Khon Kaen, Thailand: Asian Tour heavyweights are expected to make the King\u2019s Cup an intriguing affair when the US$500,000 event tees off at the Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The presence of seven of the top-10 players on the Asian Tour Order of Merit will give the King\u2019s Cup top billing with the red carpet already rolled out to welcome the arrival of the region\u2019s best players in Khon Kaen, northeast of Bangkok.<\/p>\n
All eyes will be on India\u2019s Anirban Lahiri who is seeking to secure the winner\u2019s prize purse worth US$90,000 and close the gap on Korean-American David Lipsky whom he trails by slightly over US$160,000.<\/p>\n
The 27-year-old Indian looks set to be the man to beat as he is having the form of his life, winning twice on the Asian Tour this season and earning his playing rights for Europe last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really happy with my result last week but I\u2019m focused on what I need to do here and I still got a great chance to win the Order of Merit and that would really make it a perfect year,\u201d said Lahiri.<\/p>\n
Apart from a win this week, Lahiri is also targeting to break into the top-50 on the world rankings by the end of the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m committed to bettering my world ranking and trying to chase David down would probably go hand in hand because I\u2019ve to do well in these last few events to push into that top-50 spot. There\u2019s a lot to play for obviously and motivation going into these last few weeks,\u201d said the Indian.<\/p>\n
Philippines\u2019 Angelo Que is looking to bounce back from the disappointment of missing the cut on home soil last week and put in a much improved performance at the King\u2019s Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast week was just one week. These things happen, no matter how good you\u2019re playing. You can miss the cut even though you\u2019re having a good run.<\/p>\n
\u201cActually, I\u2019m just enjoying the moment and not putting too much pressure on myself. I\u2019m having a good year and there\u2019s nothing more to it,\u201d said Que.<\/p>\n
Crediting his laid-back attitude, Que has been enjoying a good run of form which included a second and tied-eighth finish in Hong Kong and Malaysia respectively in the weeks leading up to the King\u2019s Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been playing better since I\u2019ve adopted a carefree attitude. You cannot control the future and what you can control is what\u2019s happening now.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I\u2019m trying to do right now is to stay in the present, stick to my plan and if something comes along, you grab it. Good things will happen if you stay patient and appreciate what comes your way,\u201d said the 35-year-old.<\/p>\n
Australia\u2019s Scott Hend, who denied Que his return to the winner\u2019s circle in Hong Kong, is also upbeat of his chances ahead of this week\u2019s King\u2019s Cup.<\/p>\n
A multiple winner with six victories on the Asian Tour, Hend believes the lucrative stretch of events over the coming weeks will bring out the best in him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was nice to win my first co-sanctioned event with the European Tour in Hong Kong and I\u2019m trying to get one more win before the year is over.<\/p>\n
\u201cI play more consistently over a lengthy period and that\u2019s when I play my best. I\u2019m pretty much set to play most of the tournaments all the way through and it\u2019s good to have that nice run with lots of good courses coming up and countries to visit,\u201d said Hend.<\/p>\n
No less than 20 Asian Tour champions including merit champion, Thaworn Wiratchant, Singapore\u2019s Mardan Mamat, Bangladeshi Siddikur Rahman and India\u2019s Rashid Khan are also expected to headline the King\u2019s Cup.<\/p>\n
Apart from the Asian Tour Qualifying School held in January this season, the King\u2019s Cup is one of four events to feature in Thailand on the Asian Tour Schedule.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Khon Kaen, Thailand: Asian Tour heavyweights are expected to make the King\u2019s Cup an intriguing affair when the US$500,000 event tees off at the Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The presence of seven of the top-10 players on the Asian Tour Order of Merit will give the King\u2019s Cup top billing with the red carpet already rolled out to welcome the arrival of the region\u2019s best players in Khon Kaen, northeast of Bangkok.<\/p>\n
All eyes will be on India\u2019s Anirban Lahiri who is seeking to secure the winner\u2019s prize purse worth US$90,000 and close the gap on Korean-American David Lipsky whom he trails by slightly over US$160,000.<\/p>\n
The 27-year-old Indian looks set to be the man to beat as he is having the form of his life, winning twice on the Asian Tour this season and earning his playing rights for Europe last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really happy with my result last week but I\u2019m focused on what I need to do here and I still got a great chance to win the Order of Merit and that would really make it a perfect year,\u201d said Lahiri.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20714","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-world-golf-news"],"yoast_head":"\n