OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP RELATED STORIES Rd 1: Battling Lam makes top 15 with fine 72 Rd 1: Choi crafts brave 72 in worst of weather Rd 1: Liang faces uphill task after opening 77 Rd 1: 17th hole birdie keeps Chia's chances alive Rd 1: Prayad struggles with wind and cold for 77 Rd 2: Choi takes lead with two closing birdies Rd 2: Liang makes first major cut with fighting 71 Rd 2: Lam makes cut and Singapore golf history Rd 2: Late bogies mean early exit for Prayad Rd 3: Choi joint 2nd as Norman storms 2 ahead Rd 3: Liang fires worthy 77 as scores soar Rd 3: Lam is blown away by Birkdale winds Rd 4: Choi heartbroken as Harrington defends Rd 4: Closing 74 gives Liang more major hopes Rd 4: Tough Open makes Lam eye Asian success Rd 4: Angelo Que means to learn and return Final scores The 2008 Open Championship home page Guide to the Royal Birkdale Course Four Australians qualify for The Open 67 Sentosa hopefuls aim for four Open berths Randhawa going for fourth Open outing Chia, Que and Ali lead Open berth battle Chia, Blyth, Lam and Que headed for Birkdale Dyson qualifies for Open - Rodgers, Brown and Jeev miss out Liang to make golfing history at Birkdale Prayad out to erase Masters misery at Birkdale Que looks to ride his winning wave Lam takes a second shot at Open Liang back in the swing and ready to shine Confident Prayad ready to face Birkdale breezes Lam aiming at top 25 - and having fun Chia out for Malaysian first at his second Open Que hoping to become a familiar face ASIAN GOLF TODAY TOP STORIES Bae clinches home win Tanihara takes Panasonic title Su Dong's lead cut to two Hole-in-One Jeev shares the lead Korea, Philippines, Italy for World Cup Lu wins record 4th Taiwan Masters Aussie PGA rethinks 'One Asia' GOLF TODAY TOP STORIES Seve has a brain tumor Schwartzel wins by three Jay Haas on brink of another senior money title Justin Leonard looking to break Texas Open record Father & Son event sign up with Sky Sports

Liang fires worthy 77 as scores soar

China’s Liang Wen-chong picked up valuable lessons at a wind-lashed British Open on Saturday, saying the experience would make him a better competitor.

The Asian Tour number one battled to a seven-over-par 77 at Royal Birkdale which was battered by strong gusts of winds that hit up to 45mph and sent scores soaring in the year’s third major.

Liang, the first Chinese to play in all four rounds at the Open, dropped bogeys on the second and third holes before running up a six at the par three fourth hole after flying past the green with a misjudged tee shot.

But he limited the damage with only two more bogeys on the card in the rest of his round, settling for a three-day total of 15-over-par 225.

“Although it was tough, I was happy with my play except for the first few holes. On number four, I took a longer club as it was a strong headwind but it flew through the back of the green and into the woods and I had to take an unplayable lie,” said Liang.

“Still, I’m quite happy overall as I only had two more bogeys on the card after that mistake.”

Since making the halfway cut and enjoying a small slice of history by being the first Chinese to qualify for the Open, Liang hopes that his run at Royal Birkdale would be a further boost for sports in China.

He also threw his support for golf to be re-introduced into the Olympics where earlier this week, a committee was formed by golf’s major bodies to push for the inclusion.

“This is a special year for China. Being Chinese and making the cut here is nice and next month, we’ll have the Olympic in Beijing, I wish China a very successful Olympics and I also hope to see golf back into the Olympics in 2016,” said Liang.

He added that lessons learnt at this week’s Open would be put to good use as he chases his dream of winning a major title, which his swing coach Kel Llewellyn believes his star pupil has the ability to pull off.

“Every time I play in a major, you learn the weaknesses. This week, I’ve learned how to hit knockdown shots against the wind and you learn to be patient in tough conditions,” said Liang.

“The winds were the strongest today, but Thursday morning was also very tough due to the rains. When the winds blow from the side, you have to make your decision very clearly on how you want to shape your shot. Otherwise, the winds will magnify your mistakes. Today I shot a 77 and tomorrow I hope to do better.”

July 19, 2008