PISITCHAI AND KEYSER LAY DOWN MARKER AT PGM MAYBANK ADT CHAMPIONSHIP
Kuala Lumpur - Thailand’s Pisitchai Thippong and South Africa’s Mathiam Keyser set the early pace by sharing the first round clubhouse lead with a six-under-par 66 at the season-ending PGM Maybank ADT Championship on Wednesday.
With thunderstorms suspending play for more than three hours at the Saujana Golf and Country Club in the afternoon, play for the opening round of the RM225,000 (approximately US$58,000) could not be completed, leaving all the players from afternoon groups having to return at 7.30am on Thursday.
The PGM Maybank ADT Championship will draw the curtains on what has been a enthralling season on the ADT, which is the secondary circuit of the Asian Tour.
Apart from the crowning of the 2018 ADT Order of Merit champion this week, there is also the exciting race to finish inside the top-seven place on the money list where players will earn their Asian Tour cards for next season.
Pisitchai, who is chasing his first win on the Asian Development Tour, showed his determination by storming out of the blocks early with four birdies to turn in 31.
The 18-year-old continued his charge with another two birdies on holes one and two before dropping his only shot of the day at the par-four four.
However he would recover quickly with another birdie on six to sign for a 66.
“It has been an exciting round. I felt really confident as the round went on and I had a feeling I would go on to do well.
“I kept telling myself not to get too carried away and continue playing the way I’ve been playing since the first hole,”said Pisitchai, who had one top-10 on the ADT in Negeri Sembilan last month.
While Pisitchai is chasing his ADT breakthrough, Keyser is eyeing his fourth win and is hopeful of doing so after enjoying a season which has seen him record seven top-10s.
“It’s always nice to have a bogey-free round especially on a challenging course like this. I kept my discipline well and I’m happy I stuck to my rountine and execute my shots well.
“I didn’t start off the season too well but it got better as it progresses and I obviously looking to end it off on a high note,” said Keyser.
Nitithorn Thippong is meanwhile one shot back of his younger brother after he returned with a 67 to take third place.
“I was really having fun with my golf game today and I enjoyed a great start especially with a birdie-eagle start. It’s still early days but it’s still nice to start well,” said Nitithorn, a one-time ADT winner.
All ADT events are afforded Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) status. The winner of each tournament receives a minimum of six OWGR points while the top-six players and ties earn points on a sliding scale.
