Aphibarnat wins in China

Post by Sports Writer Derek Clements

Winners come in all shapes and sizes. You have the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Tiger Woods, who spend hours in the gym honing their physiques. They are fantastic physical specimens, with not an ounce of spare flesh on their bodies.

It is the future of golf, we are told. The days of winners shaped like Craig Stadler and, heaven forbid, Colin Montgomerie have long gone. Now it is all about power and muscle.

And then along comes somebody like Kiradech Aphibarnrat, from Thailand. The perfect physical specimen? Hardly. You get the impression that the only time he quickens his pace is when he gets within 100 yards of a gym - to get past it as quickly as he possibly can.

And yet here he is in the winners' enclosure, have beaten Chinese teenager Li Hao-Tong to claim the inaugural Shenzen International. And he even had the energy to do so in a playoff. Aphinbarnat is a BIG man, at least three stones overweight. But he possesses quite a golf game, and is not afraid to win.

Naturally enough, the perfect climax for the Chinese would have been to produce a home winner, and it looked like they were going to get their wish. Li, having completed his round, was watching on TV to see if he would become the first Chinese player to win a European Tour event on home soil when Aphibarnrat sensationally eagled the 17th hole with a putt from 20 feet to emerge from a congested leaderboard and draw level with the 19 year old on 12 under par.

An excellent approach from a fairway bunker gave the Thai a putt to win the tournament in regulation play, but his effort slipped to the right of the hole, meaning he and Li had to return to the 18th tee.

Aphibarnrat, whose only previous European Tour victory came at the Maybank Malaysian Open in 2013, found the green in regulation, while Li faced a much longer birdie putt. The Chinese player made his four and then stood back to watch Aphibarnat roll his putt into the hole for a winning birdie. He fell to his knees and kissed the green before embracing his mother, who was waiting at the edge of the putting surface.

Southport's Tommy Fleetwood, who finished runner-up at Genzon Golf Club in last year’s Volvo China Open, was third on 11 under par after closing with a round of 69. He struck the ball beautifully all week but struggled on and around the greens.

Aphibarnrat was thrilled with his performance. He said: “Special thanks goes to my caddie, who was always pushing me. When we were two behind on the last two holes he said, 'You have not lost, we have not signed the scorecard yet'. He was completely right, and I just got the job done. I had a chance to win in 72 holes, but the putt in the playoff is the best putt I have ever made in my life.

“I’ve been struggling for a year, but this makes everything worthwhile. I lost my coach (Natpasit Chokthanasart, who died in December 2013), then changed my equipment. There have been lots of changes since I won, so I’m so happy to get my hands on another trophy.”

Li Hao-tong is a player you will be hearing more of, and he was gracious in defeat. “Today I make a lot of birdies again, but Kiradech played so well at the end, so congratulations to him. I was very nervous at the end of my round and in the playoff, but this was a very good experience for me, and I really enjoyed it.” Remember that he is only 19 years old.

Fleetwood could only reflect on what might have been “I’m gutted but if I want to win, then I have to chip and putt better. That’s it really. It’s been a while since I’ve struck the ball that well, but I just couldn’t get it going on the greens.

“To play like I did today – I think I hit 17 greens – is very satisfying. But it’s also frustrating, because I knew walking down 18 that I should be four or five in the lead. So it’s bittersweet really. “