A sweeping epic – the day Danny conquered a ‘typhoon’
It’s been 18 years but Sept 22 is one date that will be etched in the mind of former national No. 1 golfer Danny Chia forever.
Then 29, Danny created history as the first Malaysian golfer to win on the Asian Tour when he emerged triumphant at the 2002 Taiwan Open.
Danny’s feat at the Sunrise Golf and Country Club in Taoyuan City was nothing but extraordinary.
Competing on a sponsor’s invite, he did not only conquer the unforgiving weather that he likened to a “typhoon”, but also clawed back from seven shots adrift of the leader at the start of the final round.
“It (the weather) was like a typhoon,” recounted Danny in an interview with Asian Tour which was published yesterday (Sept 22, 2020).
“The whole week was like a typhoon and the golf course was very exposed. The course is not difficult, it’s quite a nice golf course to play, but it’s just the blustery wind as we were very high up in the mountains, which affected things very much.”
While everyone else, including overnight leader Hsieh Yu-shu of Taiwan struggled to cope with the brutal playing conditions, Danny flourished to card a near flawless 68 to claim a two-shot win with a threeover 291 total.
“The weather was bad the whole day, whether you played early or late,” said Danny, who battled to opening rounds of 76, 70 and 77.
“The front nine I didn’t really think much about it, I was trying to enjoy it.
“After the front nine, then I saw the leaderboard, and I think I was four behind. I started to get nervous and couldn’t stop looking at the leaderboard.”
Incredibly, Danny was the only player on that final day not to drop a shot but he did conjure a succession of great saves during crucial stages.
And he credited Kel Llewellyn, a renowned Australian coach, for improving his swing and psychological aspect of the game.
“I hit some good shots, but they didn’t quite pay off because the wind was quite strong and tricky,” he recalled.
“I didn’t hit many greens on the back nine but I had very good up-and-downs on a lot of the holes.
“I just went under Kel at that time. I had only been working with him for about one month and he taught me a lot about playing different types of shots. It really helped when I played that week.”
A decent 68 put Danny in a share for the lead and he waited anxiously in front of the leaderboard until everyone finished.
“I watched them come in one by one,” he said, adding he was actually prepared for a playoff.
Another local hopeful Lin Chiehsiang did his best to catch Danny with a closing 66 but still fell two short of the Malaysian’s winning total.
And Yu-shu, battling the elements, stumbled with a 77 after dropping four shots in the last five holes to join Chie-hsiang in second place.
“I felt so bad for him (Yu-shu) actually,” said Danny, who landed the winner’s jackpot of US$50,000 (RM207,000) for his biggest paycheque since turning professional in 1996.
It was not until 13 years later that Danny finally captured his second Asian Tour title in 2015. He did it again in the same country by winning the Taiwan Masters.
Danny holds the distinction of being the only Malaysian who has won multiple Asian Tour titles.