Justin Harding put an exclamation point on the closely contested final day, as he carded a one-under-par 71 to win his maiden Asian Tour title at the $500 000 Bank BRI Indonesia Open on Sunday.
The 32-year-old, who missed only three greens-in-regulation before the final round, uncharacteristically dropped two shots on holes seven and eight. However, he bounced back when it mattered with two birdies before emerging victorious with an 18-under-par 270 total at the Pondok Indah Golf Course.
Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent transferred the pressure to Harding early in the round after firing three consecutive birdies on the second, third and fourth hole. But he lost the advantage after dropping three shots at the sixth, ninth and 10th. He eventually ended the week in second place, his fifth top-10 finish this year.
Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat and United States’ Sihwan Kim shared third place after carding 68 and 69 respectively. Gaganjeet Bhullar of India is one shot behind the duo, in lone fifth place.
Johannes Veerman (66), who led the tournament after the opening round, ended his tournament with a flourish. He grabbed a share of sixth place, along with India’s Udayan Mane and Thailand’s Natipong Srithong.
‘It was a hard day today,’ he said.
‘Perhaps it was a case of nerves, but I was playing for a Tour card and there was a lot of money of the line. I started well and I thought that I can birdie the sixth then I had two bogeys out of nowhere. My last bogey was at the second hole in the first round! I tried to stay patient and keep the momentum going. I aim to hit the greens and statistically, you are bound to make one or two. I made one on the 12th, and that got me going. I was annoyed not to make another one on 14.
‘I’m a leaderboard watcher as I like to know what’s going on. That makes a difference to how I play. The 16th is a tough hole; I played conservatively there the whole week. Today, I hit it inside 10 or 15 feet. I rolled it in, which was crucial as it gave me a one-shot lead.
‘I hit a good shot at the 18th. I was planning to lag it down there to two inches and tap it in, but I didn’t mean it put it four feet past the hole!
‘I’m thrilled with the victory. I came here not knowing what to expect. I’ve been playing nicely the whole year. I like the golf course and it was set up quite nicely for me. You can’t get too aggressive on it. Manage distances and make some putts here and there. I didn’t expect to win, and it was to have done so.’
Harding will be taking up Asian Tour membership after his win at the Bank BRI Indonesia Open. The current Sunshine Tour Order of Merit leader was playing in the tournament on an invite.
