KOTA KEMUNING, March 8 — Amir Nazrin Jailani and Shahriffuddin Ariffin were the best Malaysian finishers at the Bandar Malaysia Open with a 5-Under par total over 54 holes.
Amir had rounds of 71, 70, 70 while Shahriffuddin finished with scores of 70, 71, 70 to be the best among the 47 participants of whom only seven made the cut at the weather affected tournament.
Officials had to call off play yesterday due to a lightning warning at 1.30pm. By 6pm they could not resume play hence the tournament decided to crown a champion after 54 holes with the last round played today.
For Amir seeing the Malaysian Open return after a four-year hiatus was exciting and he felt if they were able to play their fourth round he could’ve done better.
“It’s bad luck for me because maybe I could play better with four rounds. But what can we do, the weather won’t allow it.
“I had only 10 holes to play but I was behind the leaders so my focus was on point and i took my time deciding what kind of shots I need to make,” said Amri when met by reporters after his round today.
Amir like Shahriffuddin play on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) and local tours but with the coronavirus causing several tournaments to be cancelled they were left in limbo as to what to do next.
Players like these two need to play smaller tournaments to gain enough ranking points and money to move up the ladder and then gain entry into the bigger tours like the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) and European Tour where the world’s best players ply their trade.
However, recently the Thailand and Bangladesh Open were cancelled and there are no local tournaments on the calendar due to the coronavirus as well as a lack of funds and direction from the organising bodies.
So when asked what he will do next Amir said: “I have to try and look around and see what’s going on the other tours or continue studying.
“Maybe study engineering or work with my family. Those are some options I’m looking at. However if I get an exemption to play anywhere, by any tour, be it far or near doesn’t matter, I’m definitely going,” said Amir.
“I played will this week and I would love to play more but we shall see what transpires.”
For Shahriffuddin, making the cut was a big deal for the 20-year-old as he got to play with seasoned professionals and learn from them.
“This was my first Malaysian Open and it feels different as there aren’t a lot of tournaments on the calendar and I wanted to do well so it was nerve-racking.
“I putted well all week and i managed to save par on several holes so that was good. In the end I think the most I gained was from watching how these pros conduct themselves, control their shots and in the end I learnt how to control my nerves.
“I think I may focus on the Asian Tour or play in the Philippines if I can as there aren’t any tournaments in Malaysia due to the viral outbreak.
“I’ll have to weigh my options and see what’s available then plan from there,” he said.
The other Malaysians who made the cut were Ben Leong who finished at 4-Under, Danny Chia, Nicholas Fung and Jeremiah Kim Leunkwang finished at 2-Under and while amateur Lo Tien Ming finished at 8-Over.
