Liang to play Macau with eye on Order of Merit

China's Liang Wen-chong has signed up as a late entrant for next week's Macau Open as he bids to overhaul South Africa's Anton Haig at the top of the Asian Tour's UBS Order of Merit.

The 28-year-old Chinese star, who has won once and posted five other top-10s this season, had initially planned to play in Europe but altered his schedule to feature in the Macau Open.

Ryder Cup star David Howell of England is amongst the top names who will grace the fairways of Macau Golf and Country Club from May 17-20 and Liang's decision to compete in the US$300,000 tournament will greatly enhance its 10th anniversary celebrations.

"I'm looking forward to playing in the Macau Open," said Liang, who has accumulated US$423,462 this season and is only US$4,223 behind Haig on the UBS Order of Merit.

"Finishing second in Korea last weekend has helped me narrow the gap at the top and since Macau is only one hour away from where I live, I have decided to play in the tournament and hopefully challenge for a win," added the Zhongshan-based golfer.

Liang has not featured in the Macau Open since 2002 but he has a rather impressive record at the popular Asian Tour event, this season's 14th leg. In his debut in 1999 as an amateur, Liang made the cut to finish 62nd and improved in the following year to finish 25th.

He then posted back-to-back tied ninth outings in 2001 and 2002, the years when compatriot and mentor Zhang Lian-wei triumphed in succession. Zhang will also be teeing up next week in his bid for a third Macau Open crown.

Macau Sport Development Board Acting President Alex Vong welcomed Liang's decision to feature in the Macau Open. "We are absolutely delighted that Liang has agreed to play in the Macau Open next week.

"With a line-up of top players from the Asian Tour plus David Howell in the field, Liang's presence will greatly enhance our tournament and help us usher in the 10th anniversary of the Macau Open."

Liang said he knows the challenging par-71 course rather well although he has not played in the Macau Open for several years. "I've taken trips to Macau to play in practice rounds over the last few years as it's so close to home," he said.

"I was over in Macau earlier this year and I know the course fairly well. It's a challenging test but I'm looking forward to it as I've played well there in the past."

After seven seasons on the Asian Tour without a victory, Liang broke through at the Clariden Leu Singapore Masters in March, winning the title in a play-off against Malaysia's Iain Steel.

He joined Zhang as a winner of a co-sanctioned event with Europe and has continued to enjoy a rich vein of form where he was second in the GS Caltex Maekyung Open in Korea last weekend after leading for three rounds. That performance helped Liang join the Asian Tour's million-dollar club in career earnings.

Haig, winner of the Johnnie Walker Classic in Phuket, leads the UBS Order of Merit with US$427,685 but as he is not playing in Macau, Liang intends to capitalise on his absence.

"I've improved as a player over the years by playing on the Asian Tour and in Japan. The experience has helped me become better. I would like to win the UBS Order of Merit," said Liang.

After the Macau Open, Liang will head for the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, the European Tour's flagship tournament. Following that event, he plans to feature in tournaments in Japan as well before switching his attention back to Asia towards the end of the year in his hopes to become the first Chinese player to become Asia's kingpin of golf in 2007.

May 10, 2007

Bookmark page with:

Return to Top of Page