Sabah, Malaysia: Malaysia’s top-ranked golfer Nicholas Fung hopes to savour success in his home town when he tees up at the PGM-UMW Sabah Classic on Wednesday.
The 23-year-old, who hails from Sabah, enjoyed a career high when he won his maiden ADT title at the PGM-UMW Templer Park Masters in June.
He is tipped to spearhead the home charge at the RM180,000 (approximately US$60,000) ADT event alongside compatriot Iain Steel, who currently leads on the ADT Order of Merit after recording two consecutive wins in August.
Fung and Steel will enter an intense challenge at the Sabah Golf and Country Club as they aim to boost their positions on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) where they are currently placed 511th and 518th respectively.
The duo is vying to become the best-ranked Malaysian on the OWGR to secure a spot at the lucrative CIMB Classic which will be held in Malaysia this October. The cut-off date for the event is on October 6.
Fung, who is currently ranked fourth on the ADT Order of Merit, is hoping to secure his second ADT victory in front of his family and friends.
“I’m excited to play on my home ground. I may get a chance to play in the upcoming CIMB Classic and the World Cup if I continue to play well and win again. I know it won’t be easy but I’ll try my best. It is nice to have an ADT event here in Sabah. My family and friends will be coming here to watch me play and it will be nice if I can win in front of them,” said Fung.
Fung hopes his familiarity of playing at the Sabah Golf and Country Club will give him an edge over the other talented players.
“I’m hitting the ball very well but my short game has let me down recently. I arrived in Sabah earlier to work on my short game. The greens here are quite tricky so that will be a challenge,” added Fung.
Other likely contenders include local hopes Shaaban Hussin and Airil Rizman. American James Bowen, Lindsay Renolds of Canada and Grant Jackson of England, who are currently ranked second, third and fifth on the ADT Order of Merit respectively will also feature in the event.
The PGM UMW Sabah Classic, sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the PGM Tour, will raise this season’s ADT events to a record of 15 tournaments.
The top three players to finish on the ADT Order of Merit at the end of this season will receive Asian Tour cards for 2014.
All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points, which will be used to determine the field for the World Cup of Golf in Melbourne in November and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
The ADT was launched in 2010 with five tournaments before growing to eight in 2011 and 13 last year. It has proven to be a successful platform for upcoming players to gain entry into the region’s premier Tour, which is celebrating its milestone 10th season in 2013.
