Yang the champion at Volvo China Open
BY Bruce Young | Asian Tour | 2010 Volvo China Open | Round Four | 18 Apr 2010
Y.E. Yang, the pre-tournament favourite in many people’s eyes, has today won the Volvo China Open after holding off a strong late challenge from Welshmen Rhys Davies and previous winner Stephen Dodd to win by two with yet another Welshmen Jamie Donaldson, Sweden’s Johan Edfors and Finland’s Miko Ilonen one shot further back and tied for 4th.
Korea’s Yang, the current PGA Champion and who last week finished 8th at the Masters may not have been the leading world ranked player in the field but many felt he deserved favouritism this week and he did not let them down.
It was Yang’s second European Tour victory and his second in China having won the HSBC Champions event in late 2008 when he held off Tiger Woods. The 38 year old should now move inside the top twenty in the world, the highest he has ever been.
Donaldson, Edfors and Ilonen all cost themselves chances of sharing second by dropping shots at the final hole, in fact Donaldson bogeyed the final two holes.
With this event being co sanctioned with the One Asia Tour there was a strong representation of Austraslasians in the field but it was not a particularly good week for them.
New Zealander Josh Geary did best when finishing in a share of 17th position, Steve Bowditch had one of his rollercoaster rounds of 76 to finish 42nd, Peter O’Malley was 45th, Mathew Millar 51st, David Gleeson, Marcus Fraser and Danny Lee 53rd, Marcus Both 59th, Scott Barr 60th, Stephen Dartnall 67th and Richard Lee 72nd.
The European Tour now moves to Korea for the Ballantines Championship, an event co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour while for the OneAsia Tour their next event will be the Caltex Maekyung Open starting on May 6th.
