Class act from Oosthuizen

SOUTH African Luois Oosthuizen (pic) was oozing with class, putting behind his masters play-off disappointment, to steal the thunder in a weather disrupted Maybank Malaysian Open at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club yesterday.
Third round play was against stopped short by rain, with 60 players still on the greens and fairways, but the South African was in the club-house drivers seat with a 13-under through 10 holes in the third round.
He completed his six holes of the second round with two more birdies for a four-under 68, and will have to play eight more today, before competing for the title in another gruelling 18 holes.
Second on the clubhouse leaderboard is Scotland's Stephen Gallacher who was 12-under through 10 holes of round three.
He travelled 30 hours from Augusta after losing the Masters play-off, and the jet-lag has started to hit him in a different way.
"The jet-lag has been pretty rough, expecially having the kids with us because they are sleeping all day and then coming alive at night!
"Thankfully my wife has been able to sit up with them at night in the room next door while I try and sleep but I haven't had more than four hours straight at any one time," said Oosthuizen.
"I got off to a pretty slow start in the third round as I hot three good putts but did not birdie any of them. Then I picked up two shots on the fourth and fifth, and then I hit a pretty stupid shot on the sixth (bogey).
"I am probably going for a few more shots (birdies) in the remaining third round because I'm kind of playing it like it might be the last round," said the South African.
Oosthuizen's haste stems from the fact that if it rains today morning and disrupts play further, the tournament might be turned into a 54-hole event.
"You never know with the weather here so you are trying to get ahead of the guys in case all of a sudden, it becomes a 54-hole event. I actually don't think that will be the case now, but at that point on the sixth, I was still thinking that there was a chance that this could be the last round," said Oosthuizen.
As for the Scotsman, his confidence rose from the fact that he did not hit a single bogey in the third round.
"Its a good feeling to be right up there and the bogey-free round is helping with the confidence.
"It will be tough to land the title, as Louis is in great form. We all saw what he did last week and how well he played but if I can stick to my own game, I will have a good chance to win," said Gallacher.

Lonely two rounds for Shaaban

THE last Malaysian standing at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, Shaaban Hussin (pic), felt a tinge of sadness as 21 of his compatriots fell at the halfway-cut of the Maybank Malaysian Open.
And Shaaban also had a torrid day, as he played a total of 27 holes and was dead tired in the last four holes, resulting in a string of bogies which saw him finish at three over 75, for a three round total of 217.
“I felt a bit shaky when I started my uncompleted nine holes this morning. The pressure piled on me when the crowd started shouting that I’m the only Malaysian who has a chance of making the cut. That didn’t help with the nerves! My caddy told me to ignore them and that calmed me down a bit,” said Shaaban.
"And after I completed my second round, I felt very sad when none of the other Malaysians managed to get past the cut, and it was a heavy feeling, but I had to soldier on and it was not easy playing 27 holes in a day," said Shaaban.
He completed nine holes of the second round in the morning, and after an hours rest, continued 18 in the third round.
"I had very little time to rest and practice. But the first nine was good, as I managed to hold onto my game, but the return was bad as the muscles started to tire.
"Also, our flight was a little slow and after a warning from the marshal, we picked up pace in the last four holes and that is when I hit three bogies in a row and spoilt my game," said Shaaban.
His six bogies were on the 6th, 7th, 9th, 15th, 16th, 17th while the birdies were on 8th, 9th and 14th.
"It was good that I managed to save par on the 18th, and in the final round, I must play more consistently and if I can get five under, it would be a good finish," said the lanky golfer.
“It would have been better if the round did not stop yesterday (second round). I had the momentum going and just couldn’t find my rhythm today (third round). You can’t do anything with the weather delays. I’m disappointed, I won’t deny that,” he said.
Whe asked how many times he played at KLGCC this year: "I only played about four times here as I had many other commitments and tournaments every weekend."

Happy Vaisakhi

Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin making capati during the Vaisakhi open house at Gurdwara Sahib Sentul in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. Bernama pic