Hong Kong (July 28): Kitty Tam Yik-ching and Lucas Lam will be aiming to continue their rich vein of form when they vie for glory in this week’s Faldo Series Hong Kong Championship.
The Hong Kong teenagers have been in dominant mood this year, capturing a succession of titles.
On the back of those triumphs, Tam and Lam are sure to start among the favourites when they line-up in the 36-hole event over the demanding North Course at the Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Public Course.
More than 50 players aged between 13 and 18 will be chasing four qualifying spots on offer to the ninth Faldo Series Asia Grand Final, to be hosted by Sir Nick Faldo at Mission Hills next March.
Tam, currently with a handicap index of 1.1, will be further boosted in the knowledge that she emerged victorious in last year’s Faldo Series Hong Kong Championship, posting rounds of 73 and 70.
In the wake of that success, Tam has established herself as a major female golfing force with victories in the Hong Kong Ladies Close Amateur Championship and the Hong Kong Junior Close Championship.
She also had the distinction of finishing as the leading Hong Kong individual in this year’s Asia-Pacific Ladies Invitational Championship for the Queen Sirikit Cup.
Lam, also, has been enjoying an outstanding run. Winner of last year’s Hong Kong Junior Open Championship, Lam underscored his potential with a come-from-behind victory in April’s Hong Kong Junior Close Championship.
Now his focus is on another dominant performance in the seventh leg of the 2014-15 Faldo Series Asia – and securing a starting spot in the World Amateur Golf Ranking event across the border.
Six-time Major championship winner Faldo, Britain’s most successful golfer, said: “Discovering and nurturing talented young players from around the world is among the aims of the Faldo Series.
“I’ll be following closely the results from Kau Sai Chau and look forward to meeting the Hong Kong Championship winners at the Grand Final.”
Supported by The R&A, ISPS and Mission Hills and endorsed by the Asian Tour and the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation, the 2014-15 Faldo Series Asia campaign will stretch over 11 months and be made up of a minimum of 20 championships.