KIRADECH STARTS PLANNING FOR LIFE ON ELITE TOUR
Thai ace targets a move to the US, hopes to make his presence felt on the big stage, writes Kittipong Thongsombat
Five years ago, I said that there would soon be a Thai golfer playing on PGA Tour. Now, I have made it happen myself.” This is an excerpt from 28-year-old Kiradech Aphibarnrat’s comments to the media after finishing tied for 15th spot at the US Open last week, an upshot that unofficially earned him a PGA Tour card for next season.
As a special temporary member of the tour, he has received an equivalent of 61 FedExCup points to increase his season’s tally to 401.
Last season, 125th-ranked JJ Henry retained his tour card by earning 365 points, which means Kiradech is wellpositioned to secure his PGA Tour card when the time comes.
“I think I’m almost there to get my PGA Tour card. I was told 380 points would probably be good enough for this season,” said Kiradech, whose 401 points would have ranked him 89th in the latest FedExCup standings if he were a full member.
Nicknamed ‘Arm’, Kiradech won the world junior title twice early in his amateur career and also was a member of the gold medal winning team at the 2007 SEA Games.
Less than a year after turning pro, Kiradech picked up his first professional title at the All Thailand Golf Tour’s Singha Pattaya Open in 2009 while working with coach ‘Pro Jiew’ Natpasit Chokthanasart, formerly known as Boonyarit Uasilpasart.
He then claimed his first Asian Tour crown at the 2011 SAIL Open, and followed it up with a victory at the 2013 Malaysian Open, jointly sanctioned by the European and Asian tours, to become the third Thai to be crowned the Asian Tour No.1 after Thongchai Jaidee (2001, 2004 and 2009) and Thaworn Wiratchant (2005 and 2012).
He went on to win three more European tittles, including the World Super 6 Perth in February. He is the fourth Thai to win on the European Tour after Thongchai, Thaworn and Chapchai Nirat.
Kiradech and Thongchai also represented Thailand at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
“In the past few months, I have been playing golf constantly and am very happy with my results,” said Kiradech.
In March, his joint fifth-place finish at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play moved him up to his career-best 29th spot in the world rankings.
Meanwhile, his father Panupong said Kiradech’s development has so far gone as planned.
Kiradech was an amateur for 10 years and took another 10 years as a professional to win a ticket to the world’s elite tour.
“Every golfer’s dream is to play on the PGA Tour and we have always kept that as our main target,” said Panupong.
He added that one of the main reasons for his only son to be able to post fine results on the tour is that he is working with coaches Pete Cowen and Mike Walker as well as mental coach Lee Campbell.
“Apart from his talent and fighting spirit, his management team must be credited for his success,” he said.
“At one point a few years ago, Arm felt he was not competitive enough while playing in the USA. So we decided to find him a coach and we ended up with Cowen and Co. It has worked very well so far. They believe in each other.”
Asked if other Thais can follow Kiradech to the PGA Tour in the future, Panupong said there is no shortage of talent in the country and it will all depend on how much they are willing to invest and focus on making it happen.
“Good coaches are a must and to get the best out of these young talents, you need to invest.”
As for the plan for the rest of the year, Kiradech has about seven PGA Tour events to play, including two majors and two WGC tournaments. After that, he will switch back to playing on the European Tour in late October.
Looking ahead to next season when Kiradech is set to become a full member of the PGA Tour, Panupong said Kiradech plans to buy a house in either Florida or Orlando.
Asked about his son’s chances of winning the title on the top tour, Panupong said it was a only a matter of time as Kiradech has the potential to make it.
“If it were three years ago, I would not dare to dream,” he said, “but now I would say it is very much possible.”