Kuala Lumpur, October 9: Shubhankar Sharma has set his sights on winning the Asian Tour’s Habitat for Humanity Standings as he prepares for his debut at the US$7 million CIMB Classic which starts on Thursday.

The Indian star has led on the Habitat for Humanity Standings since winning in Malaysia in February but he has Sanghyun Park of Korea, who has won twice on the Asian Tour, breathing down his neck.

With Park also in the elite field this week and a mere US$54,278 separating the duo, Sharma knows he must put in a solid performance at the TPC Kuala Lumpur, a course where he has never played on before.

They will be joined by the leading available 10 players on the Habitat for Humanity Standings which include Gaganjeet Bhullar, a nine-time Asian Tour winner, Justin Harding of South Africa and last week’s champion John Catlin of the United States.

The 22-year-old Sharma hopes to take a step closer towards becoming the Asian Tour’s number one golfer as half of the earnings won at the CIMB Classic will be counted on the Habitat for Humanity Standings.

Kiradech Aphibarnrat, the 2013 Asian Tour number one, will play in his first PGA Tour event at the CIMB Classic after becoming the first Thai to earn a PGA Tour card. He will look to improve on his tied third place finish in the showpiece in 2013.

Malaysia’s Leunkwang Kim will also make his dream debut in the event after winning the CIMB National Championship. Kim, who is close friends with reigning Order of Merit champion Gavin Green, will play in his career’s biggest tournament after sharpening his game on the Asian Development Tour (ADT).

Did you know?

• This is Sharma’s first appearance in the CIMB Classic. He qualified for the lucrative event thanks largely to his victory in Malaysia in February.
• Sharma, a two-time Asian Tour winner, currently leads the Habitat for Humanity Standings with a season’s haul of US$608,494.
• He is among four Indians – Gaganjeet Bhullar, Rahil Gangjee and Anirban Lahiri – in the elite field this week. This is the highest number of Indians playing in the tournament since its inception in 2011.
• Sharma won his first Asian Tour title at the Joburg Open in South Africa last December and went on to claim his second victory two months later in Malaysia.
• He also finished tied ninth at the World Golf Championships in Mexico where he led in the second and third rounds.
• Sharma is also the youngest Indian to play in all four Major championships this year, following the footsteps of Jeev Milkha Singh in 2007 and Anirban Lahiri in 2015 and 2016. His fine performances this year did not go unnoticed as he was awarded with the prestigious Arjuna Award from the President of India last month.
• Kiradech will be playing in his first PGA Tour event at the CIMB Classic as a PGA Tour member. He is the first Thai player to earn a PGA Tour card.
• This is his third appearance in the CIMB Classic. He previously played in the 2011 and 2013 editions where he finished tied 20th and tied third respectively. The result in 2013 also helped him lift the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
• Kiradech has fond memories at the TPC Kuala Lumpur where he won the Malaysian Open in 2013. However, the course recently went through renovation but the Thai is still confident of his chances.
• Earlier this year he won his third Asian Tour title at the 2018 ISPS HANDA World Super 6 Perth and finished tied fifth at the WGC – Mexico Championship and WGC – Dell Technologies Match Play.

Player quotes:

Shubhankar Sharma (Ind)

I’ve seen this event on television for so many years, and obviously Anirban (Lahiri) won the Malaysian Open here a few years ago so I’ve seen this golf course a lot on television and today was my first look at it. I’m really happy that I’m part of this event and looking forward to it.

I haven’t really thought about anything or set any goals. Winning the Order of Merit is something I want to achieve by December and playing well here goes a long way to achieve that. That will be number one goal for now.

Obviously we all know golf is a game that you can’t really have your best every week. What

I feel like in my short career, this is my sixth year as a pro, but what I learned is that it’s only when you are not playing well that you learn more about yourself. You have things that you would not really look at when you’re playing well, but when you’re playing bad, you tend to look at the finer things. I think I’ve done that in the past month.

Right now I feel like my game is in a good position. I have my coach here this week and even he’s really happy with the way I’m hitting it, and I hit it pretty good today as well. I think it’s just about getting in one good round and when that happens I think I’ll get confidence back and I’ll be back at it again.

Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Tha)

It is fantastic to start my first PGA TOUR event in Malaysia as a member in Malaysia, in Asia because it feels like home, especially the weather, the people around and the crowd is fantastic. My goal is just to be in the top-60 in the FedExCup points, that’s the goal for me, and keep the card as long as I can, same as my good friend Anirban (Lahiri).

Last few weeks I’ve been take three weeks off, it was my first time in seven years where I stayed at home more than 20 days, which is good. It’s difficult to get away from the golf club. I didn’t practice much but I was still working on the range.

I’ve been working with the same coach, same swing thought, try and play well, striking the ball and keep my confidence high. Hopefully the title is coming soon. The golf course is in good shape. The green is fantastic and this is the first time I see the ball rolling on the greens which is a good sign.

Leunkwang Kim (Mas)

Well, it feels amazing to have my first win finally after seven years, so it’s really nice to get a spot in the CIMB Classic. I’m really going to enjoy the week. Well, I think it will be different because when I was here few years ago and I was fortunate my best friend (Gavin Green) playing. So now I’m the one holding the golf club and playing.

I’m just going to enjoy every shot, being in the moment and playing in a PGA TOUR event. Gavin gave me a lot of advice throughout my career even when I was in contention two weeks ago.  We were texting every day, so he gave me a few good advice when I was leading. He told me to play like it’s the first day again, to start fresh and shoot my best. So I’m going to do that this week here as well.