Jazz hits a winning note
Jazz Janewattananond of Thailand ended his wait for a maiden Asian Tour title with a four-stroke victory in the Bashundhara Bangladesh Open yesterday. The 21-year-old golfer, who started the campaign with a sparkling 64 in the opening round and led ever since, struck a calculated 67 in the final round at the Kurmitola Golf Club yesterday to beat local hero Siddikur Rahman, who finished in second place.
The youngster follows his compatriot Thitiphun Chuayprakong in becoming the second consecutive Thai winner in this 300,000 dollar event. Although Jazz could not match Thitiphun's feat of a course-record 21-under-par, he did forge the biggest winning margin by tallying 17-under-par (267) against Siddikur's 13-under-par (271). Dodge Kemmer of USA ended up third, finishing two strokes behind Siddikur.
Jazz said he was happy to have finally gotten the monkey off his back. Playing as a professional for the last seven years, Jazz hoped this victory would blaze a trail for him like it did for Thitiphun.
"I have been waiting for this win for so long. I started playing on the Asian Tour when I was an amateur at 14. It's just a huge relief that I managed to get the job done," the calm Thai golfer, who spent two weeks at a monastery in Bangkok last December, said after celebrating with the 54,000-dollar winner's cheque and a trophy designed after the Royal Bengal Tiger.
"I didn't get much sleep last night to be honest. Even though I had a four-shot lead, I still wasn't comfortable heading out today," Jazz said. "I think this is the longest 18 holes that I have played in my life. I knew Siddikur had the home course advantage. I just tried to do my best out there."
Siddikur confessed that he needed to play exceptional golf to have a chance of winning his home title after trailing by five strokes at the end of the third round. And despite matching his best round score in this event, the 32-year-old golfer eventually finished four shots behind. But he was more than happy with the second-place finish, the best ever by a Bangladeshi.
"It has been a long time since I last played so well. It was a great round and a superb week. Getting such a huge crowd following me on my home course, I am really thankful. I am happy with how I played too," the two-time Asian Tour winner said.
Kemmer of the USA carded 68 in the final round to finish third in the race while four more golfers -- two Thai and two Indian -- finished tied for fourth with matching 10-under-par (274).
Dulal Hossain of Bangladesh finished as the second best local with a score of five-under-par (279) while Akbar Hossain was adjudged the best amateur with a score of 10-over-par (294).
Comments