SHESHAN GOLF CLUB • CHINA • 2019 MEDIA GUIDE 成就英雄 CREATING HEROES ASIA-PACIFIC AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP SHESHAN INTERNATIONAL GOLF CLUB 26 - 29 SEPTEMBER 2019 PAST CHINESE CHAMPIONS JIN CHENG 2015 | GUAN TIANLANG 2012 | LIN YUXIN 2017 2019 ASIA-PACIFIC AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP SHESHAN INTERNATIONAL GOLF CLUB 26 - 29 SEPTEMBER 2019 THE CHAMPIONSHIP 2 THE TROPHY 3 2019 CHAMPIONSHIP INFORMATION 4 CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY 5 2018 CHAMPIONSHIP 6 2017 CHAMPIONSHIP 10 2016 CHAMPIONSHIP 14 2015 CHAMPIONSHIP 18 2014 CHAMPIONSHIP 22 2013 CHAMPIONSHIP 26 2012 CHAMPIONSHIP 30 2011 CHAMPIONSHIP 34 2010 CHAMPIONSHIP 38 2009 CHAMPIONSHIP 42 CHAMPIONSHIP RECORDS 48 ALL-TIME PARTICIPANTS 57 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship Media Guide 1 THE CHAMPIONSHIP THE TROPHY The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was created in February 2009 as a joint initiative to grow the game by the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation, the Masters Tournament and The R&A. An invitation to play in the Masters Tournament and The Open is given to the winner, while the runner(s)-up gain a place in The Open Qualifying Series for The Open. The 120-player field is annually comprised of the top male amateurs in the Asia-Pacific region invited from the 42 Asia Pacific Golf Confederation member organisations. The winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship has his name Korean Han Chang-won triumphed at the inaugural event in China in 2009, before Hideki engraved on the Asia-Pacific Amateur Matsuyama won in his native Japan in 2010 and successfully defended his title in Singapore the Championship Trophy, which stands following year. 40 centimetres/15.75” tall and weighs At 14 years old, Guan Tianlang of China won the fourth edition of the event in 2012, while Lee more than six kilograms/13 lbs. Chang-woo from Korea claimed the title the next year in China. Australian Antonio Murdaca became the next champion in 2014 at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club. In 2015, China’s Jin Cheng fired a course-record eight-under 62 en route to winning the AAC at The Clearwater Bay Golf & Country Club in Hong Kong. 2016 champion Curtis Luck of Australia, then the world’s second-ranked amateur, triumphed in the 2016 AAC with a bogey-free 67 and a one-stroke victory after starting the final round seven strokes behind the lead. Lin Yuxin, at 17, became the third AAC champion from China after finishing with a birdie and eagle in the final round to win by three strokes at Royal Wellington Golf Club in New Zealand. Last year, Takumi Kanaya followed in Matsuyama's footsteps when he became the second player from Japan to lift the trophy in Singapore at Sentosa Golf Club. 2 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship Media Guide 3 2019 ASIA-PACIFIC ASIA-PACIFIC AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP INFORMATION HISTORY Date 26-29 September 2019 In its short history, the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship has Format 72-holes, stroke play. A cut takes place after 36 holes for the leading 60 players plus ties. In the event seen the birth of some of the game's future heroes. We have of a tie after 72 holes, the winner is decided by a sudden-death playoff. celebrated the winners who went on to play in the Masters Tournament and The Open, as well as the runners-up who Award Champion made it into The Open Qualifying Series. On the following Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship Trophy pages we relive each of the championships in detail. Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship Gold Medal An Invitation to compete in the 2020 Masters Tournament An exemption into The 149th Open at Royal St George's in 2020 An exemption into The 125th Amateur Championship, conducted by The R&A Runner(s)-up Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship Silver Medal A place in The Open Qualifying Series with the opportunity to qualify for 2018 The 149th Open at Royal St George's in 2020 Venue Sheshan International Golf Club, widely regarded as one of the world’s best golf courses, is located at the base of Sheshan Mountain in Shanghai, China. The par-72 course plays host annually to the WGC-HSBC Champions, which two-time AAC champion (2010, 2011) Hideki Matsuyama won in 2016. 2017 Par 36-36-72 Length 7,041 yards / 6,410 metres Designer Neil Haworth and Robin Nelson 2016 Opened 2004 Qualification The 11th edition of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship will be held from September 26-29, at Sheshan International 2015 Golf Club in Shanghai, China. The 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC) will have a maximum field of 120 male amateur players. The field will be selected by the following criteria: 1. Asia-Pacific Amateur Champions 2009-2018. Past Champions will be exempt for a five-year period from the year of 2014 their win provided they maintain their Amateur Status. 