Sentosa, Singapore, September 17: The battle to top the Habitat for Humanity standings has heated up with Korea’s Sanghyun Park throwing his name into the fray.

Following his latest victory at the Shinhan Donghae Open, Park has moved to second place on the standings and declared his intention to stake his claim as Asia’s number one when the 2018 Asian Tour season concludes.

“I’m looking at winning the Asian Tour Habitat for Humanity Standings and I’ll be putting more priority on the Asian Tour.

“I’m going to adjust my schedule so that I can play all the required events on the Asian Tour,” said Park, who trails India’s Shubhankar Sharma by slightly over US$116,400.

Park underlined his bold ambitions with a performance on home soil that left his closest rivals in their wake.

He led from start to finish and his final round of eight-under-par 63, which was also the lowest score all-week, saw him romp to a dominant five-shot victory and also his second Asian Tour victory this season.

With the Asian Tour set to embark on a busy stretch of events, offering lucrative prize money and world ranking points, Park knows his goals are within sight.

“I want to play in the WGC-HSBC Champions and CIMB Classic to improve my world ranking. Those are my goals. After winning the Shinhan Donghae Open, these tournaments are well within my reach.

“These days, if I’m in the champion’s group, I’m not anxious. I feel that I can dominate the game. That’s where I feel I’ve grown over the past few years,” said Park, who moved to 126th place on the Official World Golf Ranking.

Scott Vincent, who is the first Zimbabwean to play on the Asian Tour, may have missed out on another chance to win his first Asian Tour title but by securing his eighth top-10 this season with a runner-up finish, Vincent moved four spots up to fifth place on the standings.

“I put him under pressure, but he (Sanghyun Park) was just too good today. All credit to him and there was not much more I could have done. I’m happy with how I did.

“I know that with hard work and some luck, my win will come one day. I just have to be patient,” said Vincent.

The top 10 and top four players (not otherwise exempt) on the Habitat for Humanity standings will qualify for the US$7million CIMB Classic and US$10 million WGC-HSBC Champions staged in Malaysia and China respectively.

The cut-off date for both events will be upon the conclusion of the Yeangder Tournament Players Championship in Chinese Taipei on October 7.

The Asian Tour heads to the Land of the Rising Sun for the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup where the JP¥150 million (approximately US$1.36 million) event is sanctioned by the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour Organisation.

Ends.

Top-20 players on the Habitat for Humanity Standings

Pos       Player   Order of Merit (US$)

1            Shubhankar SHARMA (IND) $603,155.55

2            Sanghyun PARK (KOR) $486,751.99

3            Matt WALLACE (ENG) $446,660.00

4            Gaganjeet BHULLAR (IND) $380,632.02

5            Scott VINCENT (ZIM) $373,619.30

6            Kiradech APHIBARNRAT (THA) $372,480.89

7            Rahil GANGJEE (IND) $290,425.53

8            Sihwan KIM (USA) $279,623.77

9            Minchel CHOI (KOR) $271,340.97

10          Paul PETERSON (USA) $241,148.57

11          John CATLIN (USA) $222,619.68

12          Jazz JANEWATTANANOND (THA) $215,952.98

13          Justin HARDING (RSA) $191,515.12

14          Berry HENSON (USA) $164,560.60

15          Prom MEESAWAT (THA) $159,975.32

16          Danthai BOONMA (THA) $151,926.48

17          Daniel NISBET (AUS) $151,883.64

18          Khalin JOSHI (IND) $147,664.56

19          Panuphol PITTAYARAT (THA) $140,649.11

20          Yikeun CHANG (KOR) $136,428.22