Kuala Lumpur: Danny Chia conquered his inner demons to see-off a determined challenge by Khor Kheng Hwai on the first play-off hole and win the SapuraKencana National Qualifier on Wednesday.
A comfortable par in extra time secured Chia’s third appearance at the US$7 million PGA Tour event but not before a scare from Khor, who led by four shots after the turn at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club.
But overnight leader Chia never gave up on his chase for victory as he closed with back-to-back birdies for a one-under-par 71 as Khor, who double bogeyed the 14th hole, returned with a 70 to finish level on three-under-par 213 in regulation.
Chia, who is on the comeback trail after a surgery on career-threatening neck and shoulder injury, was delighted with his hard-earned victory, which earned him RM22,000.
“I had some bad thoughts coming into this week. I was getting ready for something bad to happen but I kept telling myself that I needed to keep fighting. It is fantastic to be playing in the CIMB Classic again. It means so much to me to win this playoff and play in the event again,” said Chia, who enjoyed a tied 13th result in the 2011 CIMB Classic.
“I’ve been trying to work on my body condition and I was trying too hard to get my strength in my shoulder and hurt my back earlier this month. I’m 41 and I’m not young anymore so I’ll have to take it easy and keep myself healthy until the CIMB Classic,” he explained.
Khor got off to a hot start when he fired four birdies on his front nine before his title hopes faded when he double bogeyed the par four 14th hole.
“It was the best start I can ask for but the 14th hole was the turning point where I lost focus and made a double bogey. I made a big mess out of it. I stumbled home after that. I hit my tee shot into the bunker. I had about 30 metres to the green but I lost it there and duff my chip. My confidence tipped to the other side after that,” said Khor.
The 30-year-old Nazri had a round to remember when he wrote a slice of history by shooting a hole-in-one on a par four. He returned with a 73 to finish 20th in the qualifier.
“I saw the ball rolling into the hole and I started celebrating with my caddy and flight mates. It was unbelievable. I’ve only had one hole-in-one on a par three in 2012. This is definitely a huge achievement for me and I’ll keep the ball as a memory,” smiled Nazri, who received a token of RM1,000 for his ace.
TThe second spot will be accorded to the highest ranked Malaysian golfer on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) as at October 20. If the winner of the SapuraKencana National Qualifier is also the leading Malaysian in the OGWR, the second spot for the CIMB Classic will automatically go to the next best-ranked Malaysian on the OGWR.
Leading third round scores:
213 – Danny Chia 66-76-71, Khor Kheng Hwai 74-69-70
(Chia wins on first play-off hole)
217 – Mohd Azman 72-73-72, Mohd Rizal Amin 72-72-73
219 – M. Sasidaran 75-75-69, Mohd Sukree Othman 76-72-71, Airil Rizman Zahari 71-75-73
220 – S. Sivachandhran 72-76-72
221 – Ben Leong 69-78-74
224 – Kemarol Baharin 79-74-71, Mohd Iylia Jamil 75-76-73
225 – R. Nachimuthu 74-75-76, Zurie Harun 73-73-79
