Shahriffuddin wants to retain Order of Merit crown

KUALA LUMPUR: Youngster Shahriffuddin Ariffin has set his sights on retaining the PGM Tour Order of Merit crown this season.

The 18-year-old stunned his more established rivals to become the youngest ever money list winner since the Tour’s inception in 2011 within two years after turning professional.

Shahriffuddin raked up RM136,282 on the back of one win and nine top 10 finishes in 18 appearances on the PGM Tour to steer RM22,300 clear of second-placed R. Nachimuthu.

His maiden victory was at the PGM Tiara Closed Championship in Melaka in August. But Shahriffuddin is ready to raise the benchmark by challenging himself to win at least three tournaments.

And it was certainly not just empty talk as Shahriffuddin has already shown glimpses of his ambition three weeks ago when he finished runner-up to Danny Chia at thePGMJohorClosedChampionship.

“It was really close, but the season has just begun and I’m sure my time will come,” said Shahriffuddin.

“I’m targeting three wins this year. It’s only right I try to do even better than last year, whilst trying to defend my Order of Merit crown.

“I want to prove that my win last year was not just one-off. I need a sustainable success in the domestic circuit for me to build on to the next level because my ultimate goal is to play abroad,” Shahriffuddin said after receiving his long-awaited Green Jacket for Order of Merit champion by PGM chairman Tun Ahmad Sarji during the PGM Tour yearbook launch on Monday.

Shahriffuddin is currently ninth on this season’s Tour Order of Merit after making two starts, including a 27th place finish at the Port Dickson Closed Championship last week.

Besides the PGM Tour, Shahriffuddin will also be focusing heavily on both the Asian Development Tour (ADT), which serves as the qualifier to the Asian Tour.

Shahriffuddin did reasonably well in his ADT appearance of the season at the Brunei Championship, finishing joint 20th.