Bengaluru, August 7: Malaysia’s Danny Chia hopes to get his season back on track at the US$350,000 TAKE Solutions Masters which gets underway on Thursday.

The 45-year-old Chia, who enjoyed a tied-10th finish in last year’s edition, will draw from his good memories when he chases for glory at the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) Golf Course.

Chia, a two-time Asian Tour winner but not since 2015, will rely on his old swing which helped him to a tied 22nd place finish which was also his first cut in seven attempts at the Royal Cup in Thailand two weeks ago.

Chia struggled with poor ball-striking after making changes to his swing at the start of the season but he is slowly rediscovering his form thanks to advice from Terry Pilkadaris of Australia. After narrowing his stance, Chia is now beginning to strike the ball more consistently.

Bengaluru native Chikkarangappa S. will have unfinished business at the TAKE Solutions Masters where he was in contention before settling for a tied-10th place finish last year. He won the event twice when it was staged on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) in 2014 and 2015.

Coming off a victory on home soil last week, Indonesian Rory Hie will bank on a feel-good factor when he challenges for top honours at the TAKE Solutions Masters. He enjoyed a tied-fourth finish last year to fork his best ever result on the Asian Tour.

Danny Chia with his pro-am partners

Did you know?

• Danny Chia is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour. He first won the Taiwan Open in 2002 before ending a 13-year title drought at the 2015 Mercuries Taiwan Masters.
• Chia is a history-maker for Malaysia. In 2010, he became the first player from his country to play in all four rounds at The Open at St Andrews, which he also qualified for in 2005 and 2008.
• Chia is the first Malaysian to win on the Asian Tour. He is also a three-time winner on the ADT.
• The 45-year-old Chia enjoyed a tied-10th place finish at the 2017 TAKE Solution Masters. Having made only one cut in seven starts this season, Chia hopes to turn the corner with a good result this week.
• Currently ranked 161st on the Habitat for Humanity Standings, Chia needs to step up his game to finish inside the top-60 at the end of the season to retain his Asian Tour card for 2019.
• Chikkarangappa S. won the tournament twice when it was held on the ADT in 2014 and 2015. He also became the top golfer in his domestic circuit in 2015.
• The 24-year-old Bengaluru native also enjoyed a tied-10th place result at the 2017 TAKESolutions Masters.
• Earned his Asian Tour card at the 2016 Qualifying School. Went on to establish himself with four top-10s to earn a full card for 2017 where he ended the season right on the top-61 cut-off mark to keep his card for 2018.
• Chikka currently sits in 66th place on the Habitat for Humanity Standings, thanks to three top-15 finishes.
• Rory Hie marked his best Asian Tour result when he came in tied-fourth at the 2017 TAKE Solutions Masters.
• Hie has made only two cuts in eight starts on the Asian Tour this season. His best result was a tied-18th place finish at the Thailand Open in June.
• The 29-year-old Indonesian claimed a victory on home soil on his domestic circuit last week.
• Hie is the first Indonesian to earn playing rights on the Asian Tour after making the grade at the Qualifying School in 2009.

Danny Chia of Malaysia

Players’ quotes:

Danny Chia (Mas)

I quite like the course layout here. It’s a tree-lined golf course. You need to hit fade shots on quite a few holes here and I quite like that. The course suits my eyes a lot. It’s one of the reasons why I decided to come back and play again this year.

Tee shots will be key this week. You need to keep the ball on the fairways. The rough seems thicker, as compared to last year. It depends on how the weather plays out this week. If the greens get dry, it can be quite tough.

I am starting to hit the ball better, since the Royal Cup two weeks ago. I am pretty happy with the way I strike the ball now. At the start of this year, I made some changes to my swing, putting in a lot of new things but I never feel comfortable with it.

It was only until the Royal Cup that I decided to go back to how I used to swing. Things seem to turn out better from there. I got a little bit of help from Terry Pilkadaris as well. It’s a long story. I have been having a bit of back issues and was wondering if it’s because I’m getting old.

I spoke to Terry about it and he looked at the way I hit the ball. He suggested that I narrow down my stance which will help me to turn easier. I felt the ease straightaway when I hit the ball after that. That kind of started to connect with the other things that I’m working on.

I started to strike the ball more consistently that week. I didn’t play great but at least my ball striking was more consistent so it’s something positive that I’m bringing to this week. Hopefully I can continue to strike the ball well this week.

Chikkarangappa S. of India

Chikkarangappa S. (Ind)

I feel good coming back home to play this week. The KGA Golf Course is like my second home course, to be honest. I have played here a lot during my junior and amateur days and I have won all the events whenever I played there.

I have a lot of good memories and confidence there. It’s a pretty long golf course. I think tee shots are important and putting will be the key. It’s going to be tricky so if you can read some good lines, you should be able to score.

It’s always nice to be playing on home soil. Everyone comes out to support you, no matter young or old. It’s a great feeling and a proud moment when you play in front of your home crowd.

Obviously, I had a bad stretch last year but somehow managed to get my card. The season’s getting better. I have been consistent for the last couple of weeks. Just working on a few new things which is getting in place now. I feel more confident playing on course as well.

I won this event twice when it was staged on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) in 2014 and 2015 but it’s different winning on the ADT and winning on the Asian Tour. Winning on the Asian Tour will definitely open up more opportunities.

If you can win on home turf, it will be even more special. I will try my best this week and we’ll see what happens.

Rory Hie of Indonesia

Rory Hie (Ina)

Good vibes coming back here, definitely. I had my best finish on the Asian Tour when I came in tied-fourth at the TAKE Solutions Masters last year. I like this course. I like the greens. I feel like I putt well on these greens. I feel like I can manage my way around the golf course pretty well.

The key would be to manage my club selection this week because there is going to be a lot of cross winds and that’s going to be the tricky part. The weather is pretty different from last year. We’ve got some rain already and it’s windier as well.

The course looks great. The conditions have always been good. My caddy was just saying the greens are better than last year as well. The season’s been pretty slow for me so far. Hopefully I can get it kick-started this week.

Ends.

About Asian Tour

As the official sanctioning body for professional golf in Asia, the Asian Tour leads the development of golf across the region, enhancing the careers of its members while maintaining a commitment to the integrity of the game. The Asian Tour, through its membership of the International Federation of PGA Tours, is the only recognised pan-Asian professional golf tour in Asia. This unique feature positions the Asian Tour at the pinnacle of professional golf in Asia; providing its events with Official World Ranking status. Tour Partners include Rolex (Official Timekeeper), Panasonic (Official Consumer Electronics), Habitat for Humanity (Official Sustainable Development Partner), ECCO (Official Footwear Sponsor), Titleist and FootJoy (Official Web Partner), Bloomberg TV (Official International Media Partner), Bloomberg Businessweek Chinese (Official International Media Partner), Wall Street Journal (Official International Media Partner) and Sentosa in Singapore which is the Home of the Asian Tour which also has an office in Kuala Lumpur.