Austin, Texas, March 29: Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand bowed out of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play on Friday, losing two-up to Scotsman Russell Knox in a match which proved inconsequential.

With Australia’s Marc Leishman easily securing a third straight win against American Bryson DeChambeau in the group to progress into the Round of 16 at Austin Country Club, Kiradech was left to pick up the pieces of a campaign which gave him plenty to think about as he prepares to head into the year’s first major, the Master Tournament in two weeks’ time.

“My short game is so bad. I can’t get up-and-down from any par-five. It’s quite disappointing this week. No birdies and then chipped in the water on 12 and make a seven to lose the hole. It’s a turnaround. And I didn’t have any confidence around the greens. I have a lot of work to do,” said Kiradech, who made it into the quarterfinals here last year.

He will take the next two weeks off to sharpen his game which has proven to be inconsistent in his first full season on the PGA TOUR. Last month, he finished tied-third at the WGC-Mexico Championship but the Thai star has missed numerous cuts as well which has left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“I still have to work on my game a little bit. I’m not far off,” he said. “It’s some technique which is not right. I’ve been struggling for last two or three years. Not chipping as well as I used to do. I still have to work.

“It’s been up-and-down. I mean, I miss a lot of cuts this year. I hope I can do better but first year on the TOUR is always a struggle I guess. I just want to go again and try to get my best form back. Doing the same thing – practicing hard and playing well and hopefully I just get what I used to do,” he said.

China’s Haotong Li admitted he got ‘lucky’ as he progressed into the Round of 16 after prevailing with a three-foot birdie on the first extra hole against Sweden’s Alex Noren to emerge as the lone Asian to advance into the weekend play.

“The whole day was just like a roller coaster,” said a relieved Li.

“And I didn’t play solid. I was a little bit off with my tee shots and I think that was it. And on my final hole on 18, I was just a little bit nervous and hit it a little soft and it didn’t get enough break. Hands were a little bit tight. I felt like if it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t, just play good the next time.”

Li split the fairway with a solid drive in the playoff hole against Noren, whom he had beaten five and four on Wednesday, and then fired a superb wedge approach shot to three feet of the pin to secure his place in the last 16 against last year’s runner-up Kevin Kisner, who edged out Ian Poulter in another play-off to advance.

“I got lucky here (in the playoff) … honestly. I hit it a little thin and as soon as I saw that bounce, I was like, ‘God! Thanks’. I am so thankful for everything,” said Li, who lost his three group matches in his debut last year.

With a knock-out Round of 16 match against Kisner on Saturday morning, the Chinese rising star, who is a two-time European Tour winner and Presidents Cup International Team hopeful, knows he must power-up again overnight to have a chance of extending his magical run at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.

“I felt like I ran out of all the energy already. I need to get something, recover and let’s see what we can do tomorrow. Hopefully I can win a few more matches,” he said.

As one in a series of four World Golf Championships events sanctioned and organized by the operational committee of the International Federation of PGA Tours, which includes the Asian Tour, European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA TOUR, PGA Tour of Australasia and Sunshine Tour, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play is one of the most exciting and biggest events on golf’s calendar.

New Delhi, India, March 29: Australia’s Scott Hend continued his fine form to sign for a bogey-free four-under-par 68 at the halfway stage of the Hero Indian Open on Friday.

The big-hitting Australian compiled a two-day total of seven-under-par 137 to trail American Julian Suri by three shots in tied-fourth place with England’s Callum Shinkwin at the US$1.75 million event held at the DLF Golf and Country Club.

Suri, who held a share of the overnight lead, extended his advantage by riding on a hot putter to sign for a second straight 67.

He holds a two-shot edge over South Africa’s George Coetzee (66) and Sweden’s Robert Karlsson (68).

Hend, who clinched his 10th Asian Tour title in Malaysia last week, put up a solid display of golf from tee to green, only missing one green in regulation.

Thai veteran Prayad Marksaeng rediscovered some of his best form at the Gary Player-designed course after trading six birdies against three bogeys to sign for a 69 and lurk four shots off the pace in sixth place.

Australia’s Daniel Nisbet and India’s Om Prakash Chouhan produced the highlights of the day with their respective aces on the third and fifth holes.

Nisbet found the bottom of the cup with his four-iron from 240 yards while Chouhan made his hole-in-one with a six-iron from 190 yards and earned a a return business class trip to Munich for two nights including a trip to BMW Welt and a BMW DRIVE experience in Munich.

The halfway cut was set at two-over-par 146 with 70 players advancing to the final two rounds.

Did you know?

