A new generation of regional golfers, including Thailand’s Pongsapak Laopakdee and Ratchanon ‘TK’ Chantananuwat, is in Dubai this week, each with a dream in tow that was sparked by the heroics of Hideki Matsuyama.
The 16th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, set to begin from today, will bring together 120 of the brightest young talents such as Japan’s Rintaro Nakano and China’s Zhou Ziqin, all eager to make their mark. They’ll be walking a path first cleared by Matsuyama, whose teenage breakthrough at the same Championship some 15 years ago became the first steps towards a Masters Green Jacket.
The Emirates Golf Club’s Majlis Course, which is set against the gleaming Dubai skyline, will host the region’s premier amateur men’s Championship where at stake is not just the coveted silverware, but golf’s two golden tickets — an invitation to the 2026 Masters Tournament and an exemption into The Open Championship.
No figure looms larger over the Asia-Pacific Amateur than Matsuyama who is now arguably the greatest male golfer Asia has produced. A two-time Asia-Pacific Amateur champion, the 32-year-old parlayed his 2010 victory into a trophy-laden professional career that now boasts 11 PGA Tour victories and, most memorably, the 2021 Masters, where he became the first Asian man to slip on the prized Green Jacket.
“Winning the 2010 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship gave me the opportunity to play in the Masters Tournament,” Matsuyama recalled. “Making the cut that week helped me realise I could actually have a career playing golf,” said Matsuyama.
“I owe a great debt of gratitude to Augusta National and will be eternally grateful for the opportunity to play in the Masters and helping me reach my dream to play professional golf. Winning the 2010 AAC was life-changing for me.”
All eyes will be on the 18-year-old Ratchanon, known better as ‘TK’.
Three years ago, he won a professional tournament on the Asian Tour to signal his promise in the game, and he will be eager to challenge for the Championship, having finished T13 in his previous appearance at the 2022 edition in Thailand.
The Stanford University sophomore said: “This tournament is the biggest amateur event in the region and is very important because the champion earns invitations to play in two majors, The Masters and The Open, next year which is a dream for amateur golfers. I want to seize that opportunity, but I won’t put too much pressure on myself. I’ll stay focused on my game plan, take it one shot at a time, and enjoy the game as much as possible.”
Pongsapak Laopakdee, 20, finished T5 in the 2022 edition and will be amongst the frontrunners in Emirates Golf Club. Ranked 53rd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, the Arizona State University junior plans to use his US collegiate experience to challenge for the Asia-Pacific Amateur crown this week and become the first golfer from Thailand to achieve the feat. The nation’s best finisher in the history of the Championship is a tied third finish by Tanapat Pichaikool in 2019.
“I’m ready to compete in this tournament,” said Pongsapak, who was an International Team member at the Junior Presidents Cup in Charlotte, North Carolina in 2022. “It will be my first time playing in the UAE, which is different from what I’ve experienced before. This is one of the biggest tournaments in the region, and the champion will earn invitations to the majors. I’ll use my past playing experience to improve and adapt, but even if I don’t win, it’s fine. I just want to give it my very best and I see this as a valuable experience in my golf journey.”
Japan’s Rintaro Nakano, who will make his third start in the Championship, will spearhead his country’s seven-man charge where they hope to follow in Matsuyama’s footsteps, and also of Takumi Kanaya and Keita Nakajima who won the Asia-Pacific Amateur in 2018 and 2021 respectively.
After finishing third at Taiheiyo Club in Gotemba last year and T28 at Royal Melbourne in 2023, the 21-year-old is fired up to win the prestigious Championship.
“I think this will be my last AAC, so I want to enjoy it. Of course, I have winning in mind, and I want to play with my full effort while appreciating this tournament that has helped me grow,” said Nakano, who was the 36-hole leader before finishing two strokes behind champion Ding Wenyi of China last year.
Note: The writer worked for the PGA Tour and Asian Tour for 25 years, leading their communications efforts in the region. He now runs his own PR consulting firm in Malaysia.