Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong prevailed in the Indonesia Open on Sunday after a gripping finish at Pondok Indah Golf Course — confirming he has recaptured the kind of form that established him as one of the region’s most exciting young golfers last year.

Having started the day with a comfortable five-shot margin, he was pushed all the way to the finish line, closing with an even-par 72, for an 18-under-par total, and a two-stroke triumph over Australian Scott Hend, Steve Lewton from England and Chinese-Taipei’s Lee Chieh-po, who all carded 68s.

Hend, chasing his 11th win on the Asian Tour and first in four years, came closest to catching him but, playing in the group ahead, hit his tee shot on the par-five 18th out of bounds and made a costly double-bogey.

Nitithorn had appeared to be in complete control at the turn after two birdies and no dropped shots on the outward half to open a substantial lead on 20 under but dropped shots on 12 and 13 to give hope to his three nearest challengers.

However, he was able to par home to secure his third Asian Tour title and put behind him a poor first half to the season, when he was shadow of the player who recorded two breakthrough victories last year, in The DGC Open presented by Mastercard and the International Series Singapore.

Said the 26-year-old, whose nickname is ‘Fever’: “Wow, amazing! Like, I feel so happy about this win you know. Back the last few weeks I didn’t feel confidence like this, but after I played some rounds before, I came here and I just figured out my swing, got some good feelings and transferred to this tournament. Like I said the past few weeks, I was like how to hit, even how to impact the ball very well, I really struggled on my swing. But right now, I feel better, amazing!”

Nitithorn had not finished in the top-10 in nine starts this year until this week and had failed to progress to the weekend four times.

“I didn’t think I was going to win this year to be honest, but I just planned to be just keep doing my best,” he said.

“I was really excited when I finished hole number nine, and on hole number 10, this is funny, my caddie lost my towel and I just freaked out a little bit.”

He earned a cheque for $90,000 and moved into 11th place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.

The next stop on the Asian Tour is the International Series England at Close House, in Newcastle, from 17-20 August.

The post Relieved Nitithorn back to his best after claiming Indonesia Open appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong made a big step towards the 2023 Indonesia Open title on Saturday, carding a five-under 67 to secure a five-shot lead going into the final round.

Nitithorn started the day in second place after rediscovering his form with a bogey-free round of 65 on Friday. He dropped two shots during the third round, but seven birdies were enough to consolidate his lead over Chang Wei-lun of Chinese Taipei who holds solo second in the $500,000 Asian Tour event.

Back-to-back birdies for Nitithorn Thippong from the 3rd hole ??https://t.co/QQChqRqIrM #MandiriInopen2023 #whereitsAT pic.twitter.com/9S9hkPjJZT

— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) August 5, 2023

“I played really well today and just kept hitting the ball on the fairway and just tried to hit the greens,” he said after his round at Pondok Indah Golf Club in Jakarta, the 11th event in the 2023 Asian Tour season.

“I think I made 16 greens today, just missed only two, but my putting I just struggled a little bit, like on the short putts,” he explained. “I don’t know why but I felt a little bit of pressure when I putted, so yeah, just the stroke wasn’t so good on the short putts.

“It didn’t feel easy, I was just really focused until hole number 13 or 14 and I still didn’t know how many I was under until I asked my caddie. Golf is really hard, but I played really well, so I hope I will play this good again tomorrow.”

In third place, a strong group threatened to make inroads on the lead, including Lee Chieh-po of Chinese Taipei and England’s Steve Lewton.

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Asian Tour rookie MJ Viljoen took the surprise second-round lead in the Mandiri Indonesia Open thanks to a stunning 10-under-par 62 at Pondok Indah Golf Course in Jakarta.

The South African, playing in his fourth Asian Tour event, made an eagle and eight birdies to go to 14-under for the $500,000 event, and take a one-shot lead over Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong, who carded a 65.

Canadian Richard T Lee fired a 66 and is a shot further back.

A total of 66 players, including one local amateur, survived the halfway cut set at two-under-par at the Mandiri Indonesia Open 2023.

?https://t.co/QQChqRrghk#MandiriInOpen2023 #whereitsAT pic.twitter.com/h7vSrGB3xm

— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) August 4, 2023

“I think I was in a zone today you know. I didn’t really think I was gonna go that low,” said Viljoen, who started on 10 and was playing in the last group out. “I think that was my personal best today, by one, so it just kind of happened. I was doing my thing and when I got off the course it was plenty of birdies.

