Champions of 2011 Malaysian Amateur Close

National elite player, Gavin Kyle Green proved he is still the player to beat, when he nabbed the Malaysian Amateur Close title for the third time in a row. Shooting an even-par 72 final round, he finished with a total of 216 for the three-day tournament.

Gavin, 18, held on to his stride since yesterday and produced a steady round of five birdies, three bogeys and one double-bogey to triumph over day one leader Ng Choo Teck by five strokes.

Choo Teck, 19, fired a disappointing three-over-par 75 to settle for the runner-up spot with five-over-par 221while Abel Tam, who closed his round today with a 71 was third on 8-over par 224 total.

"It feels good to be the champion for the third time in a row as it is not an easy feat to achieve," exclaimed Gavin. "I was aware of the pressure and was quite nervous at the start of the week but I managed to keep my cool. My long game has improved tremendously, currently I'm working on my short game, sharpening it for the Maybank Malaysian Open."

The clear weather today also witnessed Isza Fariza Ismail holding tight on her lead and rounded the tournament with nine-over par 225 to take the top honor and the daily gross for day one in the Ladies category. "I'm glad that I managed to pull through today. The pressure was definitely there to maintain my lead," said the 17-year old lass. "The highlight would be on the 17th hole where I birdied and squared the next hole with my flight members."

The Kuala Lumpur Amateur champion, Iman Ahmad Nordin came in second with 226 while 16-year old Nur Durriyah Damian took third placing. A total of 76 men and 13 ladies battled it out for the coveted title. This tournament is also one of the three qualifying events for the 109th Malaysian Amateur Open that will be held at the A' Famosa Golf Resort on May 19-22.

The top 15 men and 11 ladies from today's event qualified for the Malaysian Amateur Open.

RESULTS
Top 5 Men
216 Gavin Kyle Green 73-71-72
221 Ng Choo Teck 70-76-75
224 Abel Tam 82-71-71
225 Lam Yu Shuen 76-77-72
226 Tan Wei Chean 73-79-74

Top 5 Ladies
225 Isza Fariza Ismail 73-75-77
226 Iman Ahmad Nordin 79-71-76 Nur Durriyah Damian 74-76-76
229 Vivienne Chin Ven Yi 73-78-78
230 Janice Ling Hui Shin 83-76-71

Seung-yul back to defend Malaysian Open title this month

http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2011/4/1/sports/8392452&sec=sports

PETALING JAYA: South Korean Noh Seung-yul (pic) will be back to defend the Maybank Malaysian Open title in the tournament, which will be held at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club from April 14-17.

Other former champions have also joined the cast, among them American Anthony Kang, Thai Thongchai Jaidee, Swede Peter Hedblom and Scot Alastair Forsyth.


Seung-yul, whose triumph at last year’s Malaysian Open helped him become the youngest-ever player to win the Asian Tour Order of Merit at 19 years old, recently qualified for his first WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship as one of the top 64 players in the world rankings.

“I had to adjust to the scorching weather the first time I played in Malaysia,” he said.

“This time, I’m mentally and physically prepared to withstand the heat in order to defend my title.”

Seung-yul added that winning the title last year was exceptionally meaningful because he managed to defeat his idol, K.J. Choi.

The 50th edition of the Malaysia Open have also attracted the participation of some of the best golfers in the world. In the fray are world No. 1 Martin Kaymer of Germany, Ireland’s Rory McIlroy and South Africans Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel.

Points earned at the Open will go towards the Asian Tour Order of Merit and will give players a chance for the season-ending Dubai World Championship.

The four-day co-sanctioned event by both the Asian and European Tours offers a total purse of US$2.5mil.