India’s Anirban Lahiri tied 7th in King’s Cup golf

Hua Hin, Thailand: Anirban Lahiri scored birdies on three of the four par-five holes to card a one-under 71 under tough scoring conditions and forced his way into top-10 at the USD 1 million King's Cup Golf here on Saturday. Lahiri moved up from tied 14th overnight to tied seventh at five-under 211 for 54 holes.

Also getting into the top-10 was Rahil Gangjee (71) at three-under 213. SSP Chowrasia (72) moved up from tied 30th to 20th at one-under 215 and Jyoti Randhawa (73) was two-over for three rounds. Only four of the nine Indians who started made the cut.


Meanwhile, Korea’s Mo Joong-kyung took his place atop the leaderboard with a battling third round two-under-par 70.

With swirling wind speed that reached as high as 36 kph during the day, Mo stood tall amidst the gusty conditions to mark his card with six birdies and four bogeys for a three-day total of nine-under-par 207.


Philippines’ Angelo Que carded the day’s lowest score after firing a 67 to take a share of second place alongside home favourite Prom Meesawat at the Black Mountain Golf Club.

Three-time Asian Tour winner Chapchai Nirat of Thailand matched his opening round of 68 to take fourth place while compatriot Prayad Marksaeng made his move with a 71 to share fifth place with Sweden’s Rikard Karlberg at the Asian Tour season-ending event.

Three bogeys in his first five holes gave no indication that Mo would be able to make his charge towards the top.

However, two birdies on the sixth and eight holes changed that equation as players were blown off course.

“At the start, I didn’t expect the winds to be so strong. I knew it would be strong but didn’t expect it to be that strong. I managed to figure out how to combat the winds and I played pretty well coming down the stretch,” sad Mo.

The 42-year-old, who had credited a disciplined fitness regime for helping him keep pace with his younger rivals, then asserted his authority with another birdie on the 13.


He dropped another shot on the par-four 15th but would storm back to the summit by closing with three birdies starting from the 16th hole.

“I’m still feeling fine after 54 holes,” said Mo of his fitness level.

“I’ve won before and I know what it’s like to be in the final round and playing the game of your life for the last 18 holes. I just got to do what I’ve got to do which is to play each hole at a time and give myself lots of chances,” added the two-time Asian Tour winner.

Que also gave a lesson on how to tame the winds when he made his comeback after a disappointing second round 75.

“The winds were the strongest that I’ve experienced the whole week. Through my experience of playing on the Asian Tour, you need to know how to play in different conditions.

I’ve played in the British Open and the wind was strong and it was colder. Back home, I play on a course with similar wind conditions. You never know when you might have to play in a typhoon or calm weather conditions,” said Que.

The affable Filipino, who is feeling excited with the impending arrival of his second child in May, was equally delighted with his round where he traded seven birdies against two bogeys.

“I just feel happy I can shoot five-under under these conditions. I’m not surprised, but just happy. I’m not going to think about the win. I just want to go out and have fun,” said Que.

Meanwhile Prom remains confident of ending his wait for his second Asian Tour win despite losing his share of the lead for the first time this week.

“The wind was so strong especially on my first seven holes. I tried to control my tee shot and put it in a good position but my putting wasn’t great.

It is still a very good position to be in as anything can happen. The door is still open for many players like myself, Angelo Que and Chapchai (Nirat),” said Prom.

The Thai, who still stands an outside chance of sealing his place with Team Asia at the inaugural EurAsia Cup presented by DRB-HICOM which will tee off in Malaysia in March, knows the importance of a win by a Thai and has promised to do his best.

“I just want to play against the golf course and stick to my game plan. It is going to be very special if a Thai player can win this tournament as that will give them something to cheer about,” said Prom.

For the first time ever, the King’s Cup will be broadcast live, over four rounds on the Asian Tour’s global television platform which reaches over 180 countries and 640 million homes, ensuring extensive worldwide exposure for the popular beach resort town of Hua Hin, sponsors, and the Kingdom of Thailand itself.

Leading Scores after round 3 of the King's Cup Golf Hua Hin being played at the par 72, 7386 Yards Black Mountain GC course (a- denotes amateur):

207 - MO Joong-kyung (KOR) 69-68-70.
208 - Angelo QUE (PHI) 66-75-67, Prom MEESAWAT (THA) 65-71-72.
209 - Chapchai NIRAT (THA) 68-73-68.
210 - Prayad MARKSAENG (THA) 68-71-71, Rikard KARLBERG (SWE) 65-71-74.
211 - Anirban LAHIRI (IND) 69-71-71.
212 - Scott HEND (AUS) 72-71-69, Mardan MAMAT (SIN) 71-70-71.
213 - Rahil GANGJEE (IND) 71-71-71, Antonio LASCUNA (PHI) 71-70-72, Poosit SUPUPRAMAI (THA) 73-68-72, Carlos PIGEM (ESP) 71-69-73, KANG Sung-hoon (KOR) 72-68-73, Alex CEJKA (GER) 70-69-74.

Selected scores

215 - Siddikur RAHMAN (BAN) 71-73-71
216 - Thaworn WIRATCHANT (THA) 74-71-71, Arnond VONGVANIJ (THA) 71-74-71, LAM Chih Bing (SIN) 70-74-72