
Kuala Lumpur: Leading amateur Gavin Kyle Green has confirmed his return for the Maybank Malaysian Open in February as part of a 22-strong Malaysian cast.
The 21-year-old will compete alongside a top list of global and Asian stars during the 54th edition of the national Open, which is set to take flight from February 5-8 at the majestic Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
It will be Green’s fourth appearance at the prestigious US$3 million tournament and could possibly be his last time playing as an amateur in the European and Asian Tours co-sanctioned event.
“We’ll see how it goes,” replied Green, when asked earlier this year on his next step upon graduation in the summer of 2015.
Currently ranked 16th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking, Green made headlines this year with a record-breaking win on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) at the Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM) Vascory Templer Park Championship in June.
Last month, Green became the first collegiate golfer to pick up three consecutive William H Tucker titles, taking his haul of individual titles with the University of New Mexico to six- the most ever recorded.
He credits his exposure to the game at a professional level through the Maybank Malaysian Open in years past for his achievements to date. In 2013, Green topped Malaysian professionals to finish joint 22nd.
“The Maybank Malaysian Open has given me plenty of opportunities to play alongside international stars and I have learned a lot from all the golfing greats. Participating in a world-class event like the Maybank Malaysian Open over the past few years has helped me better prepare myself for tournaments in my collegiate career.
“The experience, training and mental conditioning will be priceless in years to come as I aim to help the team get into the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Men’s National Golf Championships and hopefully win the championship this year. That would be awesome,” said Green.