Mauritius: Young talent Jeunghun Wang of Korea will be aiming to extend his rich vein of form when he heads to the second edition of the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open which gets underway on Thursday.
Wang, who enjoyed a breakthrough victory in Morocco last week, moved-up over 40 places on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) where he currently sits in a career-high of 88th position.
This remarkable achievement will give the 20-year-old Korean added motivation to shoot for glory in the €1 million (approximately US$1.09 million) event staged at the Four Season Golf Club Mauritius in Anahita.
“This win will definitely open up a lot of opportunities for me. I get to play in bigger tournaments now and I’m really excited because I can play against some of the best players in the world,” said Wang, placed sixth on the Order of Merit with a current haul of US$280,497.
Wang, who has notched four top-10s on the Asian Tour so far this season, showed no fear when playing against some of the best stars in Europe last week.
He will draw inspiration from his maiden success when he takes aim at more glory in what is the first ever tri-sanctioned event by the Asian, European and Sunshine Tours.
“It’s a dream come true. I am looking forward to play in Mauritius. The game is feeling great and I’m playing with much confidence now,” added Wang, who has been honing his skills on the Asian Tour since turning professional in 2012.
Singaporean veteran Mardan Mamat, who was the best Asian Tour finisher in third place last year, will also feature in the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open alongside defending champion George Coetzee of South Africa and Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium.
Young Filipino Miguel Tabuena, Korea’s Soomin Lee and Australian Scott Hend, ranked second, third and fifth on the current money list, will headline the Asian Tour charge at the world-famous holiday isle.
Also in the fray are Indian duo Arjun Atwal and Jeev Milkha Singh, China’s Li Haotong, Mithun Perera of Sri Lanka, Chinese Taipei’s Lu Wei-chih, American Berry Henson, Thailand’s Danthai Boonma, Natipong Srithong and Phachara Khongwatmai.