The Crowns attracts US Amateur finalists
IN: News | Japan | The Crowns (2005) | Preview | by Bruce Young | 27 Apr 2005
The finalists in the 2003 US Amateur Championship, Nick Flanagan and Casey Wittenberg, are interesting entries in the The Crowns tournament starting in Nagoya, Japan, on Thursday.
Both players have struggled since turning professional last year, with Flanagan having only the Australasian Tour to play this season after failing in his attempts to get cards to play elsewhere during the rest of 2005, and Wittenberg without status anywhere.
Flanagan has made only two of eleven cuts in main stream tour events since turning professional after the Open Championship last year but has had better luck in some of the Von Nida Tour events finishing runner up to Michael Wright earlier this year at the Toyota Southern Classic, 11th in Peter Lonard's NSW Open and 17th at the Victorian Open. His main task this year is just getting starts, although one start he does have later in the year, and an important one at that, is in the Open Championship at St Andrews having earned a spot via International Qualifying earlier this year in Melbourne.
Wittenberg also has not done too well in the professional ranks to date, given the hype about his career as an amateur, but to his credit he made the cut at Augusta three weeks ago having gained a start there following his brilliant effort in 2004 when 13th as an amateur. He had top twenty fives at the John Deere and Bell Canadian Open last year but was not able to gain his card at the USPGSA Tour School late in 2004.
The Crowns event is played over the Nagoya Golf Club's Wago course where it has been held for more than twenty years. Typically the tournament attracts one or two leading foreign players this year, Trevor Immelman being the leading world ranked player.
The leading Japanese players are all here including last week's winner Joe Ozaki and his brother Jumbo. Toru Taniguchi and defending champion Shingo Katayama, along with two of last year's leading foreign players on the Japan Golf Tour, Paul Sheehan and Y.E. Yang, are also here.
Other Australasians in the field are David Smail, Scott Laycock and Steve Conran.
The event is played for ¥120 million yen or A$1.45 million.
Photo - Anthony Powter
