Sentosa: Rising golfer Himmat Rai may have
missed his maiden Asian Tour title by a whisker but his third
place finish in Iskandar Johor Open was enough to impress
Korean stalwart and eventual winner KJ Choi, who predicted a
bright future for the 22-year-old Indian.
Rai pushed Choi, a seven-time winner on the US PGA Tour,
all the way in Malaysia yesterday before settling for a share
of the third place.
While disappointed that he failed to pull off a
giant-killing feat, Rai earned a measure of consolation as his
cheque of USD 55,150 virtually secured his Asian Tour card for
next season.
Choi, an Asian Tour honorary member, was thoroughly
impressed with the Indian and predicted Rai would make it to
the US PGA Tour if he can maintain his progress.
"Himmat is a very good player. He is a long hitter and
has a lot of control. The only thing that I would point out is
that he has the tendency to hit it too fast but overall he has
a good game," said Choi, who won in Malaysia by four strokes.
"I told him that he definitely has to come over to the US
PGA Tour because he has the game to excel. The only thing that
would set him apart is the mental game. As long as he can make
his mental game stronger and work on some of his weakness like
the tempo of his swing, I think he definitely can compete with
the guys in the US," said the Korean.
Rai showed poise beyond his years to give himself a
chance of winning his first Asian Tour title. He led into the
third and final round in Johor but Choi overtook him with a
fantastic closing round of 64.
The Indian is now ranked 46th on the Asian Tour's Order
of Merit with USD 75,986, with the top-65 players keeping
their playing rights for next year. He now hopes to put his
lessons to valuable use for the remainder of the season.
"It feels good and satisfying to know that I played so
well. Overall it has been a great tournament for me. Playing
with KJ Choi and the amount that I learnt from him is
unbelievable," Rai said.
"His concentration is very good and he hit some really
great shots. Having played so well, I'm beginning to feel much
more confident about my game. I'm just looking forward to
playing on the Asian Tour and playing my heart out," added the
Indian.
Meanwhile, Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand lead the race to
become Asia's number one with his haul of USD 869,872.
American Anthony Kang is second with USD 400,264 followed by
Japan's Daisuke Maruyama who has won USD 337,596.
Jyoti Randhawa (USD 289,350) is the highest placed Indian
at fourth place, followed by compatriots Gaganjeet Bhullar
(USD 241,130) and C Muniyappa (USD 219,849).
Bureau Report