Hong Kong No. 1 will play two rounds with two Asia-Pacific Amateur champions: Cheng Jin, who returns to the scene of his 2015 triumph, and 17-year-old Yuxin Lin, who won in New Zealand on Sunday to book his spots in two majors next year

October 31, 2017: Hong Kong No. 1 Jason Hak has been grouped with Chinese teenagers Cheng Jin and Yuxin Lin – the 2015 and 2017 Asia-Pacific Amateur champions respectively – in the first two rounds of the PGA TOUR-China’s Clearwater Bay Open starting Thursday.

Hak, 23, is looking to win his second pro title after a breakthrough victory in Yunnan province in August and improve on his tie for 20th last year when he closed with a 63 over the scenic par-70 layout at The Clearwater Bay Golf & Country Club.

Jin, 19, is competing at Clearwater Bay for the first time since winning the weather-shortened seventh Asia-Pacific Amateur two years ago when his victory was built on an opening 62.

The left-handed Lin, 17, made headlines Sunday when he won the ninth Asia-Pacific Amateur in New Zealand to book spots in the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship next year. In November 2016, he was the top amateur in the inaugural Clearwater Bay Open, shooting a second-round 65 on his way to a tie for 59th.

Hak was born in Hong Kong but is based between Florida and Beijing, where he has become good friends with the prodigious Lin, who is home schooled in Beijing but coached by U.S.-based Boyd Summerhays. On Tuesday, Hak and Lin practised together and paired up in the afternoon’s Par-3 Tournament, which had a total purse of U.S.$10,000.

“First of all, I’m really good friends with Yuxin, and I was really happy for him. He’s a great player and a great kid,” said Hak, who even brought Lin’s spare 3-wood from Beijing to replace one the teenager broke at Royal Wellington Golf Club.

“He’s born in 2000 and he’s only 17, so I’m six years older than him – I’m feeling a little old! He’s a lefty and he crushes the ball. He’s not scared to attack any flag. Even on par-4s, he likes to try to drive the green every time.”

Cheng – now in his second year playing for the University of Southern California Trojans – finished fifth at the Asia-Pacific Amateur, which featured four players from China in the top five.

“I just felt really proud of the team. We’ve never had so many Chinese finish so high up the leaderboard. I was pretty far back after three rounds but played well on the final day,” said Jin who remains the only amateur to secure a PGA TOUR-China title, winning the 2014 Nine Dragons Open outside Shanghai when only 16.

“It’s great to be back at Clearwater Bay. Winning the AAC was definitely the biggest title of my career. I played really well that week, so it’s all good memories here and I’m excited to be back.”

Hak returns to his birthplace several times a year, and the Clearwater Bay ambassador says the city still feels like home.

“Playing at Clearwater Bay, even if you’re not playing well, you can enjoy yourself because it’s so beautiful. Nothing can beat coming back to Hong Kong and playing again. Everything feels right, feels at home,” said Hak who was 14 at the 2008 Hong Kong when he broke the European Tour record for youngest player to make the cut.

“Everyone’s playing to win, so I was really, really happy when I finally managed to win a title,” he said of his triumph earlier this summer. “I just needed to gain more confidence, and now I need to keep improving myself for the future. The past is the past. I need to keep moving forward and see what I can do better.”

Australia’s Daniel Nisbet will defend his Clearwater Bay Open title this week while other PGA TOUR-China winners include two-time champions Taewoo Kim of South Korea, Gunn Charoenkul of Thailand, and Canadians Justin Shin and Eugene Wong.

On both Saturday and Sunday (12.30-3.30 p.m.), the third and fourth rounds of the Clearwater Bay Open will be broadcast live in Hong Kong on Now Sports 3 (Channel 684) and the Travel Channel in China and will stream live on Sina.com and iQiyi.com.

Live scoring: http://pgatourserieschina.com/…/sch…/the-clearwater-bay-open

Information and photo source : i3 Sports / Clearwater Bay Open.