Lessons can and should be learned
Green, Leong will have drawn positives from the World Cup excursion despite fading away after good start
BELGIUM’S Thomas Pieters and Thomas Detry deservedly won the World Cup of Golf in Melbourne, Australia last weekend, but Malaysia’s Gavin Green and Ben Leong certainly stirred the hornet’s nest at the beginning of the tournament.
Green and Leong finished 22nd but they got off to a solid start that got tongues wagging in this part of the world.
A nine-under-par 63 in the team event had Malaysia tied fourth place – just one shot off the lead.
They kind of lost their way somewhat after that with a
second round 73, a 74 on the third day and an even-par 72 in the fourth an final round.
That six-under 282 was way off Belgium’s winning total but the experience does tell us that these lads can mix it with some of the world’s best, observed veteran pro and golf teacher V, Nellan.
What’s missing only is a bit of consistency and perhaps a greater will to win, he said.
Given that scenario, borne of a number of factors, what it all comes down to is staying focused and not taking one’s eye off the ball.
To win these big tournaments, you have got to stay in the zone, regardless of what is going on around you.
The Belgians did this the best last week and they were rewarded with their first ever World Cup.
An opening round of 63 was followed by a one-under 71 and then over the weekend they shot 63 again and closed out the tournament with a four-under 68.
It’s that sort of form and consistency that made them the top team in Melbourne, for which they earned a cool US$1.12mil each.
In contrast Green and Leong went home with US$29,000 apiece. But they shouldn’t be to hard on themselves about it.
They can learn from something like this and it was good to hear Green allude to “positives” being gained from their experience.
“A lot of positives to take from this week,” he said. “Especially playing for the first time in the World Cup.
“I just wish we would have played a little bit better. We made too many mistakes.
“But it was fun overall. It was fun to hang out with Ben and we have a good relationship. We had a good time.”
For his part, Leong said: “We didn’t have the best of weekends but it was a good week. Yeah, we had our fair share of good and bad, but that’s golf.”
Nellan, who twice represented Malaysia at the World Cup - at Mission Hills in California in 1976 and the Philippines in 1977 where they finished 11th - said given the chance the Malaysians will do better.
“Gavin and Ben played reallywell in the opening round, which means they can play as good as the winners Belgium (who also shot an opening nine-under).
“But here you need to do it for four days on the trot to stand any chance of winning and be there at the end of it all.
“There is no doubt this tournament will have made them better players and one hopes they can get another crack next year and do better.”
Nalaysia’s best finish at the World Cup was in Dorado, Putero Rico in 1994 when M. Ramayah and the late P. Gunasegaran finished ninth.