Malaysia’s Rizq Adam Rohizam will head into the final day of the 15th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship just two strokes behind tournament leader Rintaro Nakano of Japan at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba.
Rizq is well-placed in joint second position on six-under-par through five holes of his third round on the par-70 course, tied with China’s Wenyi Ding when play was suspended at 5.05pm due to fading light. The Malaysian had to complete six holes of his second round in the morning due to the preceding day’s weather delays.
The winner will be rewarded with an invitation to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club and exemptions into The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush and the 129th Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s.
Players had to contend with unrelenting rain throughout Saturday, a spillover from the wet and foggy conditions of the previous day which delayed the start of play for six and a half hours.
Speaking after the completion of his second round, Rizq noted that he aims to play it smart and not get overly aggressive.
“I usually am the aggressive type, but I know that the more aggressive I get, the more mistakes I can make. So I will stick to the gameplan and play it safe. If the birdies come, they come, if the bogeys come, they come as well – deal with it and just focus on the present, instead of dwelling on the past,” said Rizq, who is in his freshman year at Missouri University of Science & Technology.
Whatever happens, Rizq can take immense pride in his performance, especially since he missed the cut in his maiden Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship appearance at Dubai Creek three years ago.
“You cannot describe the feeling. It’s surreal and exciting to be near the top of the leaderboard in the biggest amateur event in the Asia-Pacific region. I’m honoured to be playing at this beautiful and prestigious golf club, and of course it’s amazing being able to see Mount Fuji,” said the 18-year-old.
Compatriot Anson Yeo meanwhile was elated at making his third consecutive cut at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, following rounds of 72 and 71. The 18-year-old lies in T28 position on three-over-par through 11 holes of his third round.
“I played pretty well these past two days and managed to get to the weekend again. I’m proud to have played three times in the Asia-Pacific Amateur and made the cut each time, as the course set-ups are always tough,” said Yeo, who finished 67th at Royal Melbourne in 2023 and T29 at Amata Spring in 2022.
Malaysia’s top-ranked male amateur, Andrew Yap, carded consecutive 74s and agonisingly missed the halfway cut of seven-over-par by a solitary stroke. The two other Malaysians who started at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba, Zia Iqmal Abdul Rashid (72, 78) and Zubair Firdaus (74, 77), also failed to progress.
Malaysia’s best finish in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is seventh, achieved by Marcus Lim (Royal Melbourne Golf Club, 2023), Ervin Chang (Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore, 2018) and Mohd Iszaimi Ismail (Mission Hills Golf Club, China, 2009).
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was created in 2009 as a joint initiative between the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the Masters Tournament and The R&A, with the aim of further developing golf in the Asia-Pacific region. Notable past competitors include 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, a two-time winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur, and Australian Cameron Smith, champion of The 150th Open.
Collectively, alumni of the Championship have gone on to win 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour to date and more than 130 events across major professional tours. The Championship returns for the second time to Japan, which hosted the second edition of the event in 2010. Taiheiyo Club Gotemba, located at the base of Mount Fuji, is hosting the Championship for the first time.
Malaysia’s Rizq Adam Rohizam will head into the weekend of the 15th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship four shots off the lead at the par-70 Taiheiyo Club Gotemba in Japan.
The 18-year-old is in T5 position on three-under-par having completed 12 holes of the weather-hit second round on Friday, where heavy fog forced the start to be delayed by six and a half hours to 1pm. Only nine players managed to complete their second rounds.
First round leader Randy Bintang of Indonesia, who opened with a 65 on Thursday, is among 60 players who will only commence their second rounds on Saturday morning.
Rizq rued two late dropped shots but remains pumped up for a strong showing in the prestigious Championship, having missed the cut in his only previous appearance at Dubai Creek in 2021.
