Suttinon Panyo goes wire-to-wire to win Toyota Tour Championship

Suttinon Panyo played consistent golf as he led from wire-to-wire to win the prestigious Toyota Tour Championship co-sanctioned by the Asian Development Tour, by a comfortable three strokes over India’s Khalin Joshi at Saujana Golf & Country Club here, on 18 November 2023, last Saturday.

The 20-year-old Suttinon, ranked ninth in Thailand, was never threatened by flight mates Joshi and Malaysia’s Galven Green, whose two-over 74 dropped him to joint fourth at eight-under 280, alongside Newport Laparojkit of Thailand and fellow Malaysian Paul San.

Witchayanon Chothirunrungrueng finished alone in third three strokes behind Joshi, at 279.

Suttinon, who aced the second hole dubbed the “monster” during yesterday’s third round, carded a two-under 70 on Saujana’s Palm Course, to add to the 67, 69 and 67 rounds he had had earlier.

After receiving his trophy from UMW Toyota Motor deputy chairman Takeshi Obata, Suttinon declared he will compete in the ADT season-ending Aramco Saudi Invitational starting in 11 days, in a bid to solidify his position on the ADT Order of Merit.

After today’s victory, Suttinon jumped 26 spots in the ADT Order of Merit and is now ranked ninth. The top 10 finishers in the ADT Order of Merit will gain Asian Tour cards.

“I’m very happy with my game,” said the Chiang Mai-born Suttinon. “I kept it simple and went for the pin whenever I was in a good position. This course is in superb condition and it allowed us to hit good, clean shots and make birdie putts.

“I’m very thankful to my family for their support and I hope to improve my overall game over the next few years,” he added.

For his win, Suttinon takes home RM61,250 plus a RM3,000 bonus for his hole-in-one. There was a second hole-in-one by Laparojkit this morning at the 190-yard fifth hole. The Thai used a five-iron for his achievement.

Both San and Green will also be heading to Saudi for the Aramco event, as will Ervin Chang who missed the cut at Saujana. They are ranked 22nd, 24th and 25th respectively on the ADT OOM.

The Toyota Tour Championship is the final leg of the Toyota Tour organised by the PGM and delivered by MSTGolf Group.

Meanwhile 21-year-old Malcolm Ting who turned pro after competing in the Asia Pacific Amateur Championships in Melbourne recently, will be heading to Thailand next month for the final stage qualifying for the All-Thailand Tour.

He had a commendable week at Saujana, finishing in joint 28th at one-under 287, with fellow Malaysian veteran Khor Kheng Hwai, Sydney Chung of the United States and Saptak Talwar of India.

“I just couldn’t putt this whole week,” said Ting. “I played solid from tee to green but just couldn’t find the hole. I can’t tell if it was my putting or the putter, but it’s something that I can work on.” Ting is bent on playing more ADT events and intends to gain an Asian Tour card.

Another Malaysian who played exceptionally well was Shaifubari Muda, the resident professional and golf ambassador for Saujana GCC. At 52 years old, he was the oldest player to make the cut and he ended up one-over 289 after carding rounds of 72, 73, 73 and 71.

A total of 11 Malaysians out of 57 players made the cut.

Final scores
273 Suttinon Panyo 67-69-67-70
276 Khalin Joshi 68-71-66-71
279 Witchayanon Chothirunrungrueng 69-70-71-69
280 Newport Laparojkit 74-69-70-67, Paul San 72-69-70-69, Galven Green 68-67-71-74
281 Ekpharit Wu 73-67-72-69, Nopparat Panichphol 71-68-69-71
282 Phanuvich Onchu 72-75-65-70, Tawit Polthai 71-72-69-70, Pisitchai Thippong 71-70-74-67
283 Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij 74-70-68-71, Michele Ortolani 68-73-72-70, Jeremy Wendelken 71-68-72-72, Ahmad Baig 71-70-70-72, Gordon Brixi 68-75-73-67, Witchayapat Sinsrang 68-76-70-69

This article is provided by UMW Toyota Motor Sdn Bhd

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