By IANS,
Shenzhen (China) : India’s Rashid Khan successfully defended his Faldo Series Asia title at the Mission Hills Golf Club Friday after a nail-biting finish to the third Grand Final.
The 18-year-old Khan won with a birdie four on the 18th hole of the Faldo Course to finish at five-under-par, one ahead of Spain’s Adrian Jauregui, who had chipped in for eagle on the same hole playing one group in front.
India had another medal coming their way when S.Chikkarangappa finished second in the Boys Under-16 section.
Previous back-to-back Faldo Series winners include Nick Dougherty and Oliver Fisher in Europe; however Khan from Delhi becomes the first Faldo Series champion to successfully defend his title in Asia.
“I am happy to win. I was nervous at the start, especially with Mr Faldo watching, however I soon settled and stuck to my game plan. Even towards the end when the scores were tight I felt confident that I could do it. I want to come back next year and win again,” a delighted Khan said.
Six-time Major winner Nick Faldo said: “I was really impressed with Rashid – he hit two great drives down 17 and 18 under a lot of pressure which set him up for the win. It’s been a great week here at Mission Hills with over 60 players from 13 different Asian countries taking part and Rashid is the deserved champion.”
Khan’s birdie finish gave him a final round 70 to finish on 211.
Jauregui, 16, claimed the boys’ Under-16 trophy on 212.
The leading girl in under-16 category was Chinese Taipei’s (Taiwan) Hsieh Yu Ling, who finished on 222, four ahead of girls’ under-21 winner Hannah Barwood of England. Barwood’s compatriot 21-year-old Steven Brown, Faldo Series champion from the 2008 Grand Final in Brazil, took the boys under-21 title with a total of 221.
The Asian boys and girls champion will also be invited to play in a flagship professional event on the Asian Tour and Ladies European Tour respectively.
Leading final scores:
Boys under-21: 221 – Steven Brown (England); 224 – Akhmal Tarmizee Nazari (Malaysia).
Girls under-21: 226 – Hannah Barwood (England); 241 – Ines Putri Tjiptadi (Indonesia).
Boys under-18: 211 – Rashid Khan (India); 223 – Nicholas Fung (Malaysia).
Boys under-16: 212 – Adrian Jauregui (Spain); 216 – S Chikkarangappa (India).
Girls under-16: 222 – Hsieh Yu-Ling (Chinese Taipei); 226 – Thidapa Suwannapura (Thailand).