Three Share Lead At A'Famosa
May 10, 2012

Malaysia’s Rashid Ismail and Hanafiah Jamil enjoyed the opening honours alongside England’s Peter Richardson after they posted matching five-under-par 67s to share the first round lead at the PGM ADT Masters at A’Famosa on Thursday.

Korea’s Kim Ji-hoon signed for a 68 to take fourth place while Singapore’s Quincy Quek, Australia’s Unho Park and Malaysia’s Lam Yu Shuen are bunched in fifth place on 69 at the RM180,000 (approximately US$60,000) Asian Development Tour (ADT) event, which is the third ADT event to be staged this season.

Hanafiah was delighted with his opening performance after he marked his card with four birdies, one bogey and an eagle-three on the par-five seventh at the A’Famosa Golf Resort in Malacca.

The Malaysian, who played on the Asian Tour in 2008 but lost his card the following year, is confident that he can play his way back into the main Tour after enjoying a strong start.

“I’m really pleased with how I’ve played today. The course was in perfect condition for scoring and if I can continue playing like how I did today, I should get a good result this week,” said Hanafiah.

“I enjoyed playing on the Asian Tour and I hope to make my return starting with a good performance this week,” added the Malaysian.

Meanwhile Rashid credited his solid putting for giving him a share of the lead, which he is determined to hold on to as the week progresses.

“I putted really well which was the key to my good start today. I couldn’t have asked for more. I hope that my good form will continue throughout the week” said Rashid who marked his card with seven birdies and two bogeys.

Launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia, the ADT has gained support from Corporate Asia, growing its schedule from five tournaments in the first season to eight tournaments in the 2011 season.

The leading three players on the Asian Development Tour Order of Merit will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals.

Leading first round scores
67- Peter RICHARDSON (ENG), Rashid ISMAIL (MAS), Hanafiah JAMIL (MAS)
68 - KIM Ji-hoon (KOR)
69 - LAM Yu Shuen (MAS), Unho PARK (AUS), Quincy QUEK (SIN)
70- Sukree OTHMAN (MAS), Akhmal TARMIZEE (MAS), Go NAKAUCHI (JPN)