Liang shows class with win in Thailand
BY Bruce Young | OneAsia Tour | 2010 Thailand Open | Round Four | 29 Aug 2010
It was perhaps fitting that the leading world ranked player in the field, Liang Wen Chong, should win this week’s Thailand Open but he was forced to hold off players placed several hundreds of places below him in the world ranking.
Liang finished one shot ahead of Queenslander Michael Wright and Thailand’s Namchok Tantipokakul at the Burapha Golf Club in Pattaya, securing his second win of the One Asia Tour season in the process and sweeping him to the lead on the 2010 One Asia Tour money list.
With a win in China earlier in the year, this week’s victory and a runner up finish in Indonesia, Liang has now earned US$464,000 for the One Asia Tour season and is well ahead of the current second placed Y.E Yang who won the Volvo China Open.
Liang is in a rare vein of form in recent months with a stunning 8th place finish at the recent PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, a third and fourth place finish in Japan events and, earlier in the season, a win in the One Asia Tour’s Luxehills Chengdu Open.
His 8th place finish at the PGA Championship was highlighted by his 64 on Saturday which was the best round of the week at Whistling Straits.
For the 36 year old Michael Wright the US$84,000 he secured for finishing runner-up is his biggest cheque in golf and further emphasises the importance of the One Asia schedule to players of his standing in the game.
Matthew Griffin and Terry Pilkadaris were the next best of the Australians after Wright finishing in a share of 5th with Thailand’s Udorn Duangdecha, earning US$36,000 each.
The next One Asia Tour event is not until the Kolon Korea Open starting on October 7th.
