Harding shot a tremendous 66 in difficult conditions just outside Newcastle in a historic event — marking the Asian Tour’s first ever tournament in the UK.

As the golfers push for glory and a slice of the $2 million purse, there is also the added incentive of the top five golfers booking a place at next week’s money-spinning LIV Golf Individual Series opener at Centurion Club, just outside London.

Before the afternoon starters headed out, Kapur was tied-third alongside Zimbabwean Scott Vincent — who arrived in Newcastle after a 24-hour journey from Japan, without his clubs — and Japan’s Kosuke Hamamoto. While Kapur and co looked on from the clubhouse, no one could catch Harding and Joohyung, with South African Neil Schietekat, Thai pair Kosuke Hamamoto and Kasidit Lepkurte, and Chang Wei-lun from Chinese Taipei joining Kapur on one-under ahead of the third round.

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The post UPDATED: Dubai-based Indian Shiv Kapur stays in touch at historic Asian Golf International Series England with LIV Golf places up for grabs appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Matt Smith
History was made on Thursday as the International Series England teed off at Slaley Hall outside Newcastle — the first Asian Tour event in the UK.

Chinese-Taipei’s Chang Wei-lun upstaged a stellar field to take the first-round lead with a six-under-par 65.

Hot on his heels is Dubai-based Indian veteran Shiv Kapur, who posted a 67 alongside some big names including Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond, Tanapat Pichaikool, and Kasidit Lepkurte, Korean Joohyung Kim and fellow Indian SSP Chawrasia.

Kapur shot a blemish-free four-under days after he urged his fellow Asian Tour players to revel in the opportunities they now have, thanks to Saudi investment in the game

Little-known Chang, a winner on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) in 2017, birdied his last three holes — after a handy tip. “My family gave me some advice before I flew here,” said Chang. “My grandfather is a professional golfer, and my uncle is a coach. They told me the first and third days are the most important. So, I was just trying to stay focused out there. They told me to just play consistently.

“Coming into this week, I wasn’t thinking too much. I have been playing well this season, but I know I can do better. The weather was much cooler than I expected. I was actually more concerned about the weather, so I prepared myself for bad weather conditions, but today’s condition is actually not too bad.”

Six-time Asian Tour winner Jazz said he has really benefited from catching up with his coach Pete Cowen this week.

“My game is getting better, training the right way since beginning of the year. Hitting good, just waiting for the scoring to come back,” said Jazz.

“I haven’t seen my coach Pete Cowen much. I saw him in Dubai but that was a while ago, and I saw him at the British Masters, and he is here this week with G-Mac [Graeme McDowell] so it has been really great, as obviously it’s just me and G-Mac so I can have as much time with him as possible.”

American Sihwan Kim, who currently leads the Asian Tour Order of Merit, started well with a 70, while playing partner Ratchanon ‘TK’ Chantananuwat, the 15-year-old amateur sensation from Thailand, shot a 71.

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The post Dubai-based Shiv Kapur revels at historic Asian Tour International Series as Chang Wei-lun leads in Newcastle appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

As the International Series begins this weekend at Slaley Hall, outside Newcastle — the Asian Tour’s first event in England — Kapur, who lives in Dubai and has travelled around the globe to play in tournaments over his 18-year career, has called on others to follow his example and gain experience at different competitions across the world, while also reaping the enhanced prize money now on offer.

“I think it’s really cool that the Asian Tour is spreading its wings now and we’re going into new territories,” he told the Tour’s website. “Playing in different conditions and playing in different countries … that’s only going to help the players become better. I played in Europe for many years and European players came over and played in Asia for many years. But we (Asian Tour members) didn’t really get the opportunities (to play in Europe), other than maybe in the Dunhill Links or going to Crans Montana (for the Omega European Masters).

“To go and play a course like Slaley Hall, in usually tough conditions, cold and windy, will help the young Asian players — and the established players — to become more all-around players. We played in Korea three weeks ago and we played in Thailand before that. You couldn’t have more of a variation.

“I know a lot of the players look to try and qualify for the Open Championship and this (International Series England) would be the perfect sort of warm-up for that. That’s really great in that it will make the Asian players more well-rounded. It will make them ready for when they go play major championships against the best players in the world.”

Shiv Kapur competed in the Saudi International in February. Asian Tour

Kapur also welcomed the investment from Golf Saudi in the Asian Tour, which has led to a vast increase in prize money and the impeding launch of the LIV Golf Invitational Series. “What’s happening right now with LIV Golf and Golf Saudi has really changed the landscape, I think,” he said.

