Matteo Manassero Emerged As The Youngest Winner In The History Of The Malaysian Open
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - April 17 2011
Kuala Lumpur, 17 April 2011 – Matteo Manassero received an early birthday present today as he emerged as the champion of the Maybank Malaysian Open 2011 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club.
Manassero, who turns 18 in two days, topped the leaderboard with a sensational round of four-under-par for a total of 16-under-par 272. An eagle on Hole 10 par five helped him jolt his game past France’s Gregory Bourdy and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy who fell into second and third respectively.
“I couldn’t imagine anything better – going back home to celebrate my 18th birthday and my second victory on The European Tour. It’s great to be able to celebrate both together. I’m just now concentrating on being in the top 50 now and getting into all the majors. I’m very happy about this achievement,” said Manassero, walking away with a total prize of USD 416,660.00 (RM 1,259,979.81)
European Tour players dominated the Top 7 leaderboard standings and Bourdy was one of them. His stunning third round play which hoisted him to tied fourth place continued today as he carded a total of eight birdies for a five-under-par 67.
Crowd favourite Rory Mcillroy, failed to maintain his rhythm and bogeyed the last hole. However the 21-year old bagged seven birdies to card a 14-under-par 274 for third place.
“It has been a good week. I enjoyed coming to Kuala Lumpur. I’m disappointed with the result but everything else was positive. I’m proud of myself at how I picked myself up from last week and the way I came back on the back nine today,” said McIlroy bagged USD 156,500.00 (RM473,255.99)
The best from Asia was Md Siddikur Rahman. Hailing from Bangladesh, Siddikur was tied for 15th coming into the fourth round of the Maybank Malaysian Open. He enjoyed six birdies but was also challenged by three bogeys for a three-under-par 69. Although not playing on home turf, Siddikur received phenomenal responses from the local crowd.
“I made silly mistakes on holes 13 and 15 and wanted to make up for it with a birdie on the last hole which I did. After my birdie on the last, the crowd was very supportive and they cheered me on. It felt like I won the tournament. The crowd was really good,” said Siddikur, placing eighth.
Malaysia’s Danny Chia who was drawn in the same flight as South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen, only managed to tie for 41st place. Feeling the immense pressure to perform, Chia carded a four-over-par for a four day total of one-under par 287.
“Every year the Malaysian Open is a learning curve for me, especially these two days where I played with the two Major champions. It is a great two days for me but I did give them a bit of a push yesterday. I learned a lot on their decision makings on the golf course. It is a valuable lesson for me,” said Chia who had mixed feelings about his round.
This year, the tournament reaches a milestone as it celebrates its 50th edition as some of the world’s best golfers gather to compete at the renowned Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club from the 14th to 17th April 2011.
Making history as the first ever co-sanctioned tournament in Asia by both the European and Asian Tours in 1999, the Maybank Malaysian Open 2011 will feature top players from the rankings of both these world-leading circuits to make up the 156-player line-up.
Points earned at the Maybank Malaysian Open 2011 will go towards the Asian Tour Order of Merit, and will also add to the player’s 2011 Race to Dubai Ranking, granting them a chance to qualify for the season-ending Dubai World Championship.
The 50th edition of the Maybank Malaysian Open will see a dazzling display of golf as our Malaysian professionals compete with some of the world’s best players for the championship title. With a USD 2.5 million prize purse up on offer, spectators can expect an exciting tournament this April. The four-day co-sanctioned event will take place at the West Course of the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club from 14th - 17th April 2011.
The organiser and promoter of Maybank Malaysian Open reserve exclusive rights to photographs taken during the tournament week as well as all lead-up events to the tournament week. Photographs taken of the players, guests and spectators remain the exclusive property of the Maybank Malaysian Open and can be used in advertising and promotional materials related to the tournament
