Queenstown, New Zealand: Chen Guxin may not have had the finish he was hoping for in the final round of the New Zealand Open presented by SKY SPORT, but the Chinese teenager once again showed his potential.
Chen closed with a four-over-par 75 on the Coronet Course at Millbrook Resort having impressed in the earlier rounds, shooting 67 and 68, before a 73.
Remarkably, he played the first round with a set of borrowed clubs, as his didn’t arrive until late Thursday, and at the half-way mark he was tied for 12th.
“Not having my own clubs on the first day, I think it made me concentrate more,” said the 19-year-old, from Hainan Island, a two-time participant in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, in 2018 (tied 58th in Singapore) and 2019 (tied 15th in Shanghai).
“(On the last day) I just hit too many bad shots, but those first two rounds were some of my best at this level.”
Considering it was his first time playing in New Zealand it was a commendable performance for a player who rose to prominence on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) last year with two victories that helped him into fifth place on the ADT Order of Merit.
He secured his Asian Tour card because of that as the top-10 on the Merit list earn playing privileges for the main Tour.
Because of strict travel restrictions in China due to the pandemic, Chen has not been home in over a year. He said: “I have been mainly staying in Thailand and Indonesia as they have visa on arrival.”
Chen will compete in this week’s International Series Thailand at Black Mountain and may head home to Hainan after that.
His maiden ADT victory last year, the Blue Canyon Classic on Phuket Island, in Thailand, meant he became the first player from China to win on the ADT.
“I had an amazing year playing that Tour. My goal was to get my Asian Tour card, and I was so happy to do that and be here now,” he said.
His second ADT win came at the BRG Open Golf Championship in Vietnam, adding to the two triumphs he enjoyed on the China Tour the year before.
“I am looking forward to playing the International Series Thailand. I was a reserve last year and played some practice rounds but didn’t get in. I am playing well and will try and play all four rounds next week well, not just two like this week,” said Chen.
He finished New Zealand’s national Open in a share of 67th place at two-under, some distance from the top of the leaderboard but he showed enough quality to suggest trips to this part of the world in the future will be more successful.
