Taipei: Paul Peterson of the United States believes he is inching closer towards a first Asian Tour win as he heads to the Yeangder Tournament Players Championship (TPC) next week.

The left-handed American will be joined by an elite cast who include Chapchai Nirat of Thailand, a four-time Asian Tour winner, defending champion Prom Meesawat and PGA Tour winner Daniel Chopra of Sweden at the US$500,000 Asian Tour event.

Miguel Tabuena of the Philippines, who finished runner-up last year after losing in a play-off, Mithun Perera of Sri Lanka and Lionel Weber of France will also feature at the Linkou International Golf and Country Club.

Lin Wen-tang, a six-time Asian Tour winner, Chan Shih-chang, Lu Wei-chih, Hsieh Chi-hsien and Chan Yih-shin are among the local stars aiming for glory on home soil.

Peterson, ranked 10th on the Order of Merit, is determined to win his first career title after notching four top-10 results and missing only one cut in eight appearances.

“I really expect some good results heading into the rest of the year. I think I’m really close to breaking through. I’m excited with the upcoming tournaments,” said Peterson.

The American is delighted to return to the Yeangder TPC where he finished tied fourth last year. He will need another good result in Chinese Taipei as he aims to qualify for the CIMB Classic in October.

As of October 26, the leading four golfers from the Order of Merit will earn starting places in the US$8.5 million HSBC Champions in November while the leading 10 players will qualify for the US$7 million CIMB Classic.

“There are so many things in my game that are heading in the right direction. My game feels so good in certain components and I’ve been playing well to try and qualify for the CIMB Classic,” said the 27-year-old.

He said the tied 17th finish in Japan last week was a sign of better things to come as he was on the brink of missing the cut before making a brave comeback.

“I was almost outside the cutline in the tournament and to finish inside the top-20 feels good. I was really grinding it out in the second round in the cold and darkness and to finish the event the way I did is something I will remember for the rest of the year.

“I was not very comfortable with my set-up. I needed to dig deep. I have a lot of work to do. I’m glad this happened earlier rather than feeling uncomfortable later in the year,” Peterson explained.