BAYAN LEPAS, August 1 – After three days of grueling and competitive play, Marcus Lim emerged top on the leader board at the 54th Penang Amateur Open held at Penang Golf Club. Marcus Lim shot a 6-under-66 on Day One and Day Two consecutively and finished in top spot on Final Day with a score of 3-under-par 69 for 15-under- par 201 tournament total. Of his stellar performance, he said, “It’s been a challenging game, and everyone on the field has provided an enjoyable play over the three days. There were some very good players in the field and I was hard pressed to maintain my game plan. However, I managed to keep my cool and focused on my game one shot at a time.”
With the win, Marcus Lim reaffirmed his position as the top amateur player in the region and it will boost his confidence going into his next event, the Perak Amateur Open to be held from August 2-4, 2022 at Royal Perak Golf Club. It feels good to win here right after winning the Gold Medal at SEA Games 2021 Hanoi,” Marcus Lim said. “I had fun at this event and hope to continue my great form at the Perak Amateur Open. Sarawak’s Lim Beng Keat also played brilliantly with 68, 72, 70 for 6-under-par 210 tournament total to finish second. He won RM3000.00 for his effort.
Muhammad Nasrullah Zulkifli from KL finished third with a creditable performance of 2-under-par 214 tournament total. He carded 79, 68 and 67 to secure the third spot and won RM2,000.00.Conducted by the Malaysian Golf Association and MS3 Golf Sdn Bhd, the Penang Amateur Open is the first in the series of state amateur opens en route to the 118th Malaysian Amateur Open. It is a premier tournament that gathers the best amateurs around Malaysia and its neighboring countries. The event was included in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) since 2008; where it attracts a large number of participants every year, all vying for the event’s top honors.
This year, a total of xx players took part in the Championship. For the first time, this event offers cash money as prizes after the world’s governing body, the R&A has amended the Rules of Amateur Status to allow amateurs to receive cash money as prizes for Gross event. Malaysian Golf Association’s (MGA) President who is also the National Team Management Subcommittee Chairman, Tan Sri Mohd Anwar Mohd Nor expressed his enthusiasm for the progress of the local players, saying, “The Penang Amateur Open is a vital platform for the local players as it grants them a chance to hone their skills through a regional playing field, and improve their game. Congratulations to the winners, and well done to the rest for a game well played.”
Fresh off from winning the Singapore Amateur Open, Mirabel Ting continued to show her mettle by holding on to her lead from Day one to win the tournament by 5 strokes from her nearest competitor. “I am quite happy with my performance today after a disastrous 2-over-par 74 yesterday” Mirabel said. Mirabel finished with 5-under-par 211 to clinch the ladies title of the Penang Amateur Open. Yan Yinuo of China finished second after carding 1-under-par 71 today for even-par 216 tournament total. “It was a tough day,” Yan said. “I was trying to catch up and go after the leader, but I was running out of holes. Congratulations to Mirabel for winning the ladies overall title.”
MGA Honorary Secretary, Dato’ Zulkifli Dato’ Ismail who is also the Competitions Subcommittee Chairman said, “The MGA is committed to provide world-class standard tournaments for our amateurs to compete against the best in the region. This is the first time we changed the format of our fixtures which comprise of a series of state amateur open en route to the 118th Malaysian Amateur Open. We hope that our amateurs will take this opportunity to play as many state amateur opens as they can which will give them an added advantage to win the Order of Merit Awards.”
