All six Malaysian players successfully made it to the weekend of the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific (WAAP) at Siam Country Club in Pattaya, Thailand.

This is the first time that the entire Malaysian squad has made into the final two days of the prestigious championship.

Defending champion Mizuki Hashimoto holds the lead at nine-under par after a superb second round of six-under par 66. The Japanese scored seven birdies and one bogey to lead Korea’s Jiyoo Lim by one shot. In at third place on six-under-par is Chinese Taipei’s Ting-Hsuan Huang.

The best-placed Malaysian is first round leader Liyana Durisic, who carded a two-over par 74 for the day to lie T7 on four-under-par. With two bogeys and no birdies on her card, the 21-year-old struggled throughout the round to make putts.

“I wasn’t hitting and putting as good as yesterday. I continued to focus on my own goals, but it just wasn’t my day,” noted Durisic, who has played in all four editons of the championship.

The Iowa State University senior noted that she is going to stay committed to the same gameplan that scored her a 66 on the first round.

“It’s going to be focusing on hitting fairways, green in regulations and making two putts. If I make a birdie it’s a bonus,” she said.

Three Malaysians lie at T12 on two-under-par, namely Audrey Tan who is making her second WAAP appearance, and first-timers Warda Amira Rawof and Jeneath Wong.

Tan played two shots better than the opening round with a two-under-par 70. The University of North Texas senior made a couple of clutch par putts to keep the momentum going during the round.

“It was a slightly better round today with my putting coming in clutch. I’m hoping to hit it better and sink more putts for the next two days,” shared the 21-year-old.

Wong meanwhile scored a hole-in-one at the 113-yard par-three 7th hole en route to a 70. The Melbourne-based player was over the moon at her fourth career ace in her WAAP debut.

“I knew I hit a good shot but I wasn’t expecting the ball to go in. This hole-in-one is definitely going to be a memorable one for me,” commented Wong.

Warda, who is the oldest in the Malaysian squad at age 24, signed in an even-par 72 after she mixed one birdie and bogey.

20-year-old Zulaikah Nurziana Nasser, also making her debut, submitted a three-over par 75 for the day to lie at T22 on even-par. The Sam Houston State junior carded two double bogeys but managed a birdie on the 7th. 

The youngest Malaysian representative, Ng Jing Xuen, successfully made the cut in her maiden appearance after shooting a two-under par 70. The 14-year-old closed her round with two birdies, including a chip-in birdie on the 18th to make the weekend on the number at four-over-par.

“I was telling myself that it didn’t matter if I made the cut to make myself less tense compared to yesterday. I just wanted to enjoy myself out there,” said Ng.

“I was so relieved after that chip-in! I really pushed myself after looking at the leaderboard on the 16th, then told myself I could do it and it turned out quite well,” she added.

The best Malaysian performance is sixth place, achieved by the country's current top women's amateur Ashley Lau last year in Abu Dhabi.

The WAAP was developed by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) and The R&A to nurture talent and provide a pathway for the region’s elite women amateurs to the international stage. The champion will earn starts in three majors, the AIG Women's Open, The Amundi Evian Championship and The Chevron Championship, as well as the Hana Financial Group Championship and will receive an invitation to play in the Augusta National Women's Amateur.

For more information, visit the championship website.

Round 2: Malaysian Scores & Rankings
T7 - 140 (-4) Liyana Durisic 66-74
T12 - 142 (-2) Warda Amira Rawof 70-72, Jeneath Wong 72-70, Audrey Tan 72-70
T22 - 144 (E) Zulaikah Nurziana Nasser 69-75
T45 - 148 (+4) Ng Jing Xuen 78-70

Daryl Low of Singapore won the men’s title in the Johor Amateur Open while Wilayah Persekutuan’s Wang Xin Yao emerged tops in the ladies' event.

The 17-year-old Low carded rounds of 68, 70 and 74 at Palm Resort Golf & Country Club for a four-under-par 212 total, edging Selangor’s Izzuddeen Abdul Rashid (72-74-68) by two shots.

Third place on two-over-par 218 went to another Singapore golfer, Ryan Wong Wey Ren (72-71-75). SUKMA individual gold medallist Malcolm Ting of Sarawak was fourth on three-over-par 219 (72-72-75), one shot ahead of Korea’s Minchul Kim (75-72-73).

The ladies’ title went to Wang with a two-under-par 214 total following rounds of 70, 74 and 70. She finished a massive nine shots clear of runner-up Jocelyn Chee on 223 (70-79-74).

Another Kedah golfer, Maisarah Hezri, also had a 223 total and was placed third on countback (76-70-77).

The concurrent PRGCC Amateur Open saw the nett title go to 15-handicapper Khairul Nizam Othman with a total of seven-under-par 209 (67-71-71).

