Terengganu, Malaysia: Malaysia’s top-ranked golfer Nicholas Fung is determined to extend his winning streak on home soil at the PGM Terengganu Masters which starts on Wednesday.
The 23-year-old claimed victory on the domestic Tour last week and will be aiming for a second Asian Development Tour (ADT) title at the RM200,000 (approximately US$65,000) event staged at Awana Kijal Golf & Beach Resort.
With Official World Golf Ranking points on offer this week, the Sabahan, currently ranked 511th in the world, hopes to break into the 340th bracket by September 23 to stand a chance to qualify for the World Cup of Golf in November.
He will be among a talented field this week which includes ADT Order of Merit leader James Bowen of the United States, Lindsay Renolds of Canada, Iain Steel of Malaysia, who won on the ADT two weeks ago, Grant Jackson of England and James Byrne of Scotland.
Fung, who is currently third on ADT Order of Merit, is targeting a second ADT victory since claiming his maiden ADT triumph at the PGM-UMW Templer Park Masters in June.
“Every win is meaningful to me. I hope to continue to do better so that I can finish in the top three on the Order of Merit at the end of the season to get my Asian Tour card for 2014,” said the bespectacled Fung.
“I’m happy with my current form but I get easily stressed out over my putting. I usually do better when I putt well. Hopefully I can putt like how I did last week,” added Fung, who shot his career’s lowest round of 62 in the final round of the PGM I&P Group Championship on home soil to win by 11 shots last week.
Like Fung, Carl Santos-Ocampo of the Philippines also nailed a victory on the local tour last week. The Filipino, who finished third at the Aboitiz Invitational on home soil last month, is confident he can win his first ADT title despite playing in his eighth consecutive event.
“I'm always excited to check out new venues. I've heard a lot of positive things about the course and resort this week. I'm happy with my current form but I still need to keep improving to keep myself driven,” said Santos-Ocampo.
“I enjoy playing on the ADT because it can test your game against the up-and-coming players in Asia. I've made many friends out here and every tournament seems like a bit of a reunion. The world ranking points offered is definitely a bonus too,” added the Filipino.
The top three players on the Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn Asian Tour cards for the following year.
All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points, which will be used to determine the field for the World Cup of Golf in Melbourne in November and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Winners on the ADT will receive a minimum of six world ranking points while the top six players and ties will earn points based on a sliding scale.
The inclusion of the PGM UMW Sabah Classic in two weeks’ time will raise this season’s ADT events to a record of 15 tournaments. The Tour staged five events in the first year and hosted eight and 13 events in 2011 and 2012 respectively.