Seasoned campaigner Nicholas Fung
Seasoned campaigner Nicholas Fung and rising talent Ervin Chang were the best-placed Malaysians in joint 53rd spot following the first round of the SJM Macao Open, carding matching two-under-par 69s on a sunny day at the par-71 Macau Golf and Country Club.
They lie seven shots behind tournament leaders Min Woo Lee of Australia and Scotland’s David Drysdale, who made full use of the ideal conditions to card matching nine-under-par 62s. India’s Ajeetesh Sandhu, New Zealand’s Ben Campbell and Ian Snyman of South Africa lie joint third a stroke adrift.
Taichi Kho of Hong Kong, China, who recently won the individual gold medal at the 19th Asian Games men’s golf tournament, is in joint 14th place after an opening five-under-par 66.
Starting from the 10th tee, Fung had a solid, bogey-free round but could only manage two birdies on the 17th and 18th holes.
Minwoo Lee of Australia is joint first round leader. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
“It was quite a decent round today although I could have played better. I drove the ball well but my iron play wasn’t good enough, so I didn’t have many decent chances for birdie,” said Fung, who has one Asian Tour title to his name at the 2017 Queen’s Cup in Thailand.
“Although the course is short, you have to hit your tee shots to the right spots to leave yourself a good approach angle to the green, as the pins are in tight locations. Par is easy but it’s tough to get birdies,” added the 33-year-old Sabahan.
Chang meanwhile had a more eventful round, mixing five birdies with one bogey and a double bogey. The 25-year-old was happy with his ball-striking but rued a few bad breaks.
“Overall, my game was pretty solid. There were definitely some ups and downs during today’s round but there were a lot of positives, so I’m looking forward to Round 2,” said Chang, who turned professional in May last year after winning the individual gold medal at the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.
Chang had an unfortunate double bogey at the par-three sixth hole when he flew the green with a wedge and found a water hazard.
“It was 140 yards to the pin downwind, so I hit a 50-degree wedge. I was shocked when I flew the green into the water. I took a drop and missed a 10-footer for par,” he explained.
The Malaysian missed a chance to pick up a shot at the par-five closing hole when his drive found water. “My driver had been working well the whole day and I just had one bad tee shot at the 18th. I pushed it into the hazard on the right, hit a solid rescue and a good third shot, but just missed my par putt from 15 feet,” noted Chang.
Rookie Casper Loh shot a three-over-par 74 in his maiden Asian Tour appearance and is in joint 118th position. The 23-year-old only arrived in Macao yesterday and did not have a chance to get in a practice round.
“I made some silly mistakes and had some unlucky breaks, but it was fine considering I only arrived late yesterday and have never played the course before. I managed to make a couple of good birdies, so hopefully I can bring that forward to the next round,” said Loh, who like Fung is from Kota Kinabalu in Sabah.
Compatriot Shahriffuddin Ariffin will also need a strong second round if he hopes to make the weekend, struggling to an opening 76 to lie in joint 128th position. The 24-year-old talent signed in a colourful scorecard with three birdies, five bogeys and an unfortunate triple bogey at the par-three 14th.
“I hit my tee shot over the green and had a bad break when my chip hit the buggy track and rolled back,” said Shahriffuddin, who has two Asian Development Tour titles to his name.
The fifth Malaysian in the field, veteran Ben Leong, withdrew from the tournament after picking up a fever.
Making a much-anticipated return after six years, the SJM Macao Open features a field of 144 players vying for the honour of being crowned champion of its milestone 20th edition. The tournament forms part of the final stretch of the Asian Tour’s 2023 season and will thus play a pivotal role in determining the Order of Merit champion.
