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By Jugjet Singhjugjet@nst.com.myARETHA Pan (with trophy), 16, and Diana Tham, 18, are in for the ride of their lives after emerging tops in the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysian Amateur tournament to grab two tickets for this weekends action.
Both the girls are from Sabah, and barely stand above their putters but there is a fresh look of eagerness and anticipation written on their faces.
There are five Malaysians who will be carrying the national flag at the inaugural tournament at the KLGCC. The others are amateur Kelly Tan, and professionals Cindy Lee-Pridgen and Jean Chua.
"I am delighted to play alongside the best lady golfers in the world and I do not feel under pressure at all because there is no half-way cut in this tournament, which means I can learn from the others while enjoying my round," said Aretha.
Aretha and Diana are products of Sime Darby Foundation in collaboration with KLGCC.
Tan Sri Dr M. Jegathesan, member of the Governing Council of Yayasan Sime Darby said: "Through sponsoring high profile tournaments like the LPGA, Sime Darby Foundation and KLGCC's main objective lies in promoting and inspiring talented young sportsmen and women to realise their true potential.
"This programme trained and developed some promising female golfers with a handicap of two and below and the end produce in the qualification of Aretha and Diana."
Diana finished first in the national qualifier with an aggregate total of seven-over 149.
Diana, who recently won the 27th Malaysian Ladies Amateur Open Championship said: “II would like to thank the event organisers, the sponsors and all the coaches of the Sime Darby LPGA Development Program for helping with my game and for helping me achievement such a milestone.”
While the Malaysians are not expected to be at the top of the podium, but it is an experience they will forever cherish and hopefully take their game to a higher level.
Michelle Wie of Hawaii
By Jugjet Singhjugjet@nst.com.myTHE Sime Darby Ladies Professional Golf Association tournament which tees of on Friday will see five players in position to grap the No 1 spot at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
And while four of them are ladies who just want to have fun in the sun, Jiyai Shin of South Korea is looking to burn calories and lose weight under the blazing Malaysian sun.
She shocked, and then amused the gallery yesterday when asked what she wants to gain from the inaugural tournament in Malaysia.
"First of all, it is amazing that for the first time in the LPGA history five players are in the running for the No 1 spot and they could achieve it in Malaysia. And while it will be nice to win, I am just looking forward to lose some weight under the blazing Malaysian sun," said the 22-year-old Korean.
The other players who could claim glory and the No 1 spot in Malaysia are Cristie Kerr of the United States, Ai Miyazato of Japan, Na Yeon Choi of South Korea and Michelle Wie of Hawaii.
Ai Miyazato, Cristie Kerr, Shin Jiyai, Suzann Pettersen and Yani Tseng are currently ranked first to fifth.
Jiyai Shin, a little portly as compared to the other cast in the star-studded tournament, turned pro in 2005 but already has a string of accolades to her name.
From 2006 to 2010 she showed consistency by making the cut for every tournament she competed in, except for one.
Having won the Evian Masters this year, her stellar flight currently ranlks her second in the world based on the Rolex Rankings.
Michelle Wie, a natural crowd puller, summed up what the other four want from the inaugural tournament.
"I believe most of us are here to enjoy the tournament and try and hit some low scores. I have played a training round at the course and it is superbly built and should challenge us to the maximum. The key here is for me to enjoy as much as possible, the course and the superb hospitality," said Michelle.
The three-day tournament will not have a cut-off, and all 60 golfers will play 54 holes.
THE Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) nominees for their Oct 31 election stuck to their guns, even after one aspiring deputy president received an intimidating SMS, as none of them withdrew when the deadline ended yesterday.
The deputy president's post will see incumbent Nur Azmi Ahmad being challenged by current vice-president Datuk Dr S.S. Cheema, former deputy president Tengku Majid Sultan Iskandar and former international Abdul Hadi.
In the vice president's race eight will go to the ballot and they are incumbents Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh, Datuk Rahim Ariff and M. Gobinathan.
The newcomers are Ow Soon Kooi, Johari Abdul Aziz, Mohinder Singh, Manjit Majid Abdullah and Rahim Ahmad.
Tengku Majid said he will stand even after receiving an intimidating SMS: "I received an SMS which said the president (Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah) does not support my move to stand for deputy president.
