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Steel bent on going one better at TCL Classic

Malaysia’s Iain Steel has put aside the blues of a play-off defeat last weekend as he prepares for another title charge at the US$1 million TCL Classic which tees off on Thursday.

Steel has been firing on all cylinders over the past few weeks and came close to a maiden title in Asia when he lost to China's Liang Wen-chong in extra time at the Clariden Leu Singapore Masters, jointly sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.

It was Steel's best result since focusing his attentions on the Asian Tour in 2006, and came as a confidence booster following his early season struggles where he missed three successive cuts.

While he admitted being physically and emotionally drained after the heartbreak of the play-off loss to Liang, Steel is on the mend as he prepares for this week's TCL Classic at Yalong Bay Golf Club.

“If I can get myself into a good position over the weekend, then there is a high possibility of a win,” said Steel. “It was a good learning experience for me in Singapore. I double bogeyed the 13th hole in the third round and had a similar result on the 16th the following day. But I still have to analyze the drive in the play-off 18th hole. I may have rushed that shot. But all of that is behind me now,” he added.

Steel set the clubhouse mark at 11-under-par in Singapore and looked destined for a win when Liang, who was also on the mark with the last hole to play, found deep rough. But the upcoming Chinese star produced a wonderful recovery shot and drained a four-foot par putt to force extra time. Steel's hopes then vanished when he pulled his tee shot into the water in the play-off.

“I was a bit down emotional and physically on Monday and I didn’t want to be on the golf course. But at the end of the practice round on Tuesday, I felt much better. During the last five to six holes yesterday, I struck the ball really well and it made me feel pumped up ahead of the challenges this week. My energy level is back up and I’m charged up for a good outing here. ”

Steel, who is of Malaysian-Scottish parentage, chalked up four top-10s last season and with his joint 10th place finish in the Johnnie Walker Classic in Phuket two weeks ago followed by his play-off encounter in Singapore on Sunday, Steel has moved into third place on the Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit.

Reaping the fruits of success from last week is China’s very own top golfer Liang who is equally determined for a repeat performance in front of his home fans. Yalong Bay holds good memories for Liang as he jointly holds the course record of 10-under-par 62, shot in last year's TCL Classic.

“To tell you the truth, I’ve hardly had time to sleep since Sunday. I rushed to get packed in Singapore just to make sure I could go home as soon as possible to share the victory with my family,” said Liang.

“I’m a bit tired now, but I know everyone is waiting for me to appear here, so it is no problem. You’re always traveling to different tournaments, it’s part of the game. This week I just have to get myself back together and go out there again and try to play well. It’s not easy though but it’s my ambition to win a big tournament in China.”

The 28-year-old became only the second Chinese golfer to lift a European Tour title on Sunday emulating his close friend and mentor Zhang Lian-wei, who has been the guiding force in his career.

While many observers now label Liang as China's number one, the youngster stressed that Zhang was irreplaceable in golf's history in China. “There is no such thing as ‘replacing Zhang Lian-wei’,” said Liang.

“For me, he is China’s all-time golf champion. I’d like to take this chance to say ‘thank you’ to Zhang on behalf of myself and all the other Chinese golfers. If there had been no Zhang, none of this [winning in Singapore] would have happened.

“He is like our big brother. I will never stop learning from him.”

Europe's Ryder Cup stars Lee Westwood and Paul McGinley, along with captain Ian Woosnam, are the big-name players competing in this week's TCL Classic, which is jointly sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.

March 14, 2007