SINGAPORE — Jeongwoo Ham stood firm under mounting pressure, closing with a three-under-par 68 to complete a wire-to-wire victory in the Singapore Open at Sentosa Golf Club on Sunday.
The 31-year-old Korean entered the week as a relatively unknown name on the international stage, but quickly turned heads with a blistering 10-under start over the first two rounds, seizing control of the tournament early and never letting go.
The breakthrough win did not come easily, however, as Australian Cameron John mounted a late charge, signing for a 67 for a 14-under total, two shots behind Ham.
By finishing 1–2, Ham and John secured spots in The 154th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, Merseyside, England, from 16 to 19 July.
The final round was suspended for three and a half hours due to rain and lightning.
The break hurt Aidric Chan, who returned with a bogey and a double bogey after the resumption to slip to two-under for the tournament.
The 25-year-old Filipino, however, bounced back with birdies on the 15th and 18th holes to finish the day on even par. He ended up in a tie for 25th on four under.
“I think I’m really somewhat satisfied with the results. I wasn’t too happy with how I started after the break, but I’m happy that I was able to bounce back and go under in the last four holes,” said Chan. “I think it’s something positive to come out going to a major tournament. I think playing a hard course like this and shooting under par is definitely an exciting thing to have in my bag and continue working on my game.”
After making a bogey on the 11th, Chan bungled a two-inch putt on the next hole using one hand.
“I think I was just a little bit struggling mentally, just kind of like thinking about flying home and that’s not the right mental thing to do,” said Chan, who had to rush to catch an 8 p.m. flight back home. “But I think moving forward, it’s something that I’m going to learn from this experience and definitely will grow from it.”
Justin Quiban, the only other Filipino to make the cut, matched his opening 69 to climb to a tie for 52nd on one-over. He hit 17 of 18 greens, his lone bogey coming after failing to get up-and-down on 17, his 71st hole.
“I was actually catching heat right before the break. Obviously, we had to roll with the punches and still tried to get back into that game, but I got cold after that. But it’s okay,” he said.
Quiban said he tried to lean on his mental game plan.
“I tried to stick to that game plan, but there’s still so much work to put in. It’s the first time I’ve seen this course, and ball striking wasn’t there, on and off,” he said.
The 30-year-old was set to fly after midnight for the Korean leg of the Asian Tour.
Ham effectively settled the outcome when he holed a bunker shot for birdie on the 13th to keep John at bay.
John had five birdies in an eight-hole stretch that included a long putt on the 13th.
Heading to the par-5 18th, John, playing his third shot from thick grass near the green and one shot behind Ham, went for the eagle but saw his ball fly past the hole.
Ham secured the win with a two-putt birdie from the fringe while John missed his birdie attempt.
Three players — Josele Ballester of Spain, Jazz Janewattananond of Thailand and Tomohiro Ishizaka of Japan — shared third on nine-under.