THE 2018 CLEARWATER BAY OPEN PREVIEW
Bay
PGA TOUR
Hong Kong pros Motin Yeung and Jason Hak will come back to their home course to compete for the record prize money at the third Clearwater Bay Open, writes Louie Chan.
Daniel Wong
Left to right: Motin Yeung, currently fifth on the Order of Merit; Jason Hak, youngest golfer to make the cut on a European Tour event at the Hong Kong Open at just 14 28
HK GOLFER・OCT 2018
T
h e 2 018 C l e a r w a t e r B ay Open will offer prize money of about HK$2.36 million, which will be the biggestever purse at a PGA TOUR Series- China event a nd raise the Hong Kong event’s importance in determining the final Order of Merit and places on the 2019 Web.com Tour. The third Clearwater Bay Open will be held at The Clearwater Bay Golf and Country Club from October 11-14, following the Macau Championship (September 27-30) and
Zhuhai Championship (October 4-7), with the three-week swing in the Pearl River Delta concluding a Tour-record 14 events. “The Clearwater Bay Golf and Country Club is delighted to host the Clearwater Bay Open for a third time and this year’s event will be the biggest yet, with the record prize money providing a really exciting incentive for all the players as they finish their season,” said David Hui, Chairman of the Tournament Organising Committee. “There will be many people supporting Clearwater Bay ambassadors Jason Hak and HKGOLFER.COM
HKGOLFER.COM
David Hui, Chairman of the Clearwater Bay Open Tournament Organising Committee
Greg Carlson, Executive Director of PGA TOUR Series-China
PGA TOUR Series-China/Tony Leung
From Clearwater to the
Motin Yeung as they look to finish their season strongly, along with other Hong Kong players who will compete through invitations or qualifying,” Hui continued. “We also welcome back James Marchesani to defend his title after his great win last year. We’ll put on a spectacular event to provide the perfect ending to the Tour as it grows from strength to strength.” Greg Carlson, Executive Director of PGA TOUR Series-China, added: “The Clearwater Bay Open is a hugely popular event for the players, so it was only fitting that it became the season-ending event for the first time. The increase in prize money to RMB 2 million, a record purse for the PGA TOUR Series-China, increases its importance and profile, so we’re all excited about the third Clearwater Bay Open providing a sensational end to a great season.” Hong Kong pros Motin Yeung and Jason Hak attended the press conference alongside Australia’s James Marchesani, who will defend the title that earned him a full card on this year’s PGA TOUR Series-China. Yeung, 24, is currently fifth on the Order of Merit with RMB 518,125 and is bidding to become the first Hong Kong player to earn a card on the Web.com Tour, ‘The Path to the PGA TOUR’. “It has been an amazing season for me. W i n n i ng t he Ku n m i ng Cha mpion sh ip changed my life because I gained a full card on the Tour, which really boosted my confidence and gave me a chance to move to the next level,” said Yeung, who has three other top-10 finishes this year. “I’ve played really consistently this season to stay quite high on the Order of Merit, so I want to play well in the final three events and obviously finish really strongly at the Clearwater Bay Open,” Yeung continued. “It will be a special event for me as a Clearwater Bay ambassador and after representing Hong Kong so many times in international events, so I hope myself, Jason and all the other Hong Kong players can do well.” The top-five on the Order of Merit will automatically earn status on next year’s Web. com Tour, the top-10 will be eligible for the Final Stage of the Web.com Tour Qualifying To u r n a m e nt f r o m D e c e mb e r 6 -9 a n d players 11-25 will be exempt to the Second Qualifying Stage. The PGA TOUR established PGA TOUR Series-China in 2014 as its third international developmental tour, following in the footsteps of PG A TOU R Lat i noa merica a nd t he Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Since its inception, PGA TOUR Series-China players have received Official World Golf Ranking points for top finishes at official tournaments.
HK GOLFER・OCT 2018
29