Jaidee survives Ballantine's playoff
BY Bruce Young | Asian Tour | 2009 Ballantines Championship | Round Four | 26 Apr 2009
Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee survived a three way playoff at the Ballantine’s Championship to win his fourth event in his last six months and continue a remarkable run of consistency. It is Jaidee’s second win in a co-sanctioned European Tour event this season having won in Indonesia nearly two months ago.
It was the 39-year-old’s fourth European Tour victory and his 12th win on the Asian Tour.
Jaidee overcame the in-form Gonzalo Fernandez Castano and Korean Kang Sung-Hoon with a birdie at the first extra hole. Currently ranked number 73 in the world, the win should ensure Jaidee closes in on a place inside the top 50 and enjoy the associated benefits.
After having dropped four shots in his last three holes in Saturday’s freezing temperatures it appeared Jaidee might have blown his chances to win against this strong field but he bounced back with a final round of 70 which was good enough to earn him a place in the playoff.
“The tournament is never finished and you never know who is going to win the tournament until the last day. I know that I can play well in all weather conditions, whether it’s in the cold, rain or wind and I just had to believe in myself that I can do it,” added Thongchai who picked up the winner’s cheque of approximately US$450,000 to top the Asian Tour Order of Merit with US$707,857.39.
For Fernandez-Castano, it is his third playoff loss this year.
“This is my third play-off in the last three weeks and it really hurts. It’s difficult, especially when you are playing against two other players in the play-off. But, I guess that’s golf,” said Fernandez-Castano.
Kang bogeyed the last to cost himself outright victory but he had done well to work himself into contention with two eagles over his final nine holes.
Kang won the Australian Stroke Play Championship in 2005 before losing in the semi-finals of the match play to the eventual winner Eric Ramsey.
Kang plays the Korean Golf Tour but is clearly a player with a bigger future than that tour alone can offer.
Seve Benson, Rafael Cabrera Bello, Ernie Els and long time leader, Robert Jan Derksen finished in a share of 4th position.
The best of the Australians was Terry Pilkadaris who finished in a share of 11th, Scott Barr and Brett Rumford were 15th, Mark Brown faded to finish 19th after a good start to the event, Rick Kulacz was 24th, Andrew Dodt 27th, Marcus Fraser 34th and Andrew Tschudin 41st.
The European Tour has now effectively finished their early season jet setting and return to Europe where most of the attention will be focused over the next few months. The Asian Tour has a break of three weeks before their next event in Seoul.