·       Scott Hend took over the lead on the current Habitat for Humanity Standings following his victory last week. He was the first Australian to be crowned the Order of Merit champion in 2016.

·       Hend, a 10-time Asian Tour winner, is hailed as one of the most successful international players on Tour with three titles in Thailand, two in Macau and one each in Indonesia, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei and Singapore.

·       He was accurate with his approach shots and only missed one green in his second round. He hit 11 fairways and totalled 31 putts.

·       Prayad Marksaeng is one of Thailand’s most successful golfers with 10 Asian Tour victories under his belt.

·       He plays regularly on the Japan Senior Tour and has clinched 13 titles on that circuit.

·       Prayad’s best finish at the Indian Open was a tied-third result in 2015.

·       Masahiro Kawamura claimed his maiden breakthrough victory at the 2013 Asia-pacific Panasonic Open.

·       The 25-year-old Kawamura finished tied-second at the Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open last May to earn his spot at the 147th Open.

·       Daniel Nisbet won his first Asian Tour title at the ISPS HANDA New Zealand Open. He overcame a four-shot deficit to win with a tournament record of 27-under-par 258.

·       He has enjoyed one victory this year at the 2019 Coca-Cola Queensland PGA Championship in February, which was also his third win on his local circuit in the past 12 months.

·       Julian Suri is American but of Indian descent. His father was a tennis player and later a coach, who shifted to the USA and saw the potential Suri had in golf.

·       Suri is a one-time European Tour winner. He claimed his maiden victory at the Made In Denmark in 2017.

·       The last time two hole-in-ones were made on the same day at the Indian Open was in 1995 when American Steven Veriato and Gaurav Ghei both aced the 17th hole at Delhi Golf Club.

Scores after round 2 of the Hero Indian Open 2019 being played at the par 72, 7438 Yards DLF GCC course (am – denotes amateur):

134 – Julian Suri (USA) 67-67.

136 – George Coetzee (RSA) 70-66, Robert Karlsson (SWE) 68-68.

137 – Callum Shinkwin (ENG) 72-65, Scott Hend (AUS) 69-68.

138 – Prayad Marksaeng (THA) 69-69.

139 – Masahiro Kawamura (JPN) 69-70.

Player’s Quotes:

Julian Suri (Usa) Second round 67 (-5), Total 134 (-10)

I put the foot down, but I had the same mindset I had on the first nine. I hit it really well the whole day and I just tried to free it up a little bit on the second nine with my putting. I hit a lot of good shots and gave myself a ton of chances on the first nine but nothing dropped. So I just putted more freely on the second nine, with feel, like how I normally do.

I am hitting quite a few drivers. Driver is probably the most comfortable club in the bag for me so I am being pretty aggressive and with the greens being somewhat softer than what they were last year, I am coming into the greens with a lot of wedges and pitch shots and stuff, so you can score when you are in a good spot.

I’ve been playing well, and I knew I was playing well even though the score didn’t show it after the first nine, so just had to keep plugging away and staying patient.

Callum Shinkwin (Eng) Second round 65 (-7), Total 138 (-7)

It is a brutal golf course, it really is tough. It doesn’t let up from tee to green, basically from the first tee to the 18th green, you have your work cut out. Today I managed to succeed today let’s say, and sort of beat the golf course.

It’s not easy. You have to give the golf course a lot of respect everywhere. Off the tee, into the green and on the greens. Even today, it wasn’t that easy. I had one three putt for par and I don’t think I missed a green today which helps.

Prayad Marksaeng (Tha) Second Round 69 (-3) total 138 (-6)

I didn’t do too good on putting but was driving it well. The course is very hard because there are a lot of slopes so you really have to be careful on where you place your shots.69 has been my best score here so I’m quite happy with it. Teeing off in the afternoon, the conditions were different. Greens were much harder compared to yesterday.

I won’t be too aggressive during the weekend rounds, I just want to try and get from fairway to the green.
My goal is to just finish in the top-10 I haven’t been playing very well especially coming from last week. So this week I hope to stay consistent and keep up this pace.

Masahiro Kawamura (Jpn) Second Round 70 (-2), Total 139 (-5)

The conditions were pretty much same as yesterday, there wasn’t any wind but just a little bit hotter. My tee shots were good again today. I struggled to get on the greens in regulation in the back nine but my short game helped me. I think I had about two up-and-downs from the bunker. The back nine felt a little more difficult.

I’m happy to have made the cut especially on this course. I think my biggest thing to focus on is my putting. Hopefully I can get the speed and rhythm figured out and maybe I can put up some good rounds.

