Teenager Shahriffudin Ariffin staged a late comeback to win his maiden Asian Development Tour (ADT) title by two shots at the RM225,000 (about US$58,000) PGM Labuan Championship.
Shahriffudin Ariffin emerged victorious in Labuan.
Shahriffudin started the day two shots behind overnight leader Rizal Amin in third position at the Labuan International Golf Club but stormed with home with an eagle and two birdies in his last five holes en route to a final round three-under-par 69 and a four-day total of seven-under 281.
Nicholas Fung signed off with a 69 to take second place while Rizal had a day to forget as he mixed his card with four bogeys and two birdies to end the week in third place.
“This is a very special win for me as it’s my first ADT victory. This is not an easy course and my iron play has been very solid all week. That really helped,” said Shahriffudin.
The 18-year-old didn’t think much of his chances after he dropped a shot on the fifth hole and could not get any birdies in his outward nine. However, his round came alive starting with an eagle-three on 14 followed by a birdie at 15. Another birdie on 18 sealed the deal.
“I tried not to think too much about whether I can win at the start of the day. But as the round progressed, I felt my confidence growing. I’m happy I did it,” said Shariffudin.
All ADT events are afforded Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) status. The winner of each tournament receives a minimum of six OWGR points while the top-six players and ties earn points on a sliding scale.
The leading seven players on the ADT Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn playing rights on the Asian Tour for the 2019 season.
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