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Prom leads chase for Order of Merit crown

Thailand's Prom Meesawat has emerged as the frontrunner to challenge India's Jeev Milkha Singh for the coveted Asian Tour's UBS Order of Merit crown.

The burly Prom, winner of the SK Telecom Open in Korea in May, moved to a career high second place on the latest UBS Order of Merit following the conclusion of the Mercuries Taiwan Masters, won by India's Gaurav Ghei.

Prom, 22, finished joint 30th at the Taiwan Golf and Country Club's Tamsui course on Sunday to collect a cheque of US$4,100 which was enough to dislodged Korea's Charlie Wi from second to third place. From 18 starts this season, Prom has accumulated US$330,471.

With five UBS Order of Merit events remaining on the Asian Tour, Singh, who has also plied his trade in Europe and Japan this season, continues to head the ranking with US$470,108. W slipped to third on US$329,680.

Australian Andrew Buckle remains in fourth position with US$301,512.

Ghei's victory at the weekend, which ended an 11-year wait for a second Asian Tour title, saw him surge into 10th spot on the latest UBS Order of Merit, a 14-rung improvement from his previous position. He picked up US$100,000 to increase his 2006 winnings to US$218,532, already a career best.

The in-form Rahil Gangjee of India was the other big mover, climbing 11 places to 18th after finishing second behind Ghei. It was Gangjee's third top-three finish in his last five tournaments and it swelled his year's winnings to US$153,588.

It was a welcome return to the winner's circle for Ghei who had been plagued with injuries in his career until recently. "I am very excited and this has certainly moved me up the Order of Merit. I had a rough patch in 2003 and could not play much golf so this is certainly good," said Ghei.

"I previously lost my card in 2001 and 2002 and now I am playing some of my best golf and I have never been ranked so high for a long time. I hope this will carry on."

Korean Ted Oh's third place outing in Taipei could ensure his survival on the Asian Tour. Entering the week, Oh was ranked a lowly 78th but a cheque of US$35,000 pushed him to 53rd place on US$63,254. The top-60 players after the UBS Hong Kong Open, the season's penultimate event, will qualify for the Volvo Masters of Asia in Thailand in December and also retain their Tour cards.

Oh said: "I am really looking forward to the remaining events as I have never been in this position before where I had to scramble for a good finish towards the end of the season to reach my goal. Finishing well here has certainly given me a lot of confidence."

Malaysia's Danny Chia remains on the bubble in 60th place following his tied 33rd outing in Taipei but Korean rookie Park Jun-won was celebrating on Sunday night after a fourth place result pushed him up to 46th position and well positioned to secure full playing rights in 2007.

"I am overjoyed with my performance and with this result, I am almost certain to secure my card. At the beginning of the season, I never imagined that I could finish in the top-60 and it was not even one of my targets. I have been doing unexpectedly well on Tour. I just can’t wait to share my happiness with my family back home," said Park, who was runner-up in this year's Philippine Open.

The Asian Tour remains in Taipei for this week's US$300,000 Taiwan Open at Sunrise Golf and Country Club. Thailand's Thaworn Wiratchant, last year's Order of Merit winner, will defend his title.

UBS ORDER OF MERIT – TOP-20
Pos. Player Winnings (US$)
1. Jeev Milkha SINGH (IND) 470,108
2. Prom MEESAWAT (THA) 330,471
3. Charlie WI (KOR) 329,680
4. Andrew BUCKLE (AUS) 301,512
5. Simon DYSON (ENG) 269,265
6. Shiv KAPUR (IND) 261,857
7. Brad KENNEDY (AUS) 252,664
8. Mardan MAMAT (SIN) 241,922
9. Thongchai JAIDEE (THA) 237,402
10. Gaurav GHEI (IND) 218,532
11. Prayad MARKSAENG (THA) 212,412
12. Scott STRANGE (AUS) 199,828
13. WANG Ter-chang (TPE) 199,568
14. Thaworn WIRATCHANT (THA) 192,327
15. Anthony KANG (USA) 182,940
16. LIANG Wen-chong (CHN) 180,317
17. Unho PARK (AUS) 154,556
18. Rahil GANGJEE (IND) 153,588
19. Chapchai NIRAT (THA) 152,439
20. LEE Sung (KOR) 145,104

October 2, 2006