Prom Meesawat (Tha) Second round 74 (+2), Total 144 (-2)

It is really tough out there, I didn’t play too well on the front nine and only hit four greens but I still had a good come back in the back nine. The pin is tougher than yesterday. Playing in the morning is different too I had to adjust my shots because it wasn’t going as far as yesterday when I teed off in the morning.

Two more rounds to go and I am happy to have made it especially on a course like this. I have been playing good and I just want to finish this event well.

I tried to commit on my shots a little more today but I still get intimidated on holes 14 and six. I’ll try again tomorrow and be more committed off the tee and maybe I can get over that feeling.

Berry Henson (Usa) Second Round 72 (E), Total 144 (-2)

It is a battle every day on this golf course so I am glad I got through it. I will probably be in a decent position after today and make a move over the weekend.

It was playing quite similar to yesterday and the more you play on this course the more comfortable you get. But its hard to attack on this course, and it seems like you have to always be defensive to not make a big number.

I’ve only hit one driver over the past two rounds. I hope to take a bit more of a risk over the weekend and try and get in better positions to score. Today I just hit my three-wood off the tee just to keep my ball in play. That was my game plan, to keep my ball in play and stay away from the big numbers.

I haven’t been able to attack with my iron-play so hopefully I’ll get that sorted.

Ends.

Austin, Texas, March 28: Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat battled to a 2 and 1 win over American Bryon DeChambeau on Thursday to keep alive his hopes at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play.

After losing a closely-fought opening Group 6 match to Australian Marc Leishman on Wednesday, the 29-year-old Kiradech battled for his survival in the US$10.25 million showpiece at Austin Country Club to secure an important first point that will ensure his final group match against Russell Knox of Scotland remains relevant.

Leishman stayed in control of his own destiny after securing a second 2-up group win over Knox and needs a tie or a win against DeChambeau to progress into the knockout phase. If DeChambeau and Aphibarnrat each win on Friday, they will force a three-man playoff with Leishman to determine who progresses from the group.

Under blustery condition, Kiradech won six holes, five of which with pars and the highlight being an eagle two on the fifth hole where he drove the green and landed five feet of the flag to go 1-up in the match. DeChambeau, a five-time PGA TOUR winner, tied the match twice by winning holes 10 and 12 before Kiradech won successive holes at 13 and 14 which he then closed out DeChambeau on the 17th green.

“I don’t think we played our “A” game. Me and Bryson weren’t playing good golf. I think I just made one eagle the whole day. No birdies at all and a couple of bogeys. In match play, it just depends on the day, especially on this golf course which is really difficult. If you put the ball in the wrong position, sometimes it’s impossible to get up and down. Sometimes par is good enough to win,” said Kiradech.

“However, I’m really happy with the way we finished. I got the first point. I was really proud of the way I won the match. But there’s a lot of work that I need to do, and hopefully Bryson will play well tomorrow, and I’ll meet him in the playoff.”

Kiradech, who is the first Thai to hold a PGA TOUR card, is determined to fight to the end in his bid to replicate last year’s successful run where he qualified for the quarterfinals. With winds expected to make conditions tough again on Friday, he knows the key is to keep the ball in play.

“The key today was about hitting greens. The wind is really difficult and it’s not easy to hit it on the greens. You’ve got to keep the ball under the wind and give yourself more chances, hit it in the fairways, that is the big key for this week,” he said.

South Africa’s Justin Harding was defeated 3 and 2 by world number four Rory McIlroy but still stands an outside chance of advancing into the last 16. Harding needs to win his next match against Luke List and if McIlroy falls to Mathew Fitzpatrick, both Harding and McIlroy will head into a play-off to decide who goes through to the quarter finals.

As one in a series of four World Golf Championships events sanctioned and organized by the operational committee of the International Federation of PGA Tours, which includes the Asian Tour, European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA TOUR, PGA Tour of Australasia and Sunshine Tour, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play is one of the most exciting and biggest events on golf’s calendar.

New Delhi, India, March 28: Thailand’s Prom Meesawat opened his campaign with a four-under-par 68 to trail the leaders Stephen Gallacher of Scotland and American Julian Suri by one shot at the Hero Indian Open on Thursday.

The 34-year-old Thai traded five birdies against one bogey to stay close behind the leading duo who posted matching 67s at the US$1.75 million event staged at the challenging DLF Golf and Country Club.

India’s Shubhankar Sharma,  Australia’s Scott Hend, Thai duo Poom Saksansin and Prayad Marksaeng and Japan’s Masahiro Kawamura stayed two shots off the lead following their rounds of 69.