RESULTS
Men (Top 5)
212 - DARYL LOW (SINGAPORE) 68-70-74
214 - ZIA IZZUDDEEN ABDULRASHID (SELANGOR)72-74-68
218 - RYAN WONG WEY REN (SINGAPORE) 72-71-75
219 - MALCOLM TING SIONG HUNG (SARAWAK) 72-72-75
220 - MINCHUL KIM (KOREA) 75-72-73

Women (Top 5)
214 - WANG XIN YAO (W.PERSEKUTUAN) 70-74-70
223 - JOCELYN CHEE YI MIN (KEDAH) 70-79-74, MAISARAH HEZRI (KEDAH) 76-70-77
225 - PANG HEE JIE (JOHOR) 74-77-74, NUR SYAZANI AMALIA MOHD SHAHZAN (KEDAH) 75-75-75

It was a day of fun out of the sun (and rain) for the 41 golfers who teed off in the inaugural MST Golf Arena ilovegolf Indoor Golf Tournament at MST Golf Arena, The Gardens Mall, on October 26.

Hailed as Malaysia’s first full-fledged indoor golf tournament, the ground-breaking event was open exclusively to members of MST Golf’s ilovegolf loyalty programme, who were joined by Under Armour ambassador, professional golfer Daeng Abdul Rahman, and Puma ambassador, breakdancer Mohd Faridh Mohd Yasin aka Khenobu.

Each participant received handsome goodies consisting of a two-hour MST Golf Arena voucher, Puma belt, TaylorMade cap, adidas water bottle, OnOff teebox set and one sleeve of Wilson Duo Soft golf balls.

Oblivious to the heavy rain that pounded down outside, the participants teed off in air-conditioned comfort accompanied by catchy music. They were split into groups of three or four per bay as play commenced virtually at 12 noon on Pebble Beach Golf Links, one of numerous world-renowned courses available at MST Golf Arena utilising Foresight Sports’ state-of-the-art GCHawk launch monitors.

After around four hours of exciting play, Nasrullah Zulkifli emerged as the gross champion with an excellent score of five-under-par 67, winning a Mizuno JPX Forged Steel Iron Set worth RM5,690.

Runner-up spot on one-under-par 71 was claimed by New Fu Yeong, who took home a TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedge worth RM1,100. Gavin Fung carded two-over par 74 to win a full set of adidas gear worth RM1,000.

“This is my first time playing in an indoor tournament and it was good! It’s a lot more enjoyable since I didn’t need to spend time looking for golf balls and getting my distances,” said Nasrullah.

“The luxury of air-conditioning, along with great food and drinks, really enhanced the overall experience. I’ll certainly join future tournaments as I feel it opens up endless possibilities playing against other people with different demographics,” he added.

Meanwhile, 24-handicapper Yip Yoke Hwa won the nett title and a TaylorMade Stealth driver worth RM3,590 with a score of 15-under par 57. Second place and the prize of Under Armour gear worth RM1,000 went to Richard Low on 14-under par 58, while Daniel Lim grabbed third place on countback with a card for 11-under-par 61 to bag a PXG 0211 putter worth RM999.

Grand Lucky Draw winner Gavin Fung with MST Golf MD KP Low (L) and Cobra Puma Golf's Rick Chong (R)

Those who did not play well enough to win the main prizes still had good reason to stay back for the early dinner prize-giving, not only to enjoy the great food and camaraderie but also to see if they would take back one of 36 lucky draw prizes on offer.

With no aces scored, the two Hole-In-One prizes for the event – a Cobra LTDx Iron Set and a Cobra LTDx Driver worth RM4,299 and RM2,799 respectively – were converted to two grand lucky draw prizes.

Opened for business in January this year, MST Golf Arena at The Gardens Mall is Southeast Asia’s largest indoor golf facility at 40,000 square feet and offers patrons an enticing mix of entertainment, food and retail therapy. The second MST Golf Arena outlet followed in August at Tropicana Gardens Mall in Petaling Jaya.

The Grand Finals of the UUMISM-SportExcel Malaysian Junior Golf Tour 2022 will be held at Ayer Keroh Country Club in Melaka on November 12-14.

The circuit is organised by the Foundation for Malaysian Sporting Excellence (SportExcel), who are involved in the development of elite junior athletes across numerous sports, with the support of the Malaysian Golf Association. For the last four years, it has been title sponsored by the University Utara Malaysia International Secondary School Melaka (UUMISM), which is located within the grounds of Ayer Keroh Country Club.

This year's series saw six preliminary preliminary rounds played at various courses across the country, each attracting between 180 to 200 young talents. Each leg featured a regular two-day junior tour event and a 54-hole Premier Division, with the latter offering World Amateur Golf Ranking points to the two overall winners.

The Grand Finals will feature a field of 193 players comprising 131 boys and 62 girls, and will include juniors from China, Singapore, Japan, Korea and Thailand.

The players will compete for golf scholarships at UUMISM to pursue academic and golfing excellence. Through an order of merit points system, each age/gender category will also offer Player of the Year awards.

UUMISM started sponsoring the SportExcel circuit in 2019 and, following a two-year break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resumed its support this year.

“SportExcel thanks UUMISM for supporting junior golf development and it is hoped that more corporate companies will come forward to support junior sports development in the country,” said SportExcel Executive Director C. Sivanandan.

Founded by Korean professional David Jeong, UUMISM offers Cambridge IGCSE education with an option for students to take up specialised golf programmes. Malaysian golf industry and education stalwart Dr Mohd Rom Muslim took on the Chief Executive Officer role early this year.

For more information, log on to www.sportexcel.org and uumism.edu.my