hk ladies open
From the President October through December is without doubt the busiest time of year for the Hong Kong Golf Association, with numerous events – both at home and abroad – taking place during this cooler and more golffriendly period. Top of the bill is the Hong Kong Open, which will be sponsored for the fourth and final year by UBS. To be played at Fanling from November 12-15, the Open will once again feature many world-class players, with Asia’s first Major winner, Korea’s Yang Yong-eun, and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy headlining the event. I’m sure both players will enjoy the Hong Kong hospitality – and I’m convinced that the golfing public of Hong Kong will go out and support these two golfing superstars. McIlroy, of course, needs no introduction, especially given his performance at last year’s event – the championship’s fiftieth edition – where he lost out to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Wen-tang in one of the most exciting finishes in European Tour history. Yang, who played so brilliantly in overhauling Tiger Woods to win the USPGA Championship in August, will be making his debut at The Hong Kong Golf Club. Given his new-found stature in the game, he’s certain to attract a lot of attention – and I for one look forward to watching him play.
One other golfer I’m particularly looking forward to seeing in action is Steven Lam. 16-year-old Steven, as I’m sure many of you know, is a product of the HKGA’s Junior Golf Development Programme and booked his place in the elite field as a result of winning the Hong Kong Amateur Close Championship earlier on in the year. Since then he has recorded some excellent results, the best of which came at the recent Asia Pacific Panasonic Open, a co-sanctioned event between the Asian and Japanese professional tours. Playing on an invitation, young Steven did himself and Hong Kong proud by making the cut and finishing ahead of many fine pros. It truly was a magnificent accomplishment, something he will remember for the rest of his life. I was also delighted with the performances of Hong Kong golfers at the recent Helene et Henri Hong Kong Ladies’ Open Amateur Championship. Special mention must go to Stephanie Ho, who finished in a share of second place, and 12-year-old Kitty Tam, who played remarkably well to finish in fifth. Developing the game in Hong Kong is a cornerstone of the HKGA – and with results like these, I firmly believe we’re on the right track. —William Chung President HKGA
Orgill Claims Cambodian Crown Hong Kong’s Tim Orgill won the inaugural Angkor Amateur Open played at the Nick Faldo-designed Angkor Golf Resort in Siem Reap mid-August. Orgill (pictured here collecting his trophy from the club’s executive director Holic Tandijono) carded rounds of 73 and 74 for a comfortable five shot victory. “It was a welcome return to form,” said Orgill, a former Hong Kong international. “I played in Scotland the week before and could barely break 90, so this was something of a surprise.”
Tougher DB Test for HK Amateur Competitors at the Masters Golf Fashion Hong Kong Open Amateur Championship, which will be played from November 3-6 November, will face a tougher Discovery Bay course than normal, says Samuel Clayton, general manager of the Lantau club. New tees have been installed on four of the holes – Diamond 1, 2, 3 and 8 – making it a longer test, while green speeds are expected to run at around 10 on the stimpmeter and the rough will be left to grow in the weeks preceding the event. The winner of the championship will receive an invitation to tee it up with the pros at the UBS Hong Kong Open, which is played the following week. Visit www.hkga.com for results. 50
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HK’S RISING STAR
Chihiro Ikeda of the Philippines cruised to a seven stroke victory at the Helene et Henri Hong Kong Ladies’ Open Amateur Championship late September. But it was the performance of 12-year-old local Kitty Tam that really caught the imagination. REPORT BY ALEX JENKINS PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHARLES MCLAUGHLIN
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M
ake no mistake: Ikeda fully deserved her win. Long and generally s t r a i g ht o f f t h e t e e , t he 18 -yea r- old f rom Manila, whose trophy cabinet includes silverware earned from three continents, overwhelmed the field at Discovery Bay Golf Club with twelve birdies and an eagle over the three rounds to capture the title at a canter. Even when she found herself in a spot of trouble – like through sixteen holes of the second round when her lead had been cut to only two shots after some indifferent play – she responded magnificently. A two at the parthree seventeenth was followed by a wonderful chip-in eagle at the long final hole in that instance, which gave her an almost unassailable advantage heading into the final day. It was a classy showing, and it was no great surprise to learn that Ikeda intends to turn professional and try her hand at the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School in January. One expects her to do very well indeed. “I’ve been playing well recently, so I was confident of winning,” said Ikeda, who fired a best-of-the-week 69 in the first round. “I made a few errors but I also made a lot of birdies. It was well worth making the trip over to Hong Kong.” 52
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W h i le t he Fi l ipi na’s f i ne play was a nt icipated, Ta m’s per for ma nce wa s upl i f t i ng. Arguably Hong Kong’s most improved golfer over the past t welve mont h s, K it t y, who doesn’t turn 13 until November, fired opening rounds of 74 and 72 to enter the last day as Ikeda’s nearest challenger. Although she would eventually have to settle for fifth after stumbling a little in the final round, the way she carried herself throughout the course of the championship was extremely impressive for one so young. With her incredibly fluid and balanced swing, Tam is a brilliant ball-striker. Averaging in excess of 230 yards with her driver – a remarkable statistic considering her diminutive size – Kitty doesn’t seem at all fazed when playing in elite company and goes about her business in a wonderfully aggressive manner. Unfortunately, this cavalier approach to the game did result in a couple of mistakes at Discovery Bay – most notably at the par-five twelfth, where she made a quintuple bogey and triple bogey on days one and three – but more often than not it produces birdies by the bucket-load. Even the champion was impressed.
Ladies' lineup (clockwise from left): Chihiro's win was richly deserved; Tiffany Chan assisted by her caddie and fellow national team member Charles Stone; Hong Kong's Christine Kwok was crowned Mid Amateur Division Two champion; Stehpanie Ho had another fine week, seen here congratulating Ikeda and teeing off at the last
“Kitty is going to be a really great player,” said Ikeda after the final round. “She’s long enough and she putts well; she’ll improve as she gets bigger, but I still can’t believe she’s not even a teenager yet. I think she’ll do very well.” Tam’s performance underpinned another strong showing by local players. Stephanie Ho, the reigning Hong Kong Close champion and star of TVB’s singing programme, The Voice, finished in a tie for second alongside China’s Yang Jia-xin, while Tiffany Chan celebrated her recent sixteenth birthday by finishing in sixth place. Ever-improving Michelle Cheung carded a steady 74 on the final day to make it four Hong Kong golfers inside the top-10. With a field of this quality, this speaks volumes about the health of ladies’ golf in the SAR. HKGOLFER.COM
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OVERALL TOP TEN 1 2= 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Chihiro Ikeda Yang Jia-xin Stephanie Ho Huang Hsien-wen Kitty Tam Tiffany Chan Peng Chieh Dolnapa Phudthipinij Tipanun Prakasvudhisarn Michelle Cheung
Philippines China Hong Kong Chinese Taipei Hong Kong Hong Kong Chinese Taipei Thailand Thailand Hong Kong
216 223 223 225 226 227 231 232 234 238
(69-74-73) (76-74-73) (76-73-74) (76-79-70) (76-72-78) (74-76-77) (75-79-77) (81-73-78) (72-82-80) (83-81-74)
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