“I think I was just focused on doing my thing and following my process. So, you know, kind of lost count [of the birdies] and just did my thing, and you know, it was a good day.”

As preferred lies were being played his round could not officially count among the lowest scores on the course.

The 27-year-old is a two-time winner in South Africa and turned professional in 2014.

In a tie for fourth, four behind pace-setter Viljoen, are first-round leader Sarit Suwannarut (70) from Thailand, Chinese-Taipei’s Chang Wei-lun (68), Scott Hend (69) from Australia, and Korean Doyeob Mun (70).

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Sarit Suwannarut marked his opening round of 64 at the Indonesia Open with two stunning eagles to take a one stroke lead into Friday at Pondok Indah Golf Club in Jakarta.

It was the first time Sarit has hit two eagles in a tournament round, and he is now looking for the double after winning the Indonesian Masters at the end of last year.

“I’m feeling really good, feeling comfortable. It’s been a challenging year. Play has not been really good in the first half but I’m feeling better now so hopefully I can keep going,” he said after his round.

From way downtown ??

Sarit Suwannarut sinks this on 18 for his second eagle of the day and signs for a 64 to lead by one ?https://t.co/QQChqRrghk #MandiriInOpen2023 #whereitsAT pic.twitter.com/wggVSQj2ww

— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) August 3, 2023

Five birdies and one bogey saw Sarit post an eight-under 64 at the  $500,000 Asian Tour event.

“My driver and irons were all right today, but the main thing was the putting, it was really good,” he said. “I saw the line on every hole, and everything seemed to drop.

“On the last, the tee shot wasn’t good, in the left bunker, but I got a good lie and hit it to the front of the green. I made the putt somehow,” he laughed.

Korea’s Woohyun Kim (65), who took advantage of an unexpected eagle in the morning session to post the early clubhouse lead on seven-under, said he appreciated his good fortune but felt he was ready to compete after a disappointing showing at the event last year.

Starting on the back nine, he set the early pace by scoring four birdies, including a run of three on his way to the par five 18th hole, but the hole-out from around 30 yards caught him by surprise.

“It was a good start today, I made birdie on the first hole. On the 18th, I thought my third shot was a little bit long but the bounce was soft and it rolled in to the hole. It looked like it would end up a few feet away but it got to the hole and made eagle. I wasn’t expecting it, but I’ll take it.”

Kim said after his round that it been an improvement over his previous performance in the event. “I played here last year, I liked the course and made the cut but finished almost last. Today I’m playing better than before, my irons, all shots are better than last year.”

A birdie finish on his last hole saw Australia’s Scott Hend (65) edge into a share of second place with Kim and the Australian was bullish on his prospects for the week.

“Yeah, it’s alright. I mean we had lift, clean and place out there so it’s playing a bit easier obviously. Scoring is going to be quite low this week because the greens are all right and they are quite receptive so I’ve just got to keep plugging along. It’s nice to get a good first round instead of trying to chase all the time and let’s see if we can have another low one tomorrow.”

Scott Hend. Asian Tour

Despite being an Asian Tour veteran who is turning 50 in 12 days’ time, Hend feels he is still able to compete with the younger guys on tour.

“It’s really no difference, is it? I’m still fit, I think I’m fitter than a lot of the young guys out here. I intend to play golf for a long time and hopefully they keep seeing me in the rear view mirror catching them,” he aid after his round.

Korea’s Doyeob Mun (65) joined the group in second with eight birdies and a dropped shot on the ninth hole.

Ryo Hisatsune (66) shares fifth place on six-under-par with Richard T Lee of Canada, Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong and Chang Wei-lun of Chinese Taipei.

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Sadom Kaewkanjana always exudes calmness and composure but at this week’s Indonesia Open that will be even more apparent as, just last month, the Thai star concluded his two-week monkhood.

With the main aim of giving his family considerable credit, he was ordained a monk for a short period of time, something Thai men, after they turn 20, often chose to do, entering a monastery to study dharma — the teachings of Buddha.

“I was ordained because I wanted to return the greatest merit and repay my parents,” said Sadom, who tees off in Indonesia’s National Open on Thursday at Pondok Indah Golf Course. “During this time of ordination, it was of great value and experience, even though the ordination was a short period of time.”

As was well documented, in 2017, his compatriot Jazz Janewattananond went through the same process and a month later he won his first event on the Asian Tour — the Bangladesh Open.

