian golf.

“I’m proud of myself, “ he said after the prize-giving ceremony. “I started with two birdies but then there was nothing good until 18 when I made eagle putt for play off, and then to chip in for the win, nothing else to say.

“I did not think I was going to win, but I focused on every shot. I was very nervous but I’m feeling good for the year. I think it’s given me a good opportunity now to play more on the ADT and next year hopefully on the Asian Tour,” he added.

Amarin Kraivixien of Thailand, pictured in action during the final round of the Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership at Red Mountain Golf Course in Phuket. Picture courtesy of the All Thailand Golf Tour.

Amarin, who was stricken with a fever after the second round, nearly pulled out of the tournament at the start of Round Three but was determined to see things through.

“This has already exceeded my expectations,” he said after the play off. “It helps to keep things in perspective.

“I made too many mistakes today, I thought I played solidly enough to win but unfortunately Kammalas did better than me. There was nothing else I could do, with two eagles in three holes, but hats off to him, he deserved it.

“I have nothing to complain about, “ he added. “I’m happy with what I accomplished this week and looking forward to building momentum going forward.”

The Thai duo of Tawit Polthai (68) and Waris Manthorn (70) tied for third place and 13 under par, while Hong Kong’s Leon D’Souza (64) posted the low round of the day to head a group in fith place that included Thailand’s Natipong Srithong (67), Kosuke Hamamoto (68) and Itthipat Buranatanyarat (68).

Chi Huang (69) of Chinese Taipei finished in ninth spot alongside Panuphol Pittayarat (66) and Sangchai Kaewcharoen (66).

Angelo Que (68) of the Philippines held solo 12th spot, followed by Thailand’s Poosit Supupramai (71) in 13th and the Thai duo of Weerawish Narkprachar (67) and Thanyakon Khronpha (68) rounding out the top 15.

The ADT All Thailand Partnership tournament is one of two ADT events scheduled for May, with the THB4 million Singha Laguna Phuket Open being held at Laguna Golf Phuket from May 9-12.

Main picture: Kammalas Namuangruk of Thailand, pictured in action during the final round of the Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership at Red Mountain Golf Course in Phuket. Picture courtesy of the All Thailand Golf Tour.

Amarin Kraivixien made great strides up the leaderboard with a 65 today to vault into a shared lead going into the final round of the Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership in Phuket.

Amarin, who shared the low round of the day with Natipong Srithong at Red Mountain Golf Course, holds the joint lead with compatriot Kammalas Namuangruk (66).

“I was surprised with my round today,” he said after finishing up. “I had a fever last night. Felt better this morning but really wasn’t expecting much. I just wanted to keep myself cool with a cold towel.”

As the THB3 million tournament heads into its final day on the ADT’s first visit to the Phuket course, the narrow fairways and sloping greens required extra attention from players.

“My concentration level today was exceptional, I think that helped a lot,” Amarin explained after his bogey-free round.

“I holed a 30-footer for birdie on the first and that gave me a good momentum into the round. Made a couple of six footers for pars too. Not dropping a shot out there kept me going and I’m really pleased with the way I played today.”

Kammalas, with two dropped shots on the back nine, had to fight to keep pace after holding the early lead during the day.

“I putted really well today,” he explained. “I got excited after starting the round with four straight birdies and just kept it going out there.

“It started raining after I made the turn and I lost a bit of momentum but happy to still cap a good round to grab a share of the lead.”

Kammalas Namuangruk of Thailand, pictured in action during Round Three of the Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership at Red Mountain Golf Course in Phuket. Picture courtesy of the All Thailand Golf Tour.

In third place on 12 under, Waris Manthorn (68) of Thailand holds a two shot advantage over fellow Thai Tawit Polthai (67)in fourth.

Chi Huang (67)of Chinese Taipei shares fifth spot with Thailand’s Itthipat Buranatanyarat (66) and overnight leader Kosuke Hamamoto (72).

In eighth place are Thailand’s Natipong Sirithong (65) and Poosit Supupramai (69), followed by Angelo Que (67) of the Philippines in 10th spot on seven under par.

Panat Bodhidatta (67), Sangchai Kaewcharoen (70) Panuphol Pittayarat (73) and first round leader Warun Ieamgaew (71) are an all-Thai group sharing 11th place.

Thailand’s Kenny Lem, who made the cut on the number after Friday’s round, had the bonus of a hole-in-one on the third hole, jarring his eight iron from 155 yards.

The ADT / All Thailand Partnership tournament, a co-sanctioned event by the Asian Development Tour and the All Thailand Golf Tour, is one of two ADT events scheduled for May, with the THB4 million Singha Laguna Phuket Open being held at Laguna Golf Phuket from May 9-12.

Play continues for the final day at Red Mountain, with the first flight off at 7.10am local time and the leading group of Waris, Kammalas and Amarin teeing off at 8.50am.

