Following Sunday's conclusion of the Kolon-Hana Bank Korea Open,
China's Liang Wenchong has taken another purposeful stride towards
the Asian Tour's UBS Order of Merit title.
Liang finished tied for 12th place at the Woo Jeong Hills
Country Club. The US$14,973 in prize money increased his season
total to US$469,708. Fijian star Vijay Singh won the tournament by
two strokes.
The 29-year-old Liang, in line to become the first Chinese to
win the prestigious UBS Order of Merit title, is now more than
US$42,000 ahead of second-place South African Anton Haig and almost
US$125,000 ahead of third-place Scott Hend of Australia.
With seven events remaining this season, Liang is hoping to
build on his advantage, especially with the lucrative events
scheduled for the closing stages of the 2007 Asian Tour.
"I am happy with my performance in Korea," said Liang. "I was
unwell over the past two weeks and the course was really tough.
Considering those two points, I am quite pleased with my
result.
"There are several big events coming up and a lot can still
happen. These next few weeks will be crucial and we might see some
big movers. But I focus on my own game and hope to continue with my
steady form."
Last week's finish was Liang's 10th top-15 outing of the year,
which includes a career breakthrough triumph at the Clariden Leu
Singapore Masters.
The race to finish within the top-60 in the UBS Order of Merit
also intensified over the weekend as players fight to earn full
playing rights for the 2008 season, as well as a place in the
season-finale Volvo Masters of Asia at the Thai Country Club in
December.
Korean-American Anthony Kang registered his third top-10 finish
of the year, jumping from 50th overall to 31st place. Australian
Adam Groom also moved into the comfort zone by tying for eighth
place, bringing him from 65th to 47th place on the UBS Order of
Merit.
The Asian Tour heads to New Delhi for this week's US$500,000
Hero Honda Indian Open. Title-holder Jyoti Randhawa of India and
last year's UBS Order of Merit champion Jeev Milkha Singh will
headline the event.
(China Daily October 12, 2007)
