Story contributed by Lorna Campbell
Singapore, 1st April 2008 - OAAG Golf Tour's second leg, The Flying Club Challenge, saw 73 golfers tee off at Warren Golf & Country Club. By the end of the day, three golfers were tied for first place with rounds of 69 (two under par).
The Flying Club has come on board as the title sponsor for the second leg of the OAAG Golf Tour which is a three-day tournament for professional golfers from Singapore and invited players from Malaysia.
The undulating greens proved tricky, which contributed to only eight players managing to shoot below par. Shaaban Hussein from Malaysia joined Peter Teravainen from Singapore and Tomoo Bise from Japan in the lead but are closely followed by a pack of players who will be out to improve on today's performance.
Bise arrived in Singapore only three weeks ago and is about to start teaching at Marina Bay Golf Academy. After his round today he said, "I tried to keep on the fairways and find the greens. I just played simple golf. If you can keep to the fairway it's not too difficult."
51-year-old American Peter Teravainen has lived in Singapore for twenty years and is a highly experienced golfer who enjoys the local competition. He won the Czech Open in 1995 and the Japanese Open the following year. He is currently playing on the European Seniors Tour. "Today was the first time I have played this golf course,” he said. “The greens are very challenging and I am very surprised to have a good score as I haven't played much recently but I enjoyed it out there."
Runner-up from the first leg of the OAAG Golf Tour's OAAG-SPGA Championship at Raffles Country Club in January, Shaaban Hussein from Seri Selangoor Club in Kuala Lumpur is also holding the overnight lead. "I am very happy that OAAG has invited me to play here as it gives me a chance to play in a tournament. In Malaysia, there are no events for us to play in so I have only been able to play in the Malaysian Open there this year. For me, tournaments are very important. I want to improve my game and if there are no events, I cannot feel the game and improve.”
He continued, "The greens are a little bit slow today so I missed a few close putts. Tomorrow I want to tune my putting and learn how to play the slow greens. If I can do that, I can play better tomorrow and I am feeling confident."
Top amateur for the day was Warren Golf & Country Club member Justin Han, who finished one behind the leaders. Justin is one of the top three amateurs at the host club and is joined in this event by Mitchell Slorach who came in with a round of seventy one.
Competing for a total prize purse of S$30,000 the tour aims to give local golfers the opportunity to compete regularly on home soil and is fully supported by the Singapore Professional Golfers Association.
Said CEO of OAAG, Nicklaus D'Cruz, “It is great to see such a strong field out here today and it shows how much the local golfers enjoy competing at their local clubs and having the opportunity to earn some prize money to boost their careers. I am thrilled that there are 3 amateurs in the top 10 as this Tour gives an opportunity for future stars to shine through".
The second leg will wrap up on Friday with a traditional pro-am but for the first time, thanks to title sponsor The Flying Club, amateurs who manage a hole-in-one on the seventh hole can walk away with their very own private plane worth $500,000.00.
Top Day One Results
T1. Mohd Shaaban Hussein 69
T1. Peter Teravainen 69
T1. Tomoo Bise 69
T4. Poh Eng Wah 70
T4. M. Sasidaran 70
T4. Justin Han (A) 70
T4. Khalis Yusoff 70
T4. Kentaro Ishihara 70
T9. Mitchell Slorach (A) 71
T9. Kevin Lee 71
T9. Selva Kumar 71
T9. Jimmy Poh Yew Ghee 71
T9. Koh Dengshan (A) 71
T9. Murugiah 71
T15. M.Ramayah 72
T15. Lim Kian Kee 72
T15. Philip Brew 72
T15. Dean Tan 72
T15. Stuart Holmes 72
T15. Chang Ren Chiat 72
T15. Jonathan Woo (A) 72
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