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Yangon, January 31: Australia’s Gavin Flint completed a commanding eight-stroke victory in the US$75,000 Air Bagan Myanmar Masters presented by IBTC on Sunday to give his season the perfect start.
 
The Australian, playing on a sponsor’s invite, posted a two-under-par 70 for a four-day total of 12-under-par 276, well clear of Myanmar’s Aung Win who closed with a 74 at the season-opening event of the inaugural Asian Development Tour.
 
Malaysia’s Akhmal Tarmizee shot a 75 to share third with Chinese Taipei’s Hsu Chia-jen, Brazil’s Lucas Lee and Spain’s Gabriel Canizares on matching 286s.

England’s Nick Redfern carded a 73 for a tied-seventh place with Myanmar’s Zaw Zin Win on 287.

Flint, who led the event from the second round, maintained a tight grip of his lead at the Pun Hlaing Golf Club to stroll home to victory and give himself a boost ahead of the Asian Tour’s season-opening event, the Asian Tour International in Bangkok next week.

“I’m quite surprised to have come out here and play so well this week. I’m very happy about that and I’m obviously looking forward to going out there and doing it again next week,” said Flint, who finished 49th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit last season.
 
The Australian was two under on the front nine with four birdies against two bogeys and added another birdie on the 10th before dropping a shot on the 15th as he pocketed the US$15,000 top prize.
 
The 28-year-old is now determined to end his title drought on the established Asian Tour, having come close to his maiden breakthrough on several occasions. “Hopefully this is a sign of things to come. I want to win on the Asian Tour, that’s my goal. This will be my fifth season so I think it’s time to step it up and go for that win,” said Flint.
 
Starting the final round four shots behind Flint, local favourite Aung tried to challenge the leader but fell victim to costly bogeys on the ninth and 16th holes as well as a double bogey on the par-three 12th hole.
 
Aung found some consolation as he earned a place in next week’s full-field Asian Tour event as the leading non-Asian Tour member in the top-five.

“I tried my best to catch Flint but unfortunately, it was not good enough. This has been a good experience playing against a strong field and I look forward to more opportunities like this,” said Aung.
 
Akhmal fell short of a dream week but he was satisfied with his outing against an international field made up of 19 nationalities this week. “It was not easy playing in a tournament like this. It’s a step up and I really felt the pressure out there. Finishing third is a commendable performance but I think I’ll have to go back and work on my mental strength,” said the Malaysian, a bronze medallist at the 2007 Southeast Asian Games.

Akhmal is also confident that as the Asian Development Tour season progresses, he will be able to earn a place on the established Asian Tour. The leading three players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season.
 
“I’ve taken a lot of positives from this week’s event and I’m sure I’ll become a better player through this experience,” added the Malaysian.
 
The Asian Development Tour is designed in the same structure as the Nationwide Tour in America and European Challenge Tour to build a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia.
 
The Tour not only allows aspiring young talent to develop their game through a secondary circuit in Asia, it also provides sponsorship opportunities to local companies hoping to maximize their exposure through the Tour.

Other legs on the Asian Development Tour are being finalised in the Philippines, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and India.
 
For more information and the latest news on the Asian Development Tour, please visit the Asian Development Tour website at http://www.asiantour.com/adt_home.aspx

Leading final round scores
276 – Gavin Flint (AUS) 69-66-71-70
284 – Aung Win (MYA) 70-72-68-74
286 – Akhmal Tarmizee (MAS) 69-69-73-75
286 – Hsu Chia-jen (TPE) 72-70-69-75
286 -  Lucas Lee (BRA) 69-72-71-74
286 – Gabriel Canizares (ESP) 70-75-68-72
287-  Zaw Zin WIN (MYA) 73-70-71-73, Nick REDFERN (ENG) 75-70-69-73
288-  Jani PERTILLA (FIN)  67-73-74-74, Masaki SAKATA (JPN) 71-72-72-75, Lindsay RENOLDS (CAN) 71-75-69-73, Eltoro SJOHOLM (SWE), 71-71-74-72, Kyaw Thiha (MYA) 73-72-71-72, Mardan MAMAT (SIN)    71-74-72-71, Soe Kyaw Naing (MYA)   72-74-71-71, Min Naing (MYA) 70-71-76-72,
 
About the Air Bagan Myanmar Masters 2010
The Air Bagan Myanmar Masters 2010 presented by IBTC is the season-opening event on the inaugural Asian Development Tour which was created to build the career path of professional golfers in Asia. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. The Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf and will be structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. Air Bagan is the title sponsor of the US$75,000 event and will be staged at the Pun Hlaing Golf Club in Yangon from January 28-31, 2010 with IBTC as the Presenting Sponsor. Other sponsors include Max Myanmar (Sponsor) and Yangon Hotel (Official Hotel). The Air Bagan Myanmar Masters is sanctioned by the Asian Tour, which is the governing body for professional tournament golf in Asia, and locally by the Myanmar Golf Federation and Myanmar PGA.
 
About the Asian Development Tour
The Asian Development Tour was launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia. Sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the Asian Development Tour will ultimately create a new playing platform for emerging stars from across Asia and around the world. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. Designed in the same structure as the Nationwide Tour in America and European Challenge Tour, the Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf. The Asian Development Tour has been structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. The leading three players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals. In 2010, the Asian Development Tour is planning to stage a minimum of six tournaments.
 

From Golf Digest Singapore February 2010 issue