“I’m feeling pretty good about everything except my putter, which is still cold. But I made a great putt on 9 for birdie, about a 60-foot slider, and had an easy birdie on the par-five third hole. I had a three-putt bogey on 10 and, on 11, I pushed my second shot from the rough into the trees, chipped on and two-putted for bogey, ” said Rizq, who shot 67 in Thursday’s first round.
“Anything can happen, but I’m looking forward to tomorrow and hope I can post a good score,” noted the Missouri University of Science & Technology freshman.
The next best-placed Malaysian is Anson Yeo, who lies in T46 position on three-over-par following a second round 71.
“It was tough with the long delay because of the fog. But I’m happy that I managed to finish the round today. I didn’t play as well as I would have wanted to, but it wasn’t that bad. I hope that I can finish better than my first two Asia-Pacific Amateur Championships,” said Yeo, who finished 67th at Royal Melbourne in 2023 and T29 at Amata Spring in 2022.
Zia Iqmal Abdul Rashid is in T84 position on nine-over-par through 15 holes of Round 2, while Zubair Firdaus is in 92nd spot on 11-over-par also through 15.
Malaysia’s top-ranked male amateur, Andrew Yap, will only start his second round tomorrow morning having shot an opening 74 on Thursday.
Japan’s Rintaro Nakano tops the current leaderboard on seven-under-par through 13 holes of his second round, one shot ahead of playing partner and tournament favourite Wenyi Ding of China.
The winner will be rewarded with an invitation to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club and exemptions into The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush and the 129th Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s.
Malaysia’s best finish in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is seventh, achieved by Marcus Lim (Royal Melbourne Golf Club, 2023), Ervin Chang (Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore, 2018) and Mohd Iszaimi Ismail (Mission Hills Golf Club, China, 2009).
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was created in 2009 as a joint initiative between the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the Masters Tournament and The R&A, with the aim of further developing golf in the Asia-Pacific region. Notable past competitors include Hideki Matsuyama, a two-time winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur and the 2021 Masters champion, and Cameron Smith, champion of The 150th Open.
Collectively, alumni of the Championship have gone on to win 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour to date and more than 130 events across major professional tours. The Championship returns for the second time to Japan, which hosted the second edition of the event in 2010. Taiheiyo Club Gotemba, located at the base of Mount Fuji, is hosting the Championship for the first time.
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is the most widely distributed amateur golf event across the world, with its high-definition broadcast including three hours of live coverage on each of the four competition days. A 30-minute highlight show will also be produced following the conclusion of the final round.
Five of Malaysia’s leading amateurs will fly the colours of the ‘Jalur Gemilang’ in the 15th edition of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, which starts at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba in Japan tomorrow.
The nation’s top-ranked male amateur at 349th position in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), teenager Andrew Yap, will be joined in the prestigious championship by compatriots Anson Yeo (WAGR 435), Zia Iqmal Abdul Rashid (WAGR 572), Zubair Firdaus (WAGR 618) and Rizq Adam Rohizam (WAGR 673).
Yap will be keen to improve on his debut appearance last year at Royal Melbourne, where he missed the cut. Still only 15, he has been in solid form recently and finished seventh in the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) Junior Championship in the Philippines in early September. The previous month, Yap picked up individual and team bronze medals at the 2024 Sukan Malaysia (SUKMA).
Yeo will be making his third Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship start, having finished 67th at Royal Melbourne in 2023 and T29 at Amata Spring in 2022. Earlier this year, the 18-year-old won the North Sumatera Amateur Open in Indonesia. He also won the men’s individual gold medal and team silver at the SUKMA Games in his home state of Sarawak.
Zubair, 22, made the cut in in each of the past two Asia-Pacific Amateur Championships in Australia (T41) and Thailand (T32). Currently in his senior year with San Jose State University, Zubair has enjoyed a solid 2023-2024 collegiate golf season including a T11 finish at this year’s The Goodwin.
25-year-old Zia will be making his second appearance in the championship, having missed the cut in his debut last year. He has won three World Amateur Golf Ranking events this year in Malaysia, including the recent Perak Amateur Open.
