After three days of superb golf amidst rain delays, the 47 boys and 28 girls who competed in the inaugural EFG Singapore Junior Masters went into the record books as part of the first open junior golf tournament and World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) event in Singapore during the Covid-19 era.
If there were any pre-event worries of rust in the games of the participants, it was put to bed by the keen level of competition that was displayed throughout the event and the impressive winning scores.
The two main winners in the 54-hole competition which ended yesterday were both 16 years of age – James Jay Gould Healy and Shannon Tan, who won the Boys’ and Girls’ Open divisions respectively in completely contrasting ways.
Healy started the final round three strokes back of Indian national Jayaditya Saluja, the leader after two days of competition. Two local hopefuls, 18-year-old Brandon Han and 15-year-old Daryl Low, were in the race as well at Laguna National’s Masters Course.
After a day of heated battle, Healy made a four-foot birdie on the last hole for a closing 68 and a total of even-par 216 (77-71-68), edging Han (74-73-70) by one shot. Low (72-74-74) tied for third with Saluja (71-74-75) on 220.
Tan meanwhile coasted to the Girls’ Open title with rounds of 69, 69 and 72 for an impressive total of six-under-par 210, a massive 13 strokes ahead of second-placed Inez Ng who followed up rounds of 78 and 76 with a closing 69.
The other winners were Irvyn Tan in the Junior Boys’ Division with a total score of 229 (75-80-74), and Jillian Kuk in the Junior Girls’ Division with a total of 232 (75-82-75).
Albert Chiu, executive chairman of the Asia Pacific Region for EFG International, was impressed with the level of play.
“We have had a successful programme in Hong Kong that resulted in grooming an LPGA player and would be looking to do the same here in Singapore. We are not here for just one event, but we want to support events like the Singapore Junior Masters and grow a future Singaporean star golfer too,” said Chiu, who is also chairman of the EFG Young Athlete Foundation.
Lyn Yeo, managing director of tournament organiser LLD Sports Development and Management, thanked the sponsors and support team. “Without the support of EFG and Laguna National, our other sponsors and parent volunteers, this event would never have been possible, so I would like to extend a big thank you to everyone involved.
“We have now together made history in Singapore as the first official golf tournament held here during the pandemic, and we have done it safely, efficiently and have given the juniors a strong competition to play in with world ranking points at stake,” said Yeo, who is also president of the Singapore Ladies Golf Association and has played a big role in junior development in the island nation.
The EFG Singapore Junior Masters was sponsored by EFG Bank with the official apparel being adidas Golf. Other sponsors included Titleist, Oakley, Fenix Xcell, Golf & Leisure, Big Fish Golf, Clicgear and Cartimes Automobile.
