Asian Tour Yearbook - 2022

beguiled, and sometimes bewildered, first-timers as they attempted to negotiate their way around this fabled plot of land, Leading the chorus of praise was Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong, who couldn’t stop beaming after defeating Indian Ajeetesh Sandhu on the first hole of a sudden-death play-off to claim his maiden Asian Tour title. “I can’t describe my feeling right now. To win on the Asian Tour … I’ve been waiting a long time for this,” said 25-year-old Nitithorn, whose biggest previous win had come at the Asian Development Tour’s PGM Penang Championship in 2018. Living up to his nickname ‘Fever’, Nitithorn raised the temperature of his game on the DGC’s par-five 18th. Tied with playing-partner Sandhu on the final hole of regulation, he holed a 10-footer for birdie and a closing 73, forcing his opponent to make his four from five feet to match the Thai’s seven-under 281 total and send the tournament into overtime. I’d like to know if this is the tightest golf course in the world because if there is a course out there tighter than this then I don’t want to play it. TRAVIS SMYTH 45 Nitithorn Thippong and his caddie (FAR LEFT) celebrate the win. Settee Prakongvech (ABOVE) finished one shot shy of the play-off. Gary Player and Shiv Kapur at a pre-event press conference (LEFT). In the play-off, the Thai reached the green in two, leaving himself a 15-foot eagle putt while Sandhu found the putting surface in three having landed in trouble off the tee. After Sandhu missed his birdie attempt from 18 feet, Nitithorn two- putted to earn a cheque for US$90,000. “It’s my second time at DGC, the first was in 2015,” said Nitithorn, whose affection for the course was matched only by his craving for DGC’s chocolate milkshakes. Comparing the course to how it was seven years earlier, Nitithorn said: “Now, I feel the tee shots are easier because there is more rough (stopping the ball going into the bushes). “I like the new greens, they are awesome. I like the many slopes … sometimes a bit difficult to read, but the green condition is really good.” After ending in a tie for sixth, Indian Shiv Kapur, a four-time Asian Tour champion and winner of the 2017 Panasonic Open India at DGC, succinctly summed up the challenges of the venue. “On a course like this lined with trees and bushes, there’s no margin for error. One loose shot here is two, three shots gone and the big numbers can really hurt you,” he said. Australian Travis Smyth agreed. On his DGC debut, the 27-year-old opted to keep his driver under wraps in an attempt not to stray from the short grass. “I’d like to know if this is actually the tightest golf course in the world because if there is a course out there tighter than this then I don’t want to play it,” said Smyth, joint leader after round one before eventually settling for a share of 10th place. DE LH I GO LF C LUB | MAR CH 24 -27 | P R IZE MON E Y US$50 0,0 0 0 T H E D G C O P E N P R E S E N T E D B Y M A S T E R C A R D