Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Chi-hsien prevailed in a four-way play-off after he triumphed on the fourth play-off hole to win the US$150,000 Charming Yeangder ADT on Sunday.
Hsieh closed with a fourth consecutive 70 and was forced into extra time with compatriot and overnight leader Lin Chien-bing, Australia’s Jake Stirling and American Greg Moss after the quartet tied on eight-under-par 280 total in regulation play at the scenic National Garden Golf and Country Club.
After the quartet shot matching pars in the first extra hole, the 18-hole play-off saw Stirling bow out from the second extra hole following a bogey while Moss, Lin and Hsieh par. Lin then conceded defeat on the third extra hole after making par while Hsieh and Moss birdied.
The contest went down the wire with Hsieh and Moss vying for the title on the fourth play-off hole at the US$150,000 Asian Development Tour (ADT) event, which is the burgeoning Tour’s first stop in Chinese Taipei this season.
Hsieh fired the first salvo when his tee shot landed safely on the fairways while Moss found trouble off the tee after his ball landed in the bushes.
The American then received a one-stroke penalty because it was deemed unplayable and reacted in disappointment again when his subsequent shot landed in the bunker. Hsieh’s second shot landed safely on the green which is about six feet from the hole.
After chipping the ball from bunker, Moss picked up the ball and decided to concede the title race to his Chinese Taipei rival.
“I kind of relaxed a bit when I realized Moss had a one-shot penalty. I actually didn’t hit the driver well on the firs play-off hole. I was a bit nervous because this is my first time in a play-off. I kept to my own tempo from there and I’m glad I was able to hang in there to win,” said Hsieh, who had won his first ADT title on the same golf course three years ago.
“This win seems to be much tougher compared to the first. I haven’t been playing well for the last two years and I totally didn’t see this coming. My game hasn’t been good for a long while but I believed in myself and I knew I can still do well. I took four months off just to focus on practicing last year and I’m happy it has all paid off,” added the 24-year-old.
Hsieh’s victory at the Charming Yeangder ADT is his second win on the ADT and also his second professional title since joining the play-for-pay ranks in 2011. He will take home the winner’s prize purse of US$26,250 and receive six Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points courtesy of his win.
“This is a great start for me. It gave me a lot of confidence in my game. I will be playing more on the ADT now and try to earn one of the 2016 Asian Tour cards on offer this season,” said Hsieh, who took over previous leader Malaysia’s Arie Irawan on the Order of Merit following his victory.
Despite missing out on his breakthrough win, Moss soaked in the positives as he capped his best finish on the ADT.
“It’s still an amazing week for me. I’ve received a lot of support from friends and family this week and it has been great. It’s crazy that I actually got into the play-off and had a chance to win. It shows that I can compete against the guys out here. I’ve drawn a lot of positives from this week,” said the 28-year-old American, who had earlier opened his campaign with a sizzling 62.
“I told myself that I am satisfied with how I played this week and if I can win, it would be a bonus. I wasn’t nervous at all heading into the play-off. I have been hitting it bad today actually and on the last play-off hole, it was just one of those bad swing off the tee,” added Moss, who traded four birdies against four bogeys.
The ADT will reward the top-five finishers on the Order of Merit at the end of this season with Asian Tour cards for 2016.
With the Olympic Games looming in 2016 where golf will be reintroduced as a medal sport, players in the region could earn their spots in Rio de Janeiro by earning Official World Golf Ranking points through the Asian Tour and ADT.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.
Leading fourth round scores:
280 – HSIEH Chi-hsien (TWN) 70-70-70-70, Jake STIRLING (AUS) 73-67-70-70, Greg MOSS (USA) 62-71-75-72, LIN Chien-bing (TWN) 70-68-69-73
281 – LEE Chieh-po (TWN) 68-70-73-70, Gavin FLINT (AUS) 69-69-73-70, LIN Wen-tang (TWN) 72-71-67-71
282 – Sean RIORDAN (NZL) 72-72-73-65, Jordan SHERRATT (AUS) 67-68-76-71, Fumihiro EBINE (JPN) 70-70-71-71, Jack MUNRO (AUS) 72-71-68-71, Brett MUNSON (USA) 74-68-69-71, Unho PARK (AUS) 68-70-70-74
283 – YANG Fei-hao (TWN) 68-71-72-72
284 – CHAN Yih-shin (TWN) 68-73-71-72, FANG Yin Jen (TWN) 71-69-70-74
