Hua Hin, Thailand, December 30: Austen Truslow of the United States topped the class when he signed off his marathon week with a closing six-under-par 65 to secure his Tour card at the Asian Tour Qualifying School Final Stage on Sunday.

Truslow was also the leading player to progress from the first stage last week and impressed many with his one-hand dexterity at chipping as he wrapped up his week with a five-day total of 24-under-par 331.

Gunn Charoenkul of Thailand

Thailand’s Gunn Charoenkul also completed an unforgettable week at the Lakeview Resort and Golf Club as he carded the lowest score of the day with a 61 to finish in second place.

India’s Aadil Bebi, who was the youngest player to tee up in the Final Stage, showed his mental toughness by posting a 63 to end the week tied for ninth.

Despite learning about the loss of a close friend who was involved in a fatal traffic accident at the start of the week, the 17-year-old displayed maturity beyond his years by staying focused to earn his playing rights for the 2019 Asian Tour season.

Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana and China’s Jin Cheng will meanwhile give up their amateur status after emerging as the top-35 and ties players to earn their Tour cards after five rounds.

The pair will be hoping to carry forward their distinguished amateur record as they start their early professional careers on the Asian Tour.

Did you know?

• Austen Truslow topped the Section B last week to earn a spot in the Final Stage of Qualifying School.
• Under the influence of his father, Austen Truslow got interested in golf when he was four and he lives in Florida.
• Earlier in the week, Truslow carded his first ace during the second round. His hole-in-one was the first he has made in his professional career and it came courtesy of his six-iron from 196 yards on the 16th hole.
• Gunn Charoenkul’s last appearance at the Qualifying School was in 2017. He did not progress after two rounds.
• Gunn’s finest performance at a tournament on the Asian Tour so far was at the 2016 Queen’s Cup, where he finished in second place.
• He finished a career-high 32nd on the Asian Tour Order of Merit in 2012. With that, he earned full playing rights on Tour the following season.
• Aadil Bedi started practising and learning the initial strokes of golf when he was just four years old.
• Throughout his 13-year amateur career, Bedi has won 171 Medals and trophies. He has also represented India in all the Elite and Major Amateur matches of the world including Asian games, British Amateur, the Australian Masters of Amateur, Singapore Amateur and Eisenhower Cup, Ireland.
• Bedi represented India as an amateur at the 2018 Asian Games. He led the field for the first three days but eventually missed out on a podium finish on the final day, finishing in 13th place.
• He got an invitation to play at the Asian Development Tour (ADT) season-ender last month where he finished tied-12th at the PGM Maybank ADT Championship.
• Bedi’s best result as a professional came at the Bengaluru Open on the PGTI where he finished third a fortnight ago.
• Sadom Kaewkanjana played in four Asian Tour tournaments in 2018 as an amateur. Most notably, he finished credibly in tied-sixth at the Queen’s Cup presented by Bangchak.
• He enjoyed a successful 2018 on the amateur circuit, winning five tournaments.
• Sadom was part of the victorious Team Thailand who won the Amata Friendship Cup against Japan last week.
• Jin Cheng is the first amateur golfer to win on the PGA Tour China Series. He achieved the feat in 2014.
• He won the 2015 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship. The victory also earned him a spot at the 2016 Masters Tournament.

Players’ Quotes

Austen Truslow (Usa) – Fifth round 65 (-6), total 331 (-24)

I’m not going to cry. For the past four years, I haven’t got on Tour before. My goal when I was 18 was to get on Tour by age 22 and the Asian Tour Qualifying School was the last time to do it. It’s been a good week. I finally have a place to play full time. I felt that my game is good enough once I get out there, but I haven’t done well in qualifying. Now that I have a card, I can loosen and show my consistency. I started chipping with one hand over a year ago. I didn’t chip great this week, but it was still a lot better than chipping with two hands. I don’t chip with one hand every single time, but 80 per cent of the time. I didn’t go out and win today. I just wanted a good round as it’ll give me my status on Tour. I finished well, and I kind of lucked into the win today.

Gunn Charoenkul (Tha) – Fifth round 61 (-10), total 332 (-23)

59 was playing on my mind today I’d have to admit! After nine holes, I got a little nervous. At the start of the round, I said to myself that it’ll be a bonus if I can get under par. I struck it well shot after shot and I felt that I couldn’t miss. After the turn, I got nervous and I got a little hiccup on 10th, where I hit it into the hazard but still managed to make par. I kept going and on 15th, I put it on the back of my head that I couldn’t do it (break 60). I’ll have to change my schedule after earning an Asian Tour card!

Aadil Bedi (Ind) – Fifth round 63 (-8), total 339 (-16)

I lost a dear friend on the first day, back home. It was tough mentally, but I managed to play well and I’m glad that it has all come together. I have that believe in myself and that I have the game to earn the card. Now that I’ve earned the card, there’s more purpose in my practice and I’ll be definitely looking forward to the tournaments that I get to play. It was difficult to focus at times. When there are long waits between holes, or between rounds at night, I think about my friend. But, it was a good week. I’ve played really solid in all parts of my game.

Sadom Kaewkanjana (a) (Tha) – Fifth round 65 (-6), total 340 (-15)

I’m very excited and happy to earn my card. I’m looking to turn professional after this event and in 2019, I hope to retain my playing rights for the next season. I won the Nomura Cup as part of the Thailand team, the first time in the history of Thai golf. In the SEA Games, I won team silver.

Jin Cheng (a) (Chn) – Fifth round 68 (-3), total 343 (-12)

I’m still maintaining my amateur status, at least until June. I don’t have anything much planned, as I have school until June and I’m looking to play the National Championship. Until then, we’ll see how it goes. I started the game when I was eight and I was influenced by my dad. I lived in Singapore during my secondary school years, and I got recruited by U.S. Colleges and now I’m at USC (University of Southern California), in my third year there. I will eventually turn professional, and the Asian Tour will be an ideal platform for me.

See the full results, here.

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.