Published July 17, 2008 on September 14, 2018

Asia’s Best to Feature at the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup

---

The best players from the Asian Tour are expected to make the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup an intriguing affair when the JP¥150 million (approximately US$1.36 million) event gets underway next week.

Spearheaded by India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar, who is currently ranked fourth on the Habitat for Humanity Standings, the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup will welcome over 30 Asian Tour winners from more than 10 countries to the Musashi Country Club, Sasai Course, which is located in the northwestern part of the Greater Tokyo Metropolitan area.

Bhullar has been riding on a rich vein of form since May this year. The Indian has posted four top-10s in his last eight starts, including a victory in Fiji last month and has made no secrets of his desire to end the year as Asia’s number one.

“The win in Fiji win has given me so much confidence. I am now fourth on the Asian Tour Habitat for Humanity Standings and my goals have now changed.

“I am looking forward to playing in the bigger events and I want to top the Habitat for Humanity standings at the end of the year,” said Bhullar, who is the most successful Indian golfer on the Asian Tour with nine victories.

Australia’s Scott Hend, who won the prestigious Asian Tour Order of Merit title in 2016, will also head to the Land of the Rising Sun, ready to seek his first win on the Asian Tour since 2016.

The Australian, a nine-time Asian Tour winner, will be joined by American John Catlin and South Africa’s Justin Harding, who have both won twice on the Asian Tour this year.

Catlin, who secured his Asian Tour card at the 2015 Qualifying School, earned his breakthrough in China in May and quickly followed that victory up with another win in Malaysia in July.

“I’m always trying to be better. I’m also being honest with myself, asking questions like, ’is this good enough to compete?’, ’is this good enough to win?’. If it wasn’t, I’ll hit more shots until it is good enough,” said Catlin.

Harding also enjoyed a sensational start to his career on the Asian Tour when he won two titles in Indonesia and Thailand, which were also his first two starts on Tour.

With an eye on the lucrative events coming up on the Asian Tour, the South African is determined to play his way into them, starting with another good performance in Japan.

“I’m going to be visiting a lot of places now that I’m on the Asian Tour. I’m enjoying it so far. I’ve got to make some money and move up the Asian Tour Habitat for Humanity Standings so that I can qualify for the some of the big events on the schedule. That’s the number one goal at the moment,” said Harding, who is ranked 13th on the Habitat for Humanity standings.

The Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup will take place from September 20 to 23 and is sanctioned by the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour Organization.