Anson leads Malaysian seven in hunt for AAC breakthrough

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's team of seven golfers will be striving to break the country's Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship record at the 17th edition of the tournament, kicking off at Te Arai Links South Course on Thursday. No Malaysian player has ever finished higher than seventh since the event commenced in 2009. Iszaimi Ismail (2009) and Ervin Chang (2018) are the most recent players to achieve this feat.

Anson Yeo, a 20-year-old participant in his fifth successive appearance, aims to finish under par in every round and secure a top 10 ranking. The Sarawakian expects the windy, exposed links course to be a significant challenge due to the substantial difference in club selection required. Yeo is accompanied by Nateesh Ganesh, Hariz Hezri, Aiden Kei, Danish Rizal, Afham Othman, and Maverick Chua.

Ganesh, 21 and a recent winner of UC San Diego Invitational, is motivated by the prospect of making his major championship debut, stating that he will focus on executing every shot to the best of his ability. The youngest participant, Afham Othman at just 15, acknowledges the wind and large greens as his primary obstacles, having taken up golf only four years ago.

Maverick Chua, 16, has been training on Australia's Gold Coast to improve his ability to keep shots low after missing the cut during his first appearance last year. Aiden Kei, 21, will be competing in his first competitive links course test. Defending champion Thailand's Fifa Laopakdee returns to defend his title against a field that includes Japan's Taisei Nagasaki, Australia's Harry Takis, and China's Zhou Ziqin.