K.T. Kim of Korea won his fourth title this year when he claimed a three-shot victory at the Asia-Pacific Open Mitsubishi Diamond Cup on Sunday.
The 29-year-old holed a 10-foot birdie on the last hole to finish on two-under-par 68 for a winning total of nine-under-par 271 at the Y150 million (approximately US$1.2 million) event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour.
Japanās Toshinori Muto, who shared the lead at one point, and Yuta Ikeda posted a 67 and 69 respectively to tie for second place while Michio Matsumura finished a further shot back on 275 at the Otone Country Club, West Course.
Thailandās Prayad Marksaeng carded a 71 to finish in tied 11th place while Japanese star Ryo Ishikawa returned with a disappointing 77 to take a share of 52nd position.
Kim, who led by two shots at the start of the round, was drawn level by a fast charging Muto after 12 holes. The Korean birdied the par three 13th hole to regain command and sealed the deal with a stylish closing birdie.
āIt doesnāt matter if you are leading by a few shots. It can easily be erased so I kept to my pace. It was never going to be an easy win and it wasnāt. I didnāt see the leaderboard until the 13th hole and thatās when I saw that I was tied for the lead,ā said Kim.
āI knew it was going to get harder but I didnāt want to push myself too hard. I stayed relax and I was able to get the birdie.ā
āOn the 18th hole, I knew that Toshinori (Muto) and Yuta (Ikeda) were two shots behind and they could eagle the hole. I wanted to get a birdie there and I did. I wasnāt aware of what my playing partners did so I only knew that I won until the very end. I was nervous!ā he laughed.
The victory was especially sweet for Kim, who also won this event in 2010 for his first title in Japan before it was co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour.
āI didnāt expect to win so many titles this year. I havenāt won in three years before this season started so I was hoping to win at least one tournament. Iāve come this far now and Iām really happy,ā said Kim, who won his first Asian Tour title in 2007 on home soil.
Muto, a six-time winner in Japan, admits that he let victory slip out of his grasp after hitting his tee shot into the thick rough on the 14th hole which resulted in a bogey.
āYes, it was a very good chance for me to win today and I know that.Ā When I saw that I was tied for the lead, I wanted to be aggressive but it cost me a bogey. Kim played well so he deserves the win,ā said Muto.
Prayad, who led in the halfway stage of the tournament, failed to mount a title charge as he struggled with a cold putter and returned with two birdies against three bogeys.
āIām happy with my performance even though I didnāt put enough pressure on Kim. It was another bad day of putting for me. The greens are tricky here so Iāll accept the result. It is a good experience for me. At least I finished under-par so Iām proud with my result,ā said the 49-year-old.
Scores after round 4 of the Asia Pacific Open Mitsubishi Diamond Cup being played at the par 70, 7101 Yards Otone CC course (am – denotes amateur):
271 – K.T. KIM (KOR) 67-69-67-68.
274 – Toshinori MUTO (JPN) 69-68-70-67, Yuta IKEDA (JPN) 68-70-67-69.
275 – Michio MATSUMURA (JPN) 70-71-69-65.
276 – Tadahiro TAKAYAMA (JPN) 72-71-66-67, Yuki INAMORI (JPN) 73-65-69-69.
277 – Shingo KATAYAMA (JPN) 71-68-72-66, Hideto TANIHARA (JPN) 69-68-73-67, Daisuke KATAOKA (JPN) 69-70-70-68, Satoshi KODAIRA (JPN) 71-68-66-72.
278 – Shugo IMAHIRA (JPN) 70-68-70-70, Yusaku MIYAZATO (JPN) 70-70-68-70, Prayad MARKSAENG (THA) 67-68-72-71.
279 – Javi COLOMO (ESP) 71-71-69-68, Atomu SHIGENAGA (JPN) 70-70-70-69, Tomohiro KONDO (JPN) 68-72-69-70.
280 – Brendan JONES (AUS) 72-69-72-67, Kyounghoon LEE (KOR) 70-73-70-67, I.J. JANG (KOR) 71-69-71-69, Paul PETERSON (USA) 70-72-69-69, Toru TANIGUCHI (JPN) 69-74-68-69, Shunsuke SONODA (JPN) 70-67-73-70, Lionel WEBER (FRA) 69-71-69-71, Keiichiro FUKABORI (JPN) 68-72-69-71, Scott BARR (AUS) 70-71-68-71, Scott STRANGE (AUS) 64-74-68-74.
