Kajang: Gavin Kyle Green may have won the inaugural Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM) Qualifying School but the US-based national amateur is far from thinking about the paid ranks just yet.
Despite topping the leaderboard with a three-day total of five-under 211, the 19-year-old freshman from University of New Mexico is committed to playing collegiate golf States-side while continuing to feature actively for the national squad in important tournaments.
“I didn’t even think about the slightest possibility,” he shared when asked if he was considering to take up full playing privileges on the burgeoning local tour, which tees-off its 2012 season in Sungai Petani next week. “All I wanted to do was to give myself a good competitive runout during my short break here before I head back to Albuquerque,” he added.
Gavin mixed five birdies, one bogey and one double bogey for a final round 70 to finish six strokes ahead of former national stablemate and rookie professional Kenneth De Silva, who stumbled to poor finishing 79 during the final round held at Impian Golf & Country Club. Newly-minted professionals Jeremiah Kim and Low Khai Loon were a further two shots back on 219 after rounds of 70 and 75 respectively.
Kenneth was left ruing on a poor day in the office which ended his hopes of starting his career in the paid ranks with a morale-boosting victory. ” I was really struggling out there as my tee-shots were all over the place and I only found five fairways in total. It didn’t help “that I pushed my second shots way too long as well. I’m pretty disappointed with the way I played,” said Kenneth.
Of the 75 participants who teed up the final round today, 14 amateurs and 13 professionals successfully made the mark by shooting a score of 15-over 231 or better and will earn the right to tee-off at the 19 events listed by the burgeoning tour in their 2012 schedule. The successful amateurs will be given the option of becoming touring professionals under the PGM banner.
Participants who failed to meet the mark can alternatively enter individual PGM Tour events by way of a pre-qualifying round to be held a day before each tournament begins or entering the mid-season Qualifying School scheduled in June this year.
Leading final round scores (A denotes amateurs)
211 – Gavin Kyle Green (A) 68-73-70
217 – Kenneth De Silva 72-66-79
219 – Jeremiah Kim 78-71-70; Low Khai Loon 72-72-75
221 – John Pang 74-72-75; Mohamad Hisyam Abdul Majid (A) 76-71-74
222 – Muhammad Azry Asyraf Noor Azam 74-71-77
223 – Mohd Rizam Ali 74-77-72; Jamaluddin Bador 75-73-75
224 – Aminudin Ahmad (A) 75-73-76
225 – Azman Basharuddin 76-77-72; Jonathan Wong (A) 81-73-71
226 -Muhd Wafiyuddin Abdul Manaf (A) 79-74-73; AlMalik Faisal 78-75-73
228 – Wan Arizal Mohd Ariffin 80-72-76; Douglas Tobuse (A) 76-77-75; V. Arumugam 72-81-75
229 – Lam Yu Shuen (A) 75-77-77; Norhady Ramli (A) 81-72-76; Daniel Ng (A) 74-7679
230 – Adam Shafiq (A) 79-73-78; Mohd Shanizam Mohagi (A) 76-76-78; Daniel Tan 74-78-78; Razali Yahaya 81-72-77; Mohd Rozi Yusof (A) 79-76-75
231 – Damian Chin (A) 77-77-77; Abd Rahman Abd Hamid 78-77-76