Said Jazz at the time: “They [the monks] just make you see things in a different perspective. Golf is not the biggest thing in your life.”

And, back in 2014, Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat, the Asian Tour No. 1 at the time, also swapped his golfing attire for a robe to be ordained a monk for a week.

Sadom Kaewkanjana ?? shows how to play the 411-yard par-four second hole at @golfpondokindah. ?‍#MandiriInOpen2023 #whereitsAT pic.twitter.com/E7qs5ao9WL

— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) August 2, 2023

Sadom will be hoping the special spiritual experience has a positive effect on the golf course. He is currently in sixth place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit (OOM), following a strong start to the year, which saw him place fourth in the season-opening Saudi International, and then joint second in the International Series Oman, the following week.

However, he has missed the cut in his last three events and will be looking to bounce back this week in an event that marks the start of the second half of the season.

He said: “I was cut off from the rest of the world when I was ordained, that made me feel more calm. I was able to concentrate more, which will help me improve my game of golf.”

His time in the temple required him to shave his head and eyebrows, wake up at 4.30am, meditate, and clean the temple grounds, eating just one meal a day.

The 25-year-old is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour; the first coming in the Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open in 2019, before he recorded a famous win in one of Asia’s most prestigious events, the Singapore Open in 2022.

The second victory was expected to open the floodgates to more success but while he has regularly been in contention since then, and finished third on last year’s OOM, a third win has been elusive so far.

That could change this week, though, with the supremely talented golfer, boasting a textbook swing, seeing the world and his ambitions in the game in a different light.

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Gaganjeet Bhullar’s record in the Mandiri Indonesia Open is second to none — he clinched the title for a record third-time last year — and ahead of this week’s tournament, which starts on Thursday at the renowned Pondok Indah Golf Course, he says he will look for inspiration from those remarkable performances.

“You know that success will inspire me a lot,” said the 35-year-old from Amritsar. “They basically will remind me of all the good shots, all the good moments I’ve had in Indonesia and I’m just hoping that I will play as good as I played last year.”

Having triumphed in 2013 and 2016, the latter also at Pondok Indah, a reinvigorated Bhullar, fully recovered from a bad bout of COVID at the start of the year, made it a third title last season by storming to a two-shot victory over compatriot Rashid Khan and England’s Steve Lewton.

Bhullar was at his imperious best on the last day on the Robert Trent Jones Jnr-designed layout, carding a bogey-free seven-under 65 for a tournament total of 20-under.

“I remember clearly pretty much every hole. I got off to a really good start. I was paired with Rashid Khan and Atiruj Winaicharoenchai and I remember those two guys they also played well actually but I got off to a good start,” said the Indian, who was marking his return to his home continent after four years focusing on Europe and who dedicated his triumph to his 11-month-old daughter.

“I was driving the ball well, I didn’t miss any fairways on Sunday, hit my iron shots on the green and I think I just putted well. Once you’re on the positive mojo it just multiplies over and over. I’m glad I just closed it well and that was another victory under the belt.”

He has started this year slowly by his own high standards and is currently 50th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, having played eight of the 10 events so far, with his best result coming on home ground at The DGC Open, where he tied for sixth.

Words from the defending champion @gagsbhullar ?️#MandiriInOpen2023 #whereitsAt pic.twitter.com/lVXlTQGKNE

— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) August 1, 2023

However, he is hoping that his recent break from the game will help get him back on track.

“I basically took two months off, just over two months, I think close to nine weeks off, and this was the first time I actually got such a long break ever since I’ve turned pro in the last 17 years,” he said.

“I was actually looking forward to this break and there were so many things which I’ve worked on during my off season from my fitness right to my driving speed to my playing ability.

“I played so many rounds on the golf course with a mindset of scoring well, I was mentally fatigued, so I personally feel that this break was much needed, and I have utilised it in a great way, in a structured manner. Now, I’m actually mentally and physically prepared and ready for the second half.”

He plans to play pretty much all the events from here on in, which will be at least 14 more, with this week’s event signifying the commencement of the second-half of the season.

His first victory on the Asian Tour also came in Indonesia at the President Invitational in 2009. That win set in a motion an outstanding career in Asia, which has also seen him claim the Macau Open twice.

“The majority of the golf courses in Indonesia and Thailand and Malaysia all really suit my style of play and over the years I’ve just felt very comfortable, and maybe it’s something to do with the weather, I feel very comfortable playing in hot and humid weather,” said the Indian, his country’s number one amateur in 2004 and 2005.

