The seven Malaysian golfers teeing it up at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, which starts on Thursday at Te Arai Links, will share the same mission – to record the nation’s best finish or make history by winning the 17th edition this week.
Anson Yeo, making his fifth successive appearance following a career-best T21 finish in Dubai last year, leads the squad, which includes U.S.-based Nateesh Ganesh, Hariz Hezri, Aiden Kei, Danish Rizal, Afham Othman and Maverick Chua. At 15, Afham is the youngest member of the team.
Malaysia’s best finishes in the history of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship since 2009 were recorded by Mohd Iszaimi Ismail (seventh in 2009), Ervin Chang (seventh in 2018) and Marcus Lim (T7 in 2023).
With this week’s champion earning coveted invitations to the Masters and The Open next year, the rewards are significant.
“It’s obviously such an honour to be playing in the AAC again. I mean, whoever wins earns a spot to play in two majors. It means a lot,” said the 21-year-old Nateesh, who won the UC San Diego Invitational this year in the U.S.
“It’s a dream for any amateur golfer. Winning it is going to give you an opportunity to play in the Masters or the majors but when I’m out on the course, I don’t feel like that’s going to be a thought. I’m just going to commit to every shot and whatever happens, happens.”
Secondary-school student Afham, who took up the sport just four years ago, has been awestruck since arriving at the stunning Te Arai Links, where 16 holes overlook the Pacific Ocean.
“It’s very special and I’m very grateful to be here. It’s one of my dream tournaments to play as an amateur. The challenges will be the wind which we don’t have this in Malaysia. We’ll have to hit low shots and be creative around the large greens,” said Afham.
After missing the cut on his debut last year, the 16-year-old Maverick is eager to play all four rounds this week. He spent a month on Australia’s Gold Coast practising in windy conditions and working on his low-trajectory shots.
“I’m glad to be here. Got the invitation quite late and I was hoping to have a chance again as I was here for the AAC Academy (training camp) in May. It’s good to compete against the best players in Asia-Pacific. I was at Sanctuary Cove and worked with my coach on low shots. It’s our dream to get to the Masters and The Open. We’ll have to stay focused and try to stay in a good momentum,” he said.
Yeo has made the cut in each of his four appearances and has set himself a goal of returning under-par scores every day as he seeks to challenge for a maiden top-10 finish.
“Every year, it’s been like a different progress for me. I finished my best last year, and I think this year, I hope to finish under-par in every round, and aim for a top 10,” said the 20-year-old Sarawakian.
“This golf course is really windy. It’s like a 3-club difference which I think is the biggest challenge. It’s my dream to play in the Masters and The Open so I hope I’m the first Malaysian to do it.”
Like Afham, the 21-year-old Aiden is aiming for a memorable debut in New Zealand, which is hosting the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship for the second time.
“It’s special to get a chance to play in this tournament. I’m not used to this style of golf course as it’s my first time playing a links course. That would be my biggest challenge,” said Aiden.
Thailand’s Fifa Laopakdee is defending his title where he faces the likes of China’s Zhou Ziqin, Filipino Jaden Dumdumaya, Japan’s Taisei Nagasaki, Australia’s Harry Takis and New Zealand’s Joshua Bai in the region’s most prestigious amateur Championship.