Starting on the 10th hole, Prom remained patient as he tackled the demanding course, rolling in four birdies before stumbling with his only blemish of the day on the eighth hole.

Hend, who was victorious in Malaysia last week, completed an amazing turnaround for his opening efforts. The big hitting Australian recovered brilliantly with three closing birdies after making a triple bogey on the ninth hole where he found the water hazard twice.

Did you know?

·       Prom Meesawat nicknamed “The Big Dolphin” is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour. He claimed his second title in Chinese Taipei in 2014, eight years after his breakthrough in Korea.

·       This marks his best round at the DLF Golf course in his last three appearances at the Indian Open. He finished tied-13th and tied-57th in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

·       Prom was accurate off the tees and only missed three fairways and hit 15 greens.

·       Shubhankar Sharma hit nine fairways, missed four greens and totalled 30 putts in his opening round.

·       Sharma’s best finish at the Indian Open was a tied-seventh result last year. He fired a 64 in his second round, which still remains the course record to beat.

·       Sharma will be aiming to be the tenth Indian to lift the coveted trophy at the event which celebrates its 55th edition this week.

·       Scott Hend surged up to 134th place on the OWGR after his win in Malaysia last week. With his victory, he ended a three-year title drought on the Asian Tour and became the second highest-earning player on Tour with accumulated earnings of US$5.04 million.

·       The Australian, who leads the current Habitat for Humanity Standings, played the par-four holes in five-under-par. He suffered a triple-bogey eight on hole 18, which was one of five triple bogeys made on that hole for the day.

·       Masahiro Kawamura overcame a two-shot deficit to claim his maiden breakthrough victory at the 2013 Asia-pacific Panasonic Open.

·       Kawamura had a consistent driver to thank for his personal-best round at the Gary Player designed course since he last played the event in 2017 and shot opening rounds of 81 and 82.

Scores after round 1 of the Hero Indian Open 2019 being played at the par 72, 7438 Yards DLF GCC course (am – denotes amateur):

67 – Stephen Gallacher (SCO), Julian Suri (USA).

68 – Christiaan Bezuidenhout (RSA), Pablo Larrazabal (ESP), Robert Karlsson (SWE), Prom Meesawat (THA).

69 – Erik Van Rooyen (RSA), Edoardo Molinari (ITA), Ashley Chesters (ENG), Prayad Marksaeng (THA), Shubhankar Sharma (IND), Scott Hend (AUS), Masahiro Kawamura (JPN), Poom Saksansin (THA), Richie Ramsay (SCO).

Ends.

Austin, Texas March 28: South Africa’s Justin Harding, a two-time Asian Tour winner took down 2013 U.S. Amateur champion Matthew Fitzpatrick of England 1-up in his first career match play at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play on Thursday.

Harding was 2-down with three holes to play but won the last three holes against the Englishman.

“I definitely feel as though I stole it. I, like Matty, didn’t really get too much going. I battled with the club selection pretty much the entire day. I hung in there, missed a couple of putts I probably would otherwise like to have not missed. But I guess the up-and-down on 17 was quite special,” said Harding.

The South African will face off against Rory McIlroy in his next match and is ready to put up a stern challenge against the world number four.

”I think I’m going to have to improve a little bit to take him on. Rory’s been playing great over the last couple of weeks. It will be a nice opportunity for me to see how it’s done inside the ropes, and maybe learn a little bit as well, and give the boy a little bit of a challenge,” said Harding.

Big-hitting Kiradech, who qualified for the quarterfinals here last year before bowing out to eventual winner Bubba Watson, meanwhile fought hard in his opening Group 6 match against four-time PGA TOUR winner Marc Leishman before losing 2-up on the 18th hole.

The Thai star kept the match close with some good play but his putting let him down as he made just three birdies during his match.

“I fought hard but didn’t make too many putts. I had some chances but the putts didn’t want to go in. It was good that I kept fighting until the 18th hole and Marc then just hit a great shot into 18 to make birdie for the win. I’ve got no choice now but to try and win my match against Bryson (DeChambeau) tomorrow. He is a great player but I will give it my best,” said Kiradech, the first Thai to play on the PGA TOUR.

As one in a series of four World Golf Championships events sanctioned and organised by the operational committee of the International Federation of PGA Tours, which includes the Asian Tour, European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA TOUR, PGA Tour of Australasia and Sunshine Tour, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play is one of the most exciting and biggest events on golf’s calendar.

Ends.