“There’s been a lot of criticism all around. But I think if you just look at it, golf in general has benefitted from it. Every Tour in the world has pushed their prize monies up as a result of it.

“You know, the PGA Tour for years and years just sat back. Now, as a reaction to this, the Players Championship is suddenly $20 million, the FedEx Cup is more.

“The DP World Tour pushed their prize money up. So, I think the trickle-down effect of this has been great. The Asian Development Tour is playing for more money, and the Challenge Tour is playing for more money. So I think, having done what they’ve done, I think the players are the biggest winners in all of this.”

The Slaley Hall event this weekend is the second of 10 Asian Tour International Series tournaments, carrying a prize purse of $2 million.

The winner will also receive entry into the following week’s LIV Golf Invitational at Centurion Club outside London. That tournament has a purse of $25 million with the champion set to bank $4 million.

“Personally, for myself, and for Asian Tour players, it could be potentially a life-changing week, or weeks,” Kapur said.

“You look at Joohyung Kim, Sadom Kaewkanjana and Sihwan Kim, or whoever is already qualified [for the LIV Golf Invitational]. They’ve got a chance to play for a $4 million first prize! I mean, who wouldn’t want to play for that?

“All the politics aside, these are life-changing amounts of money. Players are finally getting their due.”

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The post Asian Tour International Series: Dubai-based Shiv Kapur hails new opportunities on tour thanks to Saudi investment and LIV Golf appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

With Kent Gray
Past experience tells Shiv Kapur that the ambitious new franchise-based Emirates Amateur Golf League (EAGL) is a viable concept. So much so, he’s put his name behind it. The three-time Asian Tour winner talks about his ambassadorial role for golf’s answer to IPL cricket and has some advice for EGF amateurs keen to put their game under the glare of the television cameras when the Ryder Cup-style league launches in November.

Going back to 2013 when I did my own version of a golf league for professionals in India, it created a lot of buzz and excitement. It’s very exciting to play in and as spectators, it gives you something new and edgy to watch.

I think golf in general needs a bit of a shake-up. If you look at the success of the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup and team events, they really bring in a larger audience. It also attracts a newer audience into the game. People support teams better than they support individuals.

When I sat with [EAGL founder] Mr. Sudesh Aggarwal and his team, I thought it’d be really cool if we had something like this for professionals, but the fact that it is being done for amateurs, I feel like this is the future of golf… the first of many leagues around the world. Now that Dubai is home for me, I thought it is a perfect platform for me to associate with because this is where the real growth of the game will come from.

Being a brand ambassador is an all-encompassing role in a way. It’s about advising them from my experience in the golfing world having been a professional for 16 years now. Also, having done a golf league myself, my learnings to help them not make the mistakes I made.

Why did my league not see a second season? A couple of reasons, I think. I didn’t realise how much hard work it takes. I remember the week before the league, I was playing a Challenge Tour event in Ahmedabad and it ended that I won that week. I literally finished the prize distribution and I was on the phone for three hours after that, trying to set everything up for the next week. I was up every night and talking to my guys, firefighting, dealing with team owners, sponsors, players.

It also kind of coincided with a bit of a financial crisis in India as well. Most of my team owners at the time were in the real estate business which was booming. And when year two came around, I was happy to hand the reins over to somebody else to do it but a lot of the team owners didn’t have the kind of funds that they had the year before. So it kind of died a natural death.

Why will the EAGL be different? I think the number one thing, and Mr. Aggarwal sees eye to eye with me on this, is that the team owners must see value for the sustainability and the long-term success of the league. Your team owners need to go away happy. If a team owners stick with you for a long period of time, everything else falls into place. The most important stakeholder are your team owners.

The second most important stakeholder is the title sponsor. The big value add that you’re giving them, compared to other amateur tournaments, is live television. That broadcast, which has never been done in the amateur game at the club level, I think brings a lot of value.

Photo by Joy Chakravarty

From a team franchise point of view, there’s a value associated from the media side, from the sponsorship side, from the central pool, from the possible merchandise sales. There’s a whole plethora of opportunities and you can actually make it a very viable business venture, let alone the fact that there is so much pride associated with owning a franchise.

If a luxury car company is sponsoring a professional golf tournament, they’re hoping to get the TV coverage and the eyeballs of the fans watching these events. The professional golfer is not necessarily their consumer. Those viewers, those fans are actually inside the ropes in the EAGL. So, you have a direct link to your clients.

This is going to be very exciting for the amateurs. Firstly, you get to experience what professional golfers experience on a day-to-day basis. It’s a feel of a professional tournament, and a feel of a Ryder Cup where you’re playing not just for yourself, but you’re playing for a team or a squad. It’s live on television, so there’s nerves and butterflies.