Rizq is also making his second championship start with his first outing coming in 2021 at Dubai Creek, where he failed to make the cut. The 18-year-old is in his freshman year with the Missouri University of Science & Technology.
Malaysia’s best finish in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is seventh, achieved by Marcus Lim last year at Royal Melbourne, Ervin Chang in 2018 at Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore, and Mohd Iszaimi Ismail in the inaugural 2009 championship at Mission Hills Golf Club in China.
A full field of 120 amateurs from 40 countries will vie for the prestigious title, which provides an invitation to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club and exemptions into The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush and the 129th Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s, provided the champion retains his amateur status. The runner(s)-up will earn a spot into The Open Qualifying Series with the opportunity to earn a place in The 153rd Open.
Leading this year’s field is China’s Wenyi Ding, who is fourth in the WAGR. Other top-ranked competitors include No. 35 Xihuan Chang and No. 79 Justin Bai of China, No. 69 Enrique Dimayuga of the Philippines, No. 84 Anh Minh Nguyen of Vietnam, No. 97 Quinnton Croker of Australia and No. 109 Rintaro Nakano of Japan. Last year’s champion, Australian Jasper Stubbs, will also return after competing in the Masters Tournament and The 152nd Open at Royal Troon this year.
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was created in 2009 as a joint initiative between the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the Masters Tournament and The R&A, with the aim of further developing golf in the Asia-Pacific region. Notable past competitors include Hideki Matsuyama, a two-time winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur and the 2021 Masters champion, and Cameron Smith, champion of The 150th Open.
Collectively, alumni of the Championship have gone on to win 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour to date and more than 130 events across major professional tours. The Championship returns for the second time to Japan, which hosted the second edition of the event in 2010. Taiheiyo Club Gotemba, located at the base of Mount Fuji, will host the Championship for the first time.
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is the most widely distributed amateur golf event across the world, with its high-definition broadcast including three hours of live coverage on each of the four competition days. A 30-minute highlight show will also be produced following the conclusion of the final round.
Teenager Rizq Adam Rohizam carded a superb opening 67 to spearhead the Malaysian challenge in the 15th edition of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba in Japan on Thursday.
Starting on the 10th tee in intermittent rain at the par-70 Gotemba course, Rizq chalked up four birdies in a scintillating first nine against just one bogey on his penultimate hole, the par-four eighth. He is well-placed in tied fifth position on three-under-par in the prestigious Championship, just two strokes behind leader Randy Bintang of Indonesia. The winner will be rewarded with an invitation to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club and exemptions into The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush and the 129th Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s.
“I’m pretty happy with my round. My first nine was surreal – I had good birdie chances and I made most of them. The back nine wasn’t the greatest, as the putter just got cold. But I’m happy with the score I put up,” said Rizq, a freshman at Missouri University of Science & Technology.
Ranked 677th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, Rizq is playing in his second Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship following a missed cut in 2021 at Dubai Creek.
“It’s exciting to be in the mix here with the best players in the region, but I can’t get too excited. I’ll just go out there tomorrow, stick to the gameplan and hopefully up an even better number,” noted the 18-year-old.
The next best-placed Malaysians are Anson Yeo and Zia Iqmal Abdul Rashid in T45 position following matching two-over-par 72s, followed by Andrew Yap (T62) who shot 74 and Zubair Firdaus (T84) who carded a round of 77.
Malaysia’s top-ranked male amateur at 357th position in the WAGR, 15-year-old Yap struggled off the tee all day.
“I only hit two out of 14 fairways, so that’s definitely something I will work on later at the range. Everything else was okay.” said Yap, who missed the halfway cut in last year’s Championship at Royal Melbourne.
“The course is playing long. I don't drive it that far and there are some long par fours where I had to hit long clubs for my second shot, like a five or four iron,” he added.
