Completing a wire-to-wire domination, Indonesia’s Rory Hie deservedly won the $300,000 Classic Golf and Country Club International Championship here on Sunday.
Hie’s maiden professional title came following his impressive tally of 21-under 267 that gave him a two-shot winning margin.
The highlight of his final-round four-under 68 was the hat-trick of birdies from the 13th hole that firmly placed him beyond the reach of second-placed Rashid Khan and Korea’s Byungjun Kim.
“It was always my dream to walk up the 18th green with a two-shot lead and that’s what happened,” said Hie after ending a 11-year wait for his first title as a professional.
Hie, sole leader after every round, collected $54,000 and the winner’s trophy. After becoming the first Indonesian winner on the Asian Tour, Hie said, “This win will also open a lot of doors,” said the 31-year-old.
Rashid Khan, who caught with Hie at 18-under after the fifth hole, fell back by shots after his bogey on the 15th was met by a birdie by the eventual champion. It was his final-hole birdie that saw him climb to the joint second place with a round of 69.
Byungjun Kim, who shared the lead at 18-under with Hie and Rashid after 10 holes, could not come up with a strong finish. Rashid and Kim received $25,950 each.
The strongest finish of the round came from young Aadil Bedi who fired birdies on the last five holes! He carded a 66 to take to the fourth spot, worth $15,000.
The scores: 267: Rory Hie (Ina) (64, 68, 67, 68); 269: Byungjun Kim (Kor) (69, 66, 67, 67), Rashid Khan (68, 66, 66, 69); 270: Aadil Bedi (67, 68, 69, 66); 272: Aman Raj (67, 67, 72, 66), Kwanchai Tannin (Tha) (66, 72, 68, 66), Suttijet Koorantanapisan (Tha) (70, 72, 63, 67) and Abhijit Chadha (68, 65, 68, 71) .
