Nagasaki leads by five strokes before the final round, and Sakik is in twelfth place At the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship.
Dubai (News Desk): The third round of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was held today (Saturday) at the Majlis Course at the Emirates Golf Club in Dubai, amid fierce competition between the region’s top players, in preparation for the final round scheduled for tomorrow (Sunday), which will determine the identity of this year’s champion.
Sixteen-year-old Japanese Taisei Nagasaki opened the third round with a five-shot lead in his debut at the tournament, which is being held at the Majlis Course at the Emirates Golf Club. Emirati Ahmed Skaik is in twelfth place overall.
Nagasaki began the day one shot behind a shared three-player lead, but quickly took over with four birdies in the first seven holes. Despite a bogey at the par-4 12th, he bounced back and added four more birdies to finish with a 65 (-7), taking his overall total to 17-under, surpassing the previous record of 14-under after three rounds.
“The positive side of today is that I was able to make four birdies in the first nine holes,” said Nagasaki, who celebrated his 16th birthday earlier this month. “In the last nine, I didn’t play well on the 12th, but I made up for it on the next hole (the par-5), which was the start of a streak of three consecutive birdies, which is great for me.”
Nagasaki won the co-medal title at the Toyota Junior World Cup last June, then finished runner-up just a week later at the Japan Amateur Championship. Nagasaki attends the Tommy Nakajima Academy in Japan, where he said he and his coach have vowed to “get to the Masters together.” Nakajima is a golf legend in Japan, with 48 wins on the Japanese Tour and top-10 finishes in all four major championships during his professional career.
Nagasaki explained before the tournament began that his inspiration this week came from former Japanese champion Keita Nakajima, who won the tournament in Dubai in 2021. He said, “Keita Nakajima won the tournament in Dubai, and I hope to follow in his footsteps. I will do my best to perform as well as I can and strive to win while enjoying the experience.”
Nagasaki is aiming to become the fourth Japanese player to win the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship title, following Hideki Matsuyama (2010 and 2011), Takumi Kanaya (2018), and Keita Nakajima (2021). The young Japanese will face stiff competition on the final day from compatriot Rintaro Nakano (12-under) and Thailand’s Viva Laopakdi (11-under), as well as three players chasing him at 10-under: Australians Billy Dowling and Harry Takis, and Vietnam’s Khanh Hung Le.
Japan’s Kaneshiro Katano (tie eighth) also made his eighth hole-in-one in the history of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, the first of his career, on the par-3 11th hole, which was 154 yards long, during the third round.
Emirati Ahmed Skaik is in twelfth place with a total of six strokes under par, two strokes behind Catano, after finishing his third consecutive round with a score of par or better, achieving a 70 stroke (-2) in the Saturday afternoon round.
Skaik opened his round with a birdie on the second hole, before putting in a balanced performance over 10 consecutive holes, all finishing par, in hot and humid desert conditions. He then added back-to-back birdies on the 13th and 14th holes to temporarily move into the top seven, but lost them outright on the 15th and 16th. He quickly recovered when he approached the green with one shot on the 17th, before birdieing again and finishing his round with a par on the final hole to finish the day in 12th place.
“In my previous participations in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, I didn’t make it past the cut, so I feel very confident after qualifying,” said Skeik, who plans to turn professional soon after the tournament. “My goal here was to win, of course, but I’m satisfied with 12th place given the high level of competition. The players here are of a very high standard, and I’m happy to be competing alongside players like Ratchanon (TK) Chantananuwat, an Asian Tour champion, who told me I have the potential to become a professional. If he says that, then I think I’m on the right track.”
UAE national team players Sam Mullan and Ryan Ahmed continued their strong performance, with Mullan finishing his round with a score of (-1) with 71 strokes, placing twentieth, while Ahmed scored a tie score (72 strokes), placing thirty-seventh, placing second.
The day also saw the attendance of a number of emerging golfers from the Emirates Golf Federation Academy, who toured the Emirates Golf Club facilities, including the media center and training area, and watched the on-course competitions. They also had the opportunity to appear in video media interviews in the mixed zone.
These lucky rookies were right there in the middle of the action when Katano scored his Hole in One hit, and they reacted with great enthusiasm.
Commenting on the youth’s presence, Skeik said, “It’s wonderful to have them here. They always tell me they consider me a role model and are proud to see me carry the UAE flag at international events. This is a huge honor for me. I always give my all on the field, and everything I achieve afterwards is an added bonus. I feel very happy with their support.”
The tournament winner will receive an official invitation to participate in the Masters Tournament, along with an exemption from qualifying for The Open. The runners-up will receive an exemption from qualifying for The Open Series, and the top three finishers will be awarded direct qualifications to the Amateur Championship.