“Golf, it’s a game of clicks, one thing leads to the next. One good shot will keep on making a new thread of good shots, so I think that has happened over the past few years and that was one of the reasons why I’ve won their multiple times.”

Bhullar will have his work cut out this week though with a strong field in attendance, led by Filipino Miguel Tabuena, second on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, and Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana and Gunn Charoenkul as well as Taichi Kho from Hong Kong — all ranked in the top 10.

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The 2023 edition of the Indonesia Open will return this year once again with Mandiri on board as the title sponsor and Jakarta’s Pondok Indah Golf Course as the host venue.

The time-honoured event – so memorably won last season by Indian star Gaganjeet Bhullar, for a record-setting third time – will be played from 3-6 August, and boasts prize money of US$500,000. It will be the 11th stop of the season on the Asian Tour.

Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & CEO of Asian Tour, said: “We were privileged to witness a great moment in Asian golf history last year when Gaganjeet Bhullar claimed Indonesia’s national Open for a third time – something no player has achieved.

“His victory added another thrilling chapter to the tournament’s rich history. Indeed, the event has given us so many great moments and, as ever, we look forward to returning there in a few months, at the mid-point of our season. We thank Mandiri, the Indonesian Golf Association and Pondok Indah Golf Course for their much-valued support and commitment.”

The prestigious tournament is also the next event on the Asian Tour following last month’s Kolon Korea Open – where victory went to American Seungsu Han. And it precedes the Asian Tour’s trip to the UK later in the month for the International Series England and the St Andrews Bay Championship – an inaugural event, also part of this year’s 10-leg International Series.

Watershed moment for Gaganjeet Bhullar. Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Local fans will have a firm eye on their rising star Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra who, as an amateur, led after the third round in 2019, before finishing fourth behind the champion Miguel Carballo from Argentina.

The Indonesian has since turned professional and won three times on the Asian Development Tour – including this year’s season-opening Singha Phuket Open in May

Last year at Pondok Indah, Bhullar produced one of the finest rounds of his career, a bogey-free seven-under-par 65 for a formidable tournament total of 20 under and a two-shot victory over England’s Steve Lewton and Indian Rashid Khan.

The Indian put on a putting masterclass, holing brilliant birdie putts and crucial par saves, to record his 10th win on the Asian Tour and first since 2018. He has won more titles on the Asian Tour than any other player from his country. Bhullar claimed the event in 2013 and 2016 – with the latter win also at Pondok Indah.

Pondok Indah has been rated as one of Indonesia’s leading golfing courses for more than 40 years. They have hosted many international tournaments, including the World Cup of Golf in 1983, and boasts a Robert Trent Jones Jnr designed course, opened in 1976.

The Indonesia Open was able to return to the calendar last year following a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dating back to 1974, its roll of honour includes late, great American Payne Stewart (1981) and fellow Major champion Padraig Harrington of Ireland (2014).

Other international golfers who have savoured success in the championship include New Zealander Frank Nobilo, Australian Craig Parry and South African Justin Harding.

Among the famous Asian players to have had their names inscribed on the trophy are Frankie Minoza of the Philippines, Thais Thongchai Jaidee and Thaworn Wiratchant, and Chinese Taipei’s Lu Hsi-chuen and Lu Chien-soon.

Kasiadi is the only Indonesian golfer to have lifted the trophy, his triumph coming in 1989.

The post Mandiri Indonesia Open to return to Pondok Indah Golf Course at mid-way point of 2023 season appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Khan had started the day in front with Thailand’s Atiruj Winaicharoenchai but Bhullar was unstoppable, making three birdies on the front, and four on the back – which included three on the trot from the 13th.

Bhullar showed no sign of Sunday nerves and put on a putting masterclass, holing brilliant birdie shots and crucial par saves, to record his 10th win on the Asian Tour and first since 2018. He has also won more titles on Tour than any other player from his country.

“I played like a champion tee to green and gave myself so many birdie opportunities,” said the 34-year-old, who won this event in 2013 and 2016.

“I was riding high on confidence, hit the ball really good. It is a great week, I had a lot of positive memories having won this tournament two times previous, that was definitely on my subconscious mind. The goal was just to go out there and give my 100 per cent.

“This is my first win after becoming a father and I would like to dedicate this win to my 11- month-old daughter. Also, after over two difficult years because of COVID it’s just amazing the Asian Tour is back in this wonderful country.”

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