Phoenix, Arizona, United States: Ding Wenyi’s bitter disappointment at losing out in a play-off at last year’s Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC) is wearing off.
In a thrilling denouement at Royal Melbourne Golf Club last October, Australian Jasper Stubbs defeated Ding and fellow-Chinese Sampson Zheng Yunhe in extra-time.
In so doing, it was Stubbs, rather than Ding or Zheng, who was rewarded with starting spots at April’s 88th Masters Tournament and July’s 152nd Open Championship.
However, four months after his Australian loss, Ding is flourishing in his first year at Arizona State University.
At the Amer Ari Intercollegiate, Ding scored a record-breaking victory, setting a collegiate record by becoming the first golfer to break 190 in a 54-hole tournament.
In an accomplished display, the 2022 US Junior Amateur champion returned scores of 63, 64 and 62 over the Mauna Lani Resort’s North Course in Kamuela, Hawaii.
For the week, he went five-under on the par-three holes, 12-under on the par-fours and led the tournament with 26 birdies, four more than any other player in the 124-strong field.
With just one bogey over the three rounds, Ding’s 27-under-par 189 aggregate broke Jon Rahm’s previous Arizona State record of 192 by three shots.
Remarkably, Ding is 44-under in his first six collegiate rounds, covering his first two tournaments.
On the back of those performance, Ding has risen two spots to a career-high eighth in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).
He is one of only two non-Americans in the top-12 in the standings and is now the highest-ranked player from the Asia-Pacific region.
Other Asia-Pacific players in the top-50 in the WAGR are Zheng (21st), Australian Karl Vilips (31st), Thai Phichaksn Maichon (41st).
