TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Young golfers look to world at Faldo Series

Sixty-four golfers aged between 12 and 21 are set to tee off Saturday at the Bumi Serpong Damai (BSD) Indah Golf course, with five tickets to China at stake

Agnes Winarti (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sat, January 23, 2010 Published on Jan. 23, 2010 Published on 2010-01-23T12:49:52+07:00

Change text size

Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone

Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!

S

ixty-four golfers aged between 12 and 21 are set to tee off Saturday at the Bumi Serpong Damai (BSD) Indah Golf course, with five tickets to China at stake.

The two-day Faldo Series Indonesia Championship is split among five age groups: boys' under-16, under-18 and under-21, and girls' under-16 and under-21.

The winners in each group will get the chance to fly to Shenzhen, China, for the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final from March 10 to 12.

This is the third time Indonesia has hosted one of the 15 Faldo Series Asia tournaments.

The 11 other hosts are China, Bahrain, Taiwan, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Established by the six-time Major winner Nick Faldo, the tournament sends its boys' and girls' champions to the professional Asian Tour and Ladies European Tour respectively.

The Faldo Series, held in Asia since 2006, aims to uncover more young golfing talents from the continent.

"It's not easy for our talented amateur golfers, be they juniors or adults, to play on the Asian or European tours," said BSD Indah Golf executive director Christine Wiradinata.

Christine heads the development of junior amateur golfers at the Indonesian Golf Association (PGI).

Rory Hie Hidayat and Lidya Ivana Jaya are notable exceptions, the former having qualified for the European Tour last year and Lidya in the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour in 2008.

Christine said participating in the Faldo Series could serve as a shortcut for juniors to qualify for those two pro tours.

At last year's grand final, then 16-year-old Fahmi Reza and 15-year-old Clement Erio finished fifth and sixth in their respective age groups.

At BSD, the young golfers will look to fare better than their predecessors in the grand final.

Fourteen-year-old Jordan Surya Irawan from Bandung, West Java, had high hopes.

"I definitely want to win in China and in Europe," he said.

"I want to make money from golf by the time I'm 21."

PGI chairman Arifin Panigoro said an improvement in coaching systems was needed if Indonesian golfers wanted to perform on the world stage.

"Indonesian juniors are undoubtedly talented, but we have to improve our coaching system and get them to play in more competitions," he said at a press conference.

Tournament director Rudi Hartono said he was confident about Indonesia's golfing potential.

"I believe Indonesians can become world-class players. We have to be optimistic about that," said the former badminton star and eight-time All England champion.

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.

Share options

Quickly share this news with your network—keep everyone informed with just a single click!

Change text size options

Customize your reading experience by adjusting the text size to small, medium, or large—find what’s most comfortable for you.

Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone

Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!

Continue in the app

Get the best experience—faster access, exclusive features, and a seamless way to stay updated.