By Olle Nordberg, Former Asian Tour and European Tour professional

At most Tour events there are a few key holes that have the possibility to make or break a round, scoring wise and mentally. Holes that can prove pivotal to a win or top finish on Sunday afternoons if they are managed successfully or mean a missed opportunity if not executed well.

They can be risk or reward type of holes such as reachable par-four’s or par-five’s where eagles and birdies can be had, but with trouble waiting for errant shots bringing bogeys or worse into play. They can also be difficult holes where par is a good score that players will have to navigate safely to keep a good round going.

The Gary Player designed course at DLF Golf and Country Club is definitely a course where you need to be at the top of your game to have a chance to win on Sunday afternoon. It will challenge all parts of your game and can be very intimidating visually as well.

Many of the holes have no safe bail-out like a lot of other courses, a bad swing is very likely going to cost at least one shot and quite possibly more. In last year’s Hero Indian Open at DLF there were 318 double-bogeys, 57 triple-bogeys, 23 quadruple-bogeys and five more unmentionables made.

At the DLF Gary Player Course holes number nine, 14, 17 and 18 can be considered key holes for any player that has aspirations to win the championship:

KEY HOLES

• Hole 9:

This short par-four is reachable off the tee for many players depending on the wind and where the markers are placed, and the last two editions of the Hero Indian Open has seen a number of players attempting to do so. If going for the green with the tee-shot, players will need to avoid the lake guarding the right side and the sloping rough on the left.

A well-executed swing should be rewarded with an excellent chance for birdie or even eagle, and this hole has produced nine eagles and 239 birdies the past two years. It has also seen 37 doubles, five triples and three quads, so aggressive play is not always recommended.

Playing to an average of 3.940 or 0.06 under par, it has played as the second and third easiest hole in 2017 or 2018 respectively.

• Hole 14:

The long dogleg left par-4 has been the most difficult hole at DLF both the last two years, with a difficult to find fairway and an even more difficult green to hit in regulation. Only 41.08% of players did so in 2017/2018 which would explain the average score of 4.520 or 0.520 over par.

Only 56 birdies have been made on 14, against 71 doubles and 21 triples and higher with one unfortunate player carding a dreaded double-digit 10 in 2018. Par is a very good score on this hole.

• Hole 17:

The signature hole of the course and one of the most scenic holes on tour. A tee-shot that finds the fairway will leave players with an uphill second shot to a highly elevated green protected by a massive rock formation. Playing around 14 yards uphill makes it more difficult to control the distance on the approach, as the ball will be coming in on a flatter trajectory making it more difficult to stop on the green. Any shots coming up short will be bouncing off the rocks and ending up in the hazard.

The hole has played to a 4.255 average or 0.255 over par, with 112 birdies made but also 35 doubles and 14 triples or more.

• Hole 18:

Not a pleasant tee-shot if you don’t have your shot-shape dialed in, with an intimidating view from the tournament tee. The lake that goes all along the left side of the hole will catch any balls going even slightly left, and the bush to the right of the fairway is not much less penalizing. However, a precise drive can make the green reachable in two for the longer hitters and give them a chance for a closing eagle or birdie.

This is a hole where no lead may be safe on Sunday afternoon, as the wide range of scores in previous editions of the Hero Indian Open has shown.

The average score on 18 has been 5.275 or 0.275 over par, with eight eagles and 192 birdies against 62 doubles and 43 triples and higher. Included in those were four 10s and one 11 which proves that anything can happen on the last hole of the event.

ANALYSIS

DLF Golf and Country Club’s Gary Player Course is a difficult one to navigate without costly mistakes, and the route to success in the Hero Indian Open will be to keep big numbers off the card and take advantage of the easier scoring holes.

In 2018 Matt Wallace won the event by playing the key holes in one under par for the week, beating the field average by 4.64 strokes.

More importantly, Wallace played the ninth hole in 3-under par for the week, whereas runner-up Andrew Johnston, losing to Wallace in a play-off, double-bogeyed the hole on Thursday and only managed one birdie on the hole the next three rounds. A costly difference of four shots by end of the week.

S.S.P Chawrasia won the 2017 edition by making very few mistakes all week. Only six bogeys against 16 birdies meant he won by seven shots ahead of runner-up Gavin Green, and could afford to play the dangerous 18^th hole very conservatively.

Green played the key holes well for the week and was two strokes lower on them than Chawrasia, three-under-par vs. one-under-par. He made total of 23 birdies for the week and tied with Anirban Lahiri for the most of any player during the event. He also made 15 bogeys, one double and one triple to off-set his gains, which was too many to overcome in the end.