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Hsieh Leads As Khan Hones In On A Record..2010/3/12
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A few words of advice from Sir Nick Faldo enabled Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Chi Hsien to retain his position at the top of the leaderboard after the second round of the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final over the Faldo Course at Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China.
The 19 year-old from Tainan attended a Q & A session hosted by the six-time Major champion on the evening after the first round and he used the advice he received to good effect by posting a second successive two under par 70 to claim the 36-hole lead on four under par 140.
Hsieh goes into the final round with a four shot lead but he is certain to be looking over his shoulder with some trepidation because his nearest challenger is none other than 19 year-old Indian, Rashid Khan, who won the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final in both 2008 and 2009 and arrived at Mission Hills bidding to become the first golfer ever to win the title three years in-a-row.
Hsieh began his second round with two bogeys in his first three holes but he recovered with birdies on the 4th, 5th and 7th to go out in one under par 35 and then duplicated that score on the homeward nine with birdies on the 15th and the 18th and a sole dropped shot on the treacherous 208-yard par-3 13th hole.
“I drove the ball and putted really well today,” admitted Hsieh as he surveyed a strong leaderboard containing the names of 75 golfers from 18 different countries.
“I felt really confident. I tried to relax and to enjoy it just as Sir Nick Faldo told us last night and it worked really well.
“I won a tournament last week in Taipei but I have never won overseas so a victory tomorrow would be the biggest win of my career to date.”
Khan has won the Singapore Amateur Championship and six events on the Indian amateur circuit since his victory in the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final 12 months ago and he is now back on course for an historic treble after an impressive two under par 70 moved him from tied seventh to second place on level par 144.
He began his round by dropping a shot on the 481-yard par-5 4th hole and was still one over par at the turn but then raced home in three under par 33 to signal that he will not give up his title without a fight.
The Indian is one shot ahead of Brazil’s Pedro Costa Lima and Japan’s Masamichi Ito and two in front of another Japanese golfer, Naoto Nakanishi, and Hsieh’s fellow first round leader, Gavin Green, who added a four over par 76 to his opening 70 and dropped into a share of fifth place.
Malaysia’s Iszaimi Ismail and Thailand’s Donlaphatchai Niyomchon share 8th place on 147 while India’s S “Chikka” Chikkarangappa is one shot further back on 148. The leading European challenger is England’s Oliver Carr, from the Heswall club on Merseyside, who added a 75 to his opening 76 to share 14th place with Chau Pui from Hong Kong.
The leader in the Girls’ tournament is Thailand’s Thidapa Suwannapura who returned a two over par 74 to go into the final round on four over par 146 and claim a two shot lead over 17 year-old Liu Yi Chen from Chinese Taipei. Her compatriot, Chien Pei Yun is third after rounds of 77 and 75 while current English and French Girls Under-18 champion, Holly Clyburn, from Woodhall Spa Golf Club lies in fourth place on nine over par 153.
There are a total of five separate categories in this year’s Championship, three for boys and two for girls, and the leaders in these categories going into the final round are as follows: Boys’ Under-21 – Hsieh Chi Hsien (CHT) 70-70-140, Pedro Costa Lima (Bra) 75-70-145, Naoto Nakanishi (Jap) 77-69-146. Boys’ Under-18 – Rashid Khan (Ind) 74-70-144, Khalin Joshi (Ind) 75-75-150, Chau Pui (Chi) 78-73-151. Boys’ Under-16 – Masamichi Ito (Jap) 75-70-145, Gavin Green (Mal) 70-76-146, S. Chikkarangappa (Ind) 72-76-148. Girls’ Under-21 – Thidapa Suwannapura (Tha) 72-74-146, Chien Pei Yun 77-75-152, Holly Clyburn (Eng) 78-75-153. Girls Under-16 – Lui Yi Chen (CHT) 73-75-148, Pinrath Loomboonruang (Tha) 81-75-156, Kelly Tan (Mal) 82-76-158.
Supported by major partners Mission Hills, The R&A and UBS, the fourth Faldo Series Asia Grand Final is being played under strict tournament conditions over three rounds on the Faldo Course. Boys and girls are playing from different tees with the Faldo Series Asia challenge trophy presented by Faldo to the player with the lowest gross score, boy or girl.
Also backed by Alpine Creations, the new golf wear partner of the Faldo Series Asia, players have been receiving expert advice from Faldo himself as well as other guest speakers during the tournament week.
Endorsed by the Asian Tour, the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation and the Guangdong Golf Association, the five age-category winners – three boys and two girls – will be invited by Faldo to compete in the 2010 Faldo Series European Grand Final to be staged over the Faldo Course at the Lough Erne Resort, Co. Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, on September 21-23. The overall Asian champion, boy and girl, will also be invited to play in a flagship event on the Asian Tour and the Ladies European Tour respectively.
The Faldo Series Asia is also initiating a number of grass roots activities around the Grand Final as part of its bid to create simultaneous access to the sport for a wider and younger audience. This includes support of the Mission Hills Junior Tour which has been launched to provide opportunities for junior golfers of all means aged nine and upwards and will act as an official feeder to Faldo Series Asia tournaments in China, including the Grand Final for its overall champions, boy and girl.
来源：[ITgolf.net]
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