Ben Campbell starts well in Hong Kong Open defence
Ben Campbell in action during round two – image courtesy of Asian Tour
New Zealand’s Ben Campbell’s opening two rounds of the Hong Kong Open at the Fanling Course have left him at 12 under par and one shot ahead of the field in the defence of the title the 33 year old won twelve months ago.
Rounds of 63 and 65 at the Hong Kong Golf Club have opened up the possibility of a second win in 2024, having won an International Series event in Morocco in July.
“I just think it’s a course where, you know, I’m not the longest hitter, so it’s good that you just got to sort of plot your way around and just be patient I think,” said the 33-year-old, who is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour having also won this year’s International Series Morocco.
“I hit a lot of shots to sort of 10-15 feet today, and sort of just played patient. I didn’t fire at a few flags when I wasn’t quite in position and then rolled in a couple of 15 footers. So, yeah, I think it’s all about being patient around here and not trying to overpower the golf course.”
Campbell currently lies in 4th place on this season’s Asian Tour Order of Merit having added four other top ten finishes to his win in Morocco. A win here followed by further success in the remaining two events of the season, which include two International Series events, could well see him challenging John Catlin for the Order of Merit title and with it access to the Liv Golf Series next season.
Aiding Campbell’s cause in that quest is that Catlin missed the cut this week although he will need a miraculous three weeks to catch the American and a little help also.
Campbell leads by one over three-time Asian Tour winner Nitithorn Thippong of Thailand, while Sydney’s Kevin Yuan is in a share of third place and three from Campbell’s lead.
