Johor Bahru, Malaysia, 22 October 2009 – Bad weather woes interrupted play on day one at the Iskandar Johor Open. The Premiere tournament kicked today at The Royal Johor Country Club with 156 players vying for the USD 1 million prize purse. Play was halted at noon for three hours due to bad weather and only resumed at approximately 3 p.m. Players who teed off in the afternoon session have yet to complete their round after play was suspended due to darkness at 7 pm . The game will resume tomorrow with an overlap of two sessions.
At the lead is Thailand’s Chinnarat Phadungsil ; Pariya Junhasavasdikul and Mark Purser of New Zealand who have made a great start to the game today. Chinnarat, who holds the distinction of being the youngest winner on the Asian Tour, posted a four-under-par 68 that was matched by Pariya and Purser.
Starting on the 10th tee, Chinnarat started his round with two birdies on the 11th and 13th holes before carding a double bogey on the 17th hole when his approach shot landed in the water. Chinnarat recovered brilliantly with another birdie on the 18th hole to make the turn in 35 and continued his impressive form with further birdies on one, two and six.
"My putting and approach shot was good but I wasn’t driving very well. Luckily for me my chipping and putting pulled me up," said Chinnarat who won his third Asian Tour title at the Queen’s Cup in Thailand in August.
Playing in his rookie season, Purser welcomed a return to form when he holed a 20 feet putt on his first hole for birdie which set him on his way to another five birdies against two bogeys.
The New Zealander did well to maintain his momentum when he chipped in on the 12th hole from the edge of the green for birdie.
"I got off to a good start where I birdied the first few holes which certainly helped. I did not drive very well but overall the rest of my game was pretty tidy and that gave me a chance to shoot a good round," said Purser who is seeking for his maiden win on the Asian Tour.
Both Chinese Taipei’s Lin Wen-tang and Chang Tse-peng are on five-under after 13 and 12 holes respectively. Himmat Rai of India is also on five-under through nine holes.
Malaysia’s Danny Chia, Gaganjeet Bhullar of India and defending champion Retief Goosen of South Africa were among the 11 players bunched in tied fourth position on 69.
Chia, also starting on the back nine, led the local charge with a solid performance after posting six birdies against one bogey and a double bogey on the par four 18th. He managed to stay within touching distance of the leaders when he sank his chip for birdie on third.
"My ball striking was inconsistent but my putting and chipping around the green was good. I holed a few putts out there but overall it was good. I need to work on my ball striking and hopefully I can play better the next few days," said Chia.
Defending champion Retief Goosen, who started on the back nine, started his title defence with six birdies against three bogeys.
"I was not striking the ball too well. I hit five fairways and eight greens in regulations so to shoot three-under is pretty much as good as I could have done. My last birdie on the 18th hole was the most crucial but I had three hours to think about my putt!" said Goosen who was on the 18th green before play was suspended for three hours.
About Iskandar Johor Open
The first edition of the Iskandar Johor Open (IJO) was held in 2007 when it was played from Aug 23 - 26 at the Royal Johor Country Club (RJCC) in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Carrying a purse prize of US$300,000, the inaugural tournament saw a total of 156 players from 25 countries. The tournament was won by Artemio Murakami of the Philippines. Murakami came from two off the lead with a near-flawless closing 68 to take the title by one stroke from compatriot Tony Lascuna and the seasoned Scot, Simon Yates for his maiden win on the Asian Tour.
South African Retief Goosen went on to clinch the coveted trophy in the US$ 500,000 Iskandar Johor Open 2008. 144 golf professionals from the Asian Tour battled it out at the Royal Johor Country Club from 30 October – 2 November 2008. The 2nd edition of Iskandar Johor Open was fully sanctioned by the Asian Tour, Malaysian Golf Association and Johor Golf Association and boasted some of the world’s top players – Retief Goosen, Niclas Fasth, Thongchai Jaidee amongst others.
2009 will mark a milestone in the history of Iskandar Johor Open, with a 100% increase in prize money to US$ 1,000,000. The main sponsor of the Iskandar Johor Open is the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA). It is also supported by platinum sponsor - UEM Land Berhad, the master developer of Nusajaya which is a key driver of Iskandar Malaysia. Other co-sponsors include Iskandar Waterfront Development and UM Land. Official partners are TaylorMade Adidas Golf, 100 Plus, Srixon, Winston Wine, Dewars, Ricoh and the Puteri Pacific Hotel.
IJO 2009 will once again be broadcast live over ESPN STAR Sports, reaching out to over 120 million homes around the world.