Malaysia’s best finish in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is seventh, achieved by Marcus Lim (Royal Melbourne Golf Club, 2023), Ervin Chang (Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore, 2018) and Mohd Iszaimi Ismail (Mission Hills Golf Club, China, 2009).
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was created in 2009 as a joint initiative between the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the Masters Tournament and The R&A, with the aim of further developing golf in the Asia-Pacific region. Notable past competitors include Hideki Matsuyama, a two-time winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur and the 2021 Masters champion, and Cameron Smith, champion of The 150th Open.
Collectively, alumni of the Championship have gone on to win 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour to date and more than 130 events across major professional tours. The Championship returns for the second time to Japan, which hosted the second edition of the event in 2010. Taiheiyo Club Gotemba, located at the base of Mount Fuji, is hosting the Championship for the first time.
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is the most widely distributed amateur golf event across the world, with its high-definition broadcast including three hours of live coverage on each of the four competition days. A 30-minute highlight show will also be produced following the conclusion of the final round.
Leading Round 1 Scores
65 (-5) Randy Bintang (Indonesia)
66 (-4) Wang Ngai Shen (Hong Kong, China), Taishi Moto (Japan)
Rintaro Nakano (Japan)
67 (-3) Chi-Chun Chen (Chinese Taipei), Koichiro Furuse (Japan), Sungyeop Cho (Republic of Korea), Shu Fukuzumi (Japan), Kent Hsiao (Chinese Taipei), Wenyi Ding (China), Rizq Adam Rohizam (Malaysia)
The final round of the Sukan Malaysia (SUKMA) Games golf competition at Kelab Golf Sarawak concluded with Sarawak emerging as the top-performing state, claiming gold in both the men’s and women’s individual events.
In the men's event, Sarawak’s Anson Yeo secured gold with a steady performance of 71,68, and, 71, finishing with a six-under-par 210. Selangor’s Ajmal Amin took home silver with a tournament total of three-under-par 213, while Perak’s Andrew Yap claimed bronze on countback with a one-over-par 217.
The women's event saw another gold for Sarawak as Mirabel Ting dominated the field with a ten-shot victory as she wrapped up her week in KGS on ten-under-par 206. Perak’s Wang Xin Yao won silver with an even-par 216, and Wilayah Persekutuan representative Ng Jing Xuen took bronze with a two-over-par 218.
In the team events, Perak's women’s team clinched gold with a score of 676, edging out Selangor and Sarawak. On the men’s side, Team Selangor took the gold with a total score of 659, followed by Sarawak for silver and Perak for bronze.
Results
Men's Individual (Top 3)
210 (-6) Anson Yeo Boon Xiang (SWK) 71-68-71
213 (-3) Ajmal Amin Fajr (SEL) 74-63-76
217 (+1) Andrew Yap (PRK) 74-73-70
Ladies' Individual (Top 5)
206 (-10) Mirabel Ting (SWK) 69-67-70
216 (E) Wang Xin Yao (PRK) 73-73-70
218 (+2) Ng Jing Xuen (KUL) 73-71-74
Men's Team (Top 3)
659 - Selangor (Mohammad Ajmal Amin, Poon Jia Hao, Austin Gan, Ezekiel Riz Hafi)
666 - Sarawak (Anson Yeo Boon Xiang, Joshua Lim, Cayden Kong, Wesley Chai)
669 - Perak (Aiden Tai John Roberts, Andrew Yap, Lim Hao Yu, Mohammad Rafiq Nadzimi)
Ladies' Team (Top 3)
676 - Perak (Wang Xin Yao, Nur Diana Syafiqah, Siti Nur Husna, Nurul Adawiyah)
688 - Selangor (Foong Zi Yu, Aarthi Ganesan, Nur Batrisya Balqis, Kaathiyayani)
688 - Sarawak (Mirabel Ting, Sharifah Aiysyah, Abigail Kedung)
