Padraig Harrington took no time in stamping his class on the Asian Open in suburban Taipei yesterday when he finished the opening round a stroke off the pace.
The Irish Ryder Cup winner carded a flawless 6-under-par 66 in wet conditions on the Ta Shee Country Club course in Taoyuan to end the first round of the opening event of the 2003 European Tour season -- just behind India's Joyti Randhawa.
PHOTO: AP
The 40-year-old Randhawa is a three times winner on the Asian Tour and set about claiming a fourth title with a 65 that included an eagle three at the par-5 sixth hole.
PHOTO: AP
"It was a great ball-striking day and I also putted really well which I guess was the key today," said Randhawa.
"My putter was just hot and after eagling the sixth it just added the momentum I needed."
Randhawa was fifth behind Harrington in last October's Links Championship in Scotland and it was this result in a world class field that the champion Indian-born golfer is hoping will now give him the confidence to topple the Irishman this week in Taiwan.
"Playing in Scotland where there was the top 25 players in the world in the field, gave me a lot of confidence," said Randhawa.
"It was my biggest career cheque of 170,000 euros (US$170,500) and it put me in a comfort zone and once you've finished up there well in a European Tour event, it gives you confidence and mental ability to do it time and time again."
Harrington shares second place with Germany's Sven Struver and in-form Dutch golfer, Maarten Lafeber.
Harrington is competing in Taiwan for the first time and after a disappointing showing in last fortnight's European Tour season swansong Volvo Masters, the world number eight was delighted to produce a sub par scoring display.
"I am obviously pleased and more pleased with three birdies in the first six holes," said Harrington who was second in last season's European Tour money list.
"The weather was bad, it was raining and it was blowing, and to make birdies in those conditions makes me pleased with myself and I just had a good day."
Struver put an indifferent season in Europe behind him with a similarly flawless 6-under-par 66.
The 35-year-old triple European Tour winner endured a miserable season on the European tour, missing 15 of 25 halfway cuts including his closing six events.
"I put every week behind me because I've had a bad run before missing something like 14 cuts in a row some six or seven years ago and suddenly `bang', I win a tournament," said Struver.
Lafeber celebrated his recent 32nd birthday by again reminding observers he is close to a first Tour victory after dropping just one stroke in his 66.
Five players -- the Swedish duo of Henrik Nystrom and Jarmo Sandelin, the Asian Open champion, plus South African Des Terblanche, American Andrew Pitts and Simon Yates, the Thai-based Scot -- are tied in fifth place at five under par.
Yeh Wei-tze (葉偉志) is the highest-placed local player after shooting a 69 to be in equal 15th position.
Taiwanese gymnast Tang Chia-hung on Sunday topped the men’s horizontal bar event at the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) World Cup in Osijek, Croatia, scoring 15.233 to take his third title this season. Tang delivered an outstanding performance in the final, earning a difficulty score of 6.500 and an execution score of 8.633 with a 0.1 stick bonus. His closest competitor was Milad Karimi of Kazakhstan, who finished second with 14.933 points. It was Tang’s third gold medal in the FIG World Cup series this year, following his horizontal bar wins in Azerbaijan on March 8, and in Turkey on March
This year’s Taiwan Athletics Open, which offers Taiwanese athletes an opportunity to compete against their international peers, would be held under a new name after its organizers had earlier announced the event’s cancelation. In a statement issued yesterday, the Chinese Taipei Athletics Association said the competition would still take place on June 6-7 at Banciao Stadium, but under the name “New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026.” The event was given a new name to emphasize its local identity and conform with the international practice of naming World Athletics Tour events after cities, the association said. It said it would soon
Taiwan’s Lee Hao-yu on Friday went 0-for-3 in his MLB debut for the Detroit Tigers against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, becoming the 19th Taiwan-born player to reach the big leagues. The Tigers ultimately lost 1-0 in 10 innings, ending their six-game winning streak. The 23-year-old started at third base and batted eighth for Detroit. He was promoted from Triple-A Toledo ahead of the four-game series against the Red Sox at the latter’s home stadium, replacing injured utility player Zach McKinstry. “Being right-handed, and given our schedule, I think six of the next 12 games are going to
Matheus Cunha on Saturday fired Manchester United toward the UEFA Champions League with a 1-0 win at Chelsea, while Tottenham Hotspur remain in the relegation zone after twice blowing the lead to draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. Chelsea failed to take advantage of a United defense ravaged by injury and suspension as a fourth straight league defeat for the Blues left their Champions League hopes in ruins. United have missed out on the riches of Europe’s elite competition for the past two seasons, but are closing in on a return thanks to an upturn in fortunes under interim manager
RSS