Bonallack Trophy Team-Mates Vie for Putra Cup Glory

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Friendship took a back seat as Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) Bonallack Trophy team-mates Nguyen Anh Minh and Malcolm Ting began their quest for glory in the Southeast Asian Amateur Golf Team Championships.

Minh and Ting were part of the APGC team that defeated their European Golf Association counterparts in the Ryder Cup-style team match play event at La Manga in Spain at the start of the month.

This week they’re spearheading the Vietnamese and Malaysian teams vying for victory in the 60th edition of the Putra Cup at The Mines Resort Golf Club.

Early honours went to Vietnam with the trio of Nguyen Nhat Long (67), Nguyen Anh Minh (69) and Minh Nguyen Dang (73) combining for a score of four-under-par 209.

Hot on their heels are Malaysia on 210 with Ting posting a 68, Nateeshvar Ganesh firing a 70 and Zia Iqmal returning a 72. A further shot back in third are the Indonesian team of Gabriel Hansel Hari (68), Jonathan Xavier Hartono (71) and Randy Arsenate Bintang (72).

In the individual standings, Vietnam’s Nhat Long leads the way on 67, one shot ahead of Malaysian Ting and Indonesian Hari, and two in front on Anh Minh.

In addition to the Putra Cup, the Southeast Asian Amateur Golf Team Championships includes the 4th Lion City Cup, 12th City Cup and 8th Kartini Cup.

In the Lion City Cup, for boys under 16, Malaysia’s promising youngsters lead with a three-under-par 139 combined score from Muhammad Adif Haikal (68) and Muhammad Ajmal Amin (71). Thailand trails by five strokes while Philippines and Indonesia are tied for third.

Hong Kong shone in the Santi Cup with a dominating eight-under-par 134 through the brilliant play by Sophie Han (65) and Phyllis Tang (69). Han tied for third in this year’s Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific.

In the Kartini Cup, for girls under 16, Thailand took the first-round lead with a combined score of six-over-par 148, followed by Indonesia and the Philippines.