Chang Hwa, Chinese Taipei: The US$160,000 Taifong Open will be reduced to 54 holes with the first round starting on Friday due to the inclement weather caused by Typhoon Matmo which hit Chinese Taipei on Wednesday.

Officials came to a decision to reschedule the opening round to Friday to ensure that the Taifong Golf Club is in playable condition for the Asian Development Tour (ADT) event.

“Due to the adverse weather conditions caused by Typhoon Matmo which lashed Taiwan on Wednesday morning, the course at the Taifong Golf Club has to undergo an extensive restoration to ensure proper playing conditions before we can start the tournament,” explained Adnan Othman, the Taifong Open Tournament Director.

“The restoration can only begin on Thursday as the Typhoon Matmo is expected to leave Chinese Taipei by then. Because of this, we have decided to reduce the Taifong Open to a 54-hole tournament and to start the first round on Friday,” Adnan added.

The Taifong Open will be the second ADT event in 2014 to be reduced to 54 holes after the PGM CCM Rahman Putra Championship in Malaysia earlier this year.

“This is my first encounter with a typhoon! It didn’t really affect me. I guess I will have to make use of the free time to do more stretching. Hopefully I can get some practice tomorrow,” said Pavit Tangkamolprasert of Thailand, an ADT winner.


ADT Order of Merit leader Chan Shih-chang of Chinese Taipei remains focused on winning his fourth ADT title despite the weather conditions.

“I think the local players are used to situations like this because we get quite a bit of typhoons here. It’s pretty much the same for me. I will still work towards my goal with the same mindset and attitude,” said Chan.

Typhoon Matmo is the first typhoon to make landfall in Chinese Taipei this year. Winds of up to 173 kilometres per hour forced financial markets, offices and schools to be shut down while the Taifong Open’s pro-am was also cancelled on Wednesday.

This season, the ADT will reward the top five players on the final Order of Merit with playing rights for the 2015 Asian Tour season. Previously, only the top-three players were offered Asian Tour cards.