In a format like this you’re looking for somebody who has a good short game, good course management skills and somebody who’s willing to fight till the end and never gives up. You see a lot of people out there with a lot of ability but they have a meltdown at the first sign of adversity. Mental toughness is something that I would be looking for if I was building [one of the 24-player] squads.

You do need a balanced squad, so you would have a couple of players that can hit it a long way. But overall, if I’m picking purely on one factor, it’s mental toughness… heart and guts. That will see you through any match.

Ian Poulter is a classic example of somebody I’m talking about. He’s got heart. With all due respect to him, you wouldn’t pick him purely on his driving ability or his iron play. He’s a great putter, and he is mentally one of the toughest guys out there. If you could have 24 Ian Poulters in your squad, you will never, ever lose.

How should amateurs prepare for the EAGL? You can sometimes over-prepare I think, hype yourself for an occasion. It’s like back in school, when you have an exam, last-minute cramming isn’t going to help you. I’d say don’t even touch your clubs the day before the tournament. You see this even with rookies on professional tours. They’re out there banging balls the whole of Wednesday and come Thursday morning, they are physically tired.

I’d also say you need to know the courses that you’re playing. You’re not playing your opponent, you’re playing against the course. Work out a good game plan and stick to it. If you’ve decided you’re going to hit 3-wood off the tee, don’t suddenly take out the driver just because you’ve made a bogey on the previous hole and you are mad.

The post Three-time Asian Tour winner Shiv Kapur has lent his name to the new EAGL appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Ian Poulter earned a return to the scene of his most memorable major performance as the final 15 spots for the 146^th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale were filled Tuesday.

The European Ryder Cup legend clinched one of three spots in final qualifying at his home club of Woburn after carding rounds of 70-68. It sets up a return to Royal Birkdale where he finished second to Padraig Harrington in 2008.

“Job done,” the 12-time European Tour winner told TheOpen.com. “Obviously going back to Birkdale after what happened in 2008 is special. You know I thought I had that 15-foot putt (on the 72nd) to maybe win or get in a play-off and then my Irish friend (Padraig Harrington) decided to go bananas on the last five holes.

Job done today @WoburnGC securing a spot in @TheOpen. Woburn was magnificent as always. @JackSinghBrar is going to be a star. Well played. pic.twitter.com/UdhKA8Qmnn

— Ian Poulter (@IanJamesPoulter) July 4, 2017

“It was a great week, my best in a major. All my family and friends were there to see me play and after I finished Katie told me she was pregnant with Lily, so it was happy days that week.”

Poulter now has the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open starting at Portstewart GC Thursday and next week’s Scottish Open at Dundonald to prepare for the year’s third big.

“I would say Birkdale is my favourite Open venue because of 2008 and I’m looking forward to competing there. It’s going to be a busy run. It will be my fourth tournament in a row but it’s about managing my energy levels. But as soon as I get there I will be pumped for the week.”

India’s Shiv Kapur, who made a special 4167-mile round trip from his home in Delhi to play, took the top spot at Woburn with scores of 71 and 65 for an -8, 136 total. England’s Toby Tree earned a start in the biggest championship of his career by tying Poulter for second on six-under-par.

Congrats to @shivkapur62 & @TobiasTree, who join @IanJamesPoulter in qualifying from Woburn for #TheOpen ? pic.twitter.com/Ht7GTGVZkb

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 4, 2017

Sweden’s Jens Dantorp left Woburn frustrated after receiving a two-shot penalty for having 15 clubs in his bag on his opening hole of the day before going on to finish one shot outside the qualifiers, TheOpen.com reported.

Elsewhere, Matthew Southgate won his final qualifying event for the third time in four years and clinched back-to-back wins at Royal Cinque Ports at Deal.

The Englishman won at Sunningdale in 20145 before going on to miss the cut at Royal Liverpool. He failed to qualify for St Andrews the following year and instead spent the week of The Open in recovery from a testicular cancer operation.

Royal Cinque Ports confirmed qualifiers – @SouthgateMatt, @RobDin29 & @AustinConnelly9 – congratulations guys. See you at Royal Birkdale ? pic.twitter.com/PA0qmCk7kD

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 4, 2017

Southgate made an emotional return to The Open with a T12 finish at Royal Troon last year, just missing out on an automatic trip to Royal Birkdale.

Visit TheOpen.com for the full list of qualifying results from Gailes Links, Hillside, Notts Hollinwell, Royal Cinque Ports and Woburn.

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