Incheon [KOREA]: The region’s leading amateurs will gather in Korea this week to compete in the eighth staging of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC).

With places in The Masters Tournament and The Open Qualifying Series for The 146th Open at Royal Birkdale at stake, there is a huge incentive for the 120-strong field as the championship takes place from October 6-9 at the prestigious Jack Nicklaus Golf Club – the host venue of the 2015 Presidents Cup.

Among those expected to contend for the championship are Australians Curtis Luck, Cameron Davis and Harrison Endycott, who triumphed in fine style at the World Amateur Team Championships in Mexico last week to claim the Eisenhower Trophy with a 19-shot victory.

US Amateur champion Luck is the highest ranked player in the field, placed third on the World Amateur Golf Ranking while Davis was joint runner-up in last year’s AAC in Hong Kong.

China’s Jin Cheng will set out to defend his title and will be joined in a strong mainland contingent by the 2012 champion Guan Tianlang, who will make his fifth appearance in the event at the age of 17.

The host nation Korea has already enjoyed success in the event with Han Chang-won winning the inaugural event at Mission Hills in China and Lee Chang-woo lifting the trophy in 2013 when the event returned to China at Nanshan in 2013.

This year Korea will have nine players competing and the likes of Won Jun Lee (ranked 88th), former US Amateur champion Gunn Yang and Sung Ho Yun will be joined by other rising stars such as Jinbo Ha, Je Chang Ryu, Seung Bo Jang, and Tae Ho Kim.

Six Malaysians have been invited for the prestigious meet, namely Danial Azizan Durisic, Amir Nazrin Jailani, Daeng Abdul Rahman Abdul Aziz, Muhammad Afif Muhammad Razif, Chan Tuck Soon and Galven Kendall Green.

The AAC is organised by the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the Masters Tournament and The R&A, and has already made substantial progress in supporting elite amateur golf in the region.