Main picture: Amarin Kraivixien of Thailand, pictured in action during Round Three of the Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership at Red Mountain Golf Course in Phuket. Picture courtesy of the All Thailand Golf Tour.

Defending champion Kosuke Hamamoto made a bold statement of intent to retain his title with a six under par 65 at Red Mountain Golf Club in Phuket today, marching up the leaderboard to sit one shot clear of the field.

His seven birdie round with just one dropped shot sees him leading into the weekend ahead of compatriot Waris Manathorn (67) in second place.

Fellow Thais Kammalas Namuangruk (69) and Panuphol Pittayarat (66) lie one shot further back on eight under par, followed by Amarin Kraivixien (66) to complete a Thailand sweep of the top positions.

With the Red Mountain course making its debut in the THB3 million co-sanctioned event by the Asian Development Tour and the All Thailand Golf Tour, Kosuke has a slight advantage over the field, having played this course before.

“It’s a very good course, in good condition and with nice views,” he said after his round. “I never really thought we would have a tournament here but that they made it happen so I’m grateful to compete.

“They used to be my sponsor here and I played here a couple of times during Covid with Sadom (Kaewkanjana) and Itthipat (Buranatanyapat),” he said.

“To be honest, coming to a different golf course this year kind of takes the pressure off in my opinion, because everyone is seeing this course for the first time.”

William Harrold of England is the only non-Thai player in the top ten, posting a second 68 to match his first day score to share sixth place with Poosit Supupramai (66), Runchanapong Youprayong (68), Tawit Polthai (65) and overnight leader Warun Ieamgaew (73).

Low round of the day went to Thai stalwart Itthipat Buranatanyarat who posted a seven-under-par 64 today to make up for his unfortunate 74 yesterday, where he started the tournament with an eight on the opening par four hole.

“It was a big hurdle for me,” he said after his round. “I just had to stick to my plan, get the ball on the fairway, find the green. Seven birdies today so it’s not so bad,” he added.

In 11th place on five under par, were Thailand’s Sangchai Kaewcharoen, Huang Chi of Chinese Taipei and Isaac Lam of Hongkong.

One shot further back were Chiu Han-ting of Chinese Taipei, together with the Thai quartet of Chayodorn Chanjaruphong, Itthipat, Thanpisit Omsin and Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij.

The ADT All Thailand Partnership tournament, a THB3 million co-sanctioned event by the Asian Development Tour and the All Thailand Golf Tour, is one of two ADT events scheduled for May, with the THB4 million Singha Laguna Phuket Open being held at Laguna Golf Phuket from May 9-12.

Main photo: Kosuke Hamamoto of Thailand pictured in action at the ADT All Thailand Partnership tournament at Red Mountain Golf Course, Phuket, Thailand. Picture courtesy of the All Thailand Golf Tour / Asian Tour.

Thailand’s Warun Ieamgaew got the tournament off to a fine start when the Asian Development Tour / All Thailand Partnership teed off today, posting a new course record on eight under par to set the pace for the first day at Red Mountain Golf Course in Phuket.

With eight birdies and an otherwise unblemished card, Warun opened his scoring with a birdie on the tenth hole and did not let up for the rest of his round.

“Today my game was going pretty well,” he said after posting his score. “No mistakes and when I did miss the green, I was able to get up and down.

“It’s my first time at Red Mountain, the course is pretty challenging. It’s a narrow layout with fast sloping greens which makes it more exciting.

“I’m really happy to have the chance to set the record for this course. I’ve been focussing on my putting and iron shots and I’m hoping to make some international events this year and improve my game,” he added.

Compatriot Pawin Ingkhapradit, another of the morning starters, also had a bogey-free round, posting five birdies in his front nine for a six under par 65 to take solo second place.

In third spot, at five under par, Chinese Taipei duo Chi Huang and Han-ting Chiu were joined by Thailand’s Waris Manthorn and Kammalas Namuangruk.

One shot further back was an all-Thailand group of Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij, Sarun Sirithon, Thanyakon Khrongpha, Witchayapat Sinsrang and last year’s winner of the event Kosuke Hamamoto.

In a share of 12th place on three under par were international players William Harrold and Joe Heraty of England, Hong Kong’s Leon D’Souza, Khalin Joshi of India, Australia’s Douglas Klein and the Thai contingent of Panuwat Bulsombath, Panuphol Pittayarat, Jaturon Duangphaichoom, Runchanapong Youprayong and Thanapisit Omsin.

The ADT All Thailand Partnership tournament, a THB3 million co-sanctioned event by the Asian Development Tour and the All Thailand Golf Tour, is one of two ADT events scheduled for May, with the THB4 million Singha Laguna Phuket Open being held at Laguna Golf Phuket from May 9-12.