England’s Joe Heraty held onto his overnight lead in The MENA Tour Malaysian Swing 1 at The Els Club Desaru Coast to become the first-ever MENA Tour event winner on Malaysian soil. Despite strong final rounds from his closest competitors, Heraty fired a solid regulation round of 72 to match his earlier 71-64 for a winning total of 9-under-par beating Malaysian Paul San and Italian Arron Zemmer by three shots.
The winner of the amateur category in the Malaysian Swing I was Egyptian Issa Abbou El Ela with rounds of 73, 75, 72 for a total of 4 over par.
Out of the 36 Malaysian players in the field in the Malaysian Swing I, 14 participants made the cut, and five of those finished in the top 10 overall results. The low round of the final day was 4-under-par (68) by Malaysia’s Danny Chia, who finished joint 8th.
England’s William Harold posted a wire-to-wire victory at The MENA Tour’s Malaysian Swing ll at the beautiful Valley Course of The Els Club Desaru Coast. With a stunning opening round of 64, he followed it up with scores of 69, and 73 to close out for a total of 10-under-par 206 total. He was super excited with the win and to be back playing on The MENA Tour, having not played on the Tour since 2020.
“It’s great to get that winning feeling back,” said Harold. “I wasn’t sure I’d get it done, but I just kept my focus on hitting fairways and greens to grind out a score. My swing was getting away from me over the past two days, but I managed to hang on. I have been delighted with my performance over the past two weeks in Malaysia, and it’s given me a boost of confidence heading into the coming months.”
It was a great week for Malaysian players as well, with 16 Malaysians making the cut after two rounds. Impressive play from Malaysian players Erwin Chang, Paul San and Galven Green had them finishing 2nd , 3rd & 4th respectfully.
Mr. Harris Abdullah congratulated the players on such a successful tournament and welcomed them to return to The Els Club Desaru Coast and the Desaru Coast area again in the near future.
He further added, “The MENA Tour’s expansion into new territories, such as Malaysia, is a testament to its commitment to promoting the sport of golf and providing talented players with the chance to compete at the highest level. With the success of the 2023 Malaysian Swings, it is clear that the tour’s reputation for excellence and its ability to attract a global participation continues to grow stronger with each passing year.”
The MENA Tour’s debut in Malaysia was made possible through the collaboration of Johor Golf Tourism Association (JGTA) and The Els Club Desaru Coast and was strongly supported by Tourism Malaysia. This partnership brought about the staging of the first MENA Tour 2023, which featured two major events: the Malaysian Swing I from 10th April to 13th April 2023, and the Malaysian Swing II from 17th April to 20th April, 2023, that comprised a 54-hole competition.
Malaysian Swing I
Champion: Joe Heraty (England)
First Runner-Up: Aron Zemmer (Italy)
Second Runner-Up: Paul San (Malaysia)
Malaysian Swing II
Champion: William Harold (England)
First Runner-Up: Ervin Chang (Malaysia)
Second Runner-Up: Paul San (Malaysia)