"I have spoken to the president and he told me that he does not have a preffered team for the elections and that he can work with anybody who is given the mandate by affiliates. He said he does not have a problem with me standing for deputy."
Part of the SMS, forwarded by Tengku Majid to this scribe, read: "Looks like we want to work with you but you don't want to work with us. Our common enemy xxx will win if we don't plan and work together.
"It is an open secret that president is not keen in you being DP when he is there. If you lose you can never come back to MHF. I know you can contribute alot to MHF but you must be patient to win. If you believe me than work with me, if not all the best to you.
"I am 16 years in MHF. I have never lost in any MHF election. The people I support always win including you previously. Give a deep thought."
The SMS spurred Tengku Majid to go the distance: "If I am elected I will not meddle with the national team as there are already too many people running the show up there. I am more interested to revive hockey at the states and club level, and that will be my passion for the next four years."
THE Malaysian men's hockey team received a favourable fixture for the Guangzhou Asian Games as they open accounts against Singapore. But they could find themselves without a chief coach.
After playing Singapore, Malaysia will have a day's rest before meeting South Korea and Oman back-to-back.
Hosts China will square off against Malaysia after another day's rest.
"Yes, the fixtures are very kind to us because earlier I had feared that we would have to play Korea and China back-to-back. Or that Korea and China will play in the last game.
"However, having said that, reaching the semi-finals is still in the hands of the players, as they have to perform in every match," said chief coach Stephen van Huizen.
It is highly likely that Korea will seal one semis ticket, while Malaysia and China will fight for the second spot in their final Group A match.
Van Huizen was injured during the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi when he missed a step, and the early indications are that he fractured a bone in his back.
"I have gone for an X-ray and the pain is still there. I will only find out in a few days time how serious the injury is," said van Huizen.
The women will play India, followed by Japan, Korea, Kazakhstan and Thailand.
MEN -- Group A: South Korea, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Oman; Group B: India, Pakistan, Japan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong.
WOMEN -- China, Japan, India, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Thailand.
ABDUL Hadi aims to take the bull by its horns in the Oct 31 Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) elections after he was nominated by Perak for the post of deputy president.
Hadi, a former national player and a terror in attack with Mirnawan Nawawi, has served as Perak HA deputy president for three terms, and feels the the time is right for him to serve in MHF.
He will be challenging incumbent Nur Azmi Ahmad, who received four nominations, Datuk Dr S.S. Cheema (two) and Tengku Majid Sultan Iskandar (one vote) for the deputy president's post.
MHF president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah was returned unopposed when nominations closed on Oct 15.
"I was nominated by my home state and agreed to stand for the second post because I feel MHF needs fresh blood to pump in new ideas," said Hadi.
"Nur Azmi was a vice-president for two terms, and then a deputy for one term. Cheema has been a vice-president for four terms, while Tengku Majid was a former deputy president.
"I am the fresh face, and since all the other three have served their time, I feel the delegates should choose someone with fresh ideas." And the former international is not going to lobby any state for the post as he feels they should know who can elevate the sport if given a chance.
"The sport has seen a steady slide for the last 10 years under current MHF officials. As an example, we were silver and bronze medallists in the Commonwealth Games, but have dropped to eighth in the recent Games in New Delhi, which is our worst performance.
"So, the sport needs people who can contribute to its development and I am available to make a concerted push for the next four years.
"It is not my style to pick up the telephone and lobby affiliates to vote for me. All I ask is for them to make the right choice after weighing up the factors that I have mentioned," said Hadi.
Hadi has stood for the post of MHF vice-president a few times but did not succeed.
"I am not trying to parachute to the second position. I have a good working track record with Perak HA and was also a member of various committees in MHF. I have experience from the bottom and being a former player, I understand what needs to be done to achieve the president's target of breaking into the top-10 bracket in the world." The balloting for the vice-president's posts is also expected to be intense, as eight will be vying for four posts.
Incumbents Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh, Datuk Rahim Ariff and M. Gobinathan received eight, nine and six nominations respectively.
The newcomers are Ow Soon Kooi (four), Johari Abdul Aziz (three), Mohinder Singh (one), Manjit Majid Abdullah (four) and Rahim Ahmad (one).
By Jugjet Singh