2. The first five and anyone tying for fifth place from the 2018 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship will receive an automatic exemption into the 2019 AAC, provided they maintain their Amateur Status. 2013 3. The top two ranked amateur players from each Asia Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) Member Association, plus the top four ranked players from the host country, as ranked on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) on 27 June 2019. If there is not a sufficient number of players ranked from a Member Association, that association may nominate a player(s) from their association with an established handicap of less than 5.4, subject to AAC approval, to fill up to 2012 two positions. 4. The remainder of the field will be filled by taking the next highest ranked players from APGC Member Associations from the WAGR on 27 June 2019. The maximum number of eligible players from any APGC Member Association will be six. The only exception is the host nation, which may have up to 10 participants. 2011 5. If players from Conditions 1 and 2 above do not qualify under Conditions 3 and 4, these players will be included in the field in addition to the maximum number of eligible players from their country. If, however, they fall within the WAGR players from their country that qualifies under Conditions 3 and 4, their country will not receive additional invitations. 6. The AAC reserves the right, at its discretion, to invite additional players, or withdraw an invitation if the APGC is made 2010 aware of disciplinary matters or anti-doping sanctions concerning any player. 2009 4 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship Media Guide 5 2018 ASIA-PACIFIC KANAYA REALIZES CHILDHOOD DREAM AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP WITH AAC TITLE, BECOMES SECOND REVIEW JAPANESE CHAMPION Date 4-7 October 2018 Venue Sentosa Golf Club Singapore Par 35-35-70 Length 6,262 metres / 6,847 yards Designer Frank Pennick / Redesign by Andrew Johnston and Matt Swanson in 2016 Opened 1974 Japan’s Takumi Kanaya followed in the footsteps of his successful countryman Hideki Matsuyama when he captured the 10th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC). Kanaya earned an invitation to the 2019 Masters Tournament and a place in The 148th Open at Royal Portrush. The 20-year-old Kanaya, the highest-ranked Japanese player in the field at No. 22, shot a five-under-par 65 on the final day to finish at 13-under-par 267, two shots ahead of India’s Rayhan Thomas and compatriot and 2018 Asian Games gold medalist Keita Nakajima. As runners-up, both Thomas and Nakajima earned spots in The Open Qualifying Series. After entering the final round two strokes behind defending champion Lin Yuxin, Kanaya set out to make up ground and played his first six holes in four under. When inclement weather hit, Kanaya wasn’t fazed by the suspension in play. Following the hour delay, he powered ahead of the field with three consecutive birdies starting at the 14th hole. After a bogey on the 17th, he went on to finish two strokes ahead of what had been a tight leader board throughout the day. “This is simply like a dream. I have been dreaming of going to the Masters ever since I was a kid,” said Kanaya, who received a congratulatory call from Matsuyama, a two-time AAC champion and now a multiple PGA Tour winner, moments after winning the championship. “I never expected to play the Masters and The Open so early in my career, so this is just huge. “I played well throughout the day, but I think the key for me was how I kept my calm and composure during the round.” Thomas , who played his last 54 holes in 15 under par, was disappointed with the four-over 74 start he had in the first round, which eventually made all the difference. “One thing I definitely learned from this week is that you can’t win a championship of this level after starting with a four-over round,” said Thomas, who made only one bogey in his last 45 holes. “Irrespective of my score, I loved every moment of this great championship, and I am glad that I have the chance to come back again next year knowing that I have the ability to win it.” Nakajima, who fired four sub-par rounds, felt he was in the reckoning until he made a bogey on the 17th hole, but added that Kanaya’s play was a factor, too. “I had a fantastic week. I thought I still had a chance coming in, but the three-putt bogey on the 17th was a turning point. And also, Takumi played so solid,” said Nakajima. Takumi Kanaya - 2018 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship winner Venue Information First opened in 1974, Sentosa Golf Club became the host of the Singapore Open in 2005, which is now the SMBC Singapore Open, as well as the HSBC Women’s Champions since 2012.