Henson on high with 65 at Clearwater Masters 2011
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Berry Henson took the clubhouse lead at the weather-hit Clearwater Masters 2011 with Thanyakon Khrongpha and Hsu Chia-jen trailing closely on Thursday.
Henson of the United States returned with a blemish free card with seven birdies to open up a one shot lead over highly rated Thanyakon of Thailand and Chinese Taipei’s Hsu in the US$75,000 Asian Development Tour event.
Will Yanagisawa of the United States, who was former teammates with Tiger Woods in college, and Thailand’s Atthaphon Prathummanee shared fourth place on matching 68s at the Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Resort in Batu Gajah, Perak, which is a 90-minute drive from the capital city of Kuala Lumpur.
The first round of the Clearwater Masters was suspended due to thunderstorm at 4.40pm. A total of 31 players will return at 7.40am on Friday to complete their rounds.
Mohd Iylia Jamil was the best placed Malaysian in tied 10th position after his round of 70.
Henson, who earned his Asian Tour card in Qualifying School in Thailand earlier this year, made a fast start with a birdie on the 10th hole before turning in 33.
He made three consecutive birdies from the second hole and saved a crucial par with an up-and-down on the fifth hole before posting a final birdie on hole eight.
“I got off to a great start. I started with a birdie and from there I began to cruise. I hit about 17 greens and missed only one green which was right on the fringe. It was a pretty easy day,” said the 31-year-old.
After missing the halfway cut in Indonesia last week, Henson made adjustments to his game by watching videos of his swing.
“I took a few days off after missing the cut last week and did some video work to see what went off. I made a couple of adjustments to my set up and slowed my tempo down a little bit. That worked for me,” said Henson.
Before joining the Asian Tour, Henson plied his trade on the Nationwide Tour and in several circuits in the United States. “I didn’t get any status in the Nationwide this year and knew I needed a status somewhere to improve my game and the Asian Tour was a step for me to go through. It has been nothing but good for me and my game,” said the American.
Thailand’s rising star Thanyakon, who won on the Asian Development Tour last season, turned in a superb 30 where he holed two massive 30 feet birdie putts on holes 11 and 16.
The 21-year-old rued his wayward driving when he carded a bogey on the second hole after losing his golf ball. He returned with two more birdies against one bogey for a round of 66.
“I have been practising a lot with my irons and putting but my driving seems to be going everywhere. I could have gone lower if I didn’t lose my ball on the second but shooting a 66 is still a good score,” said the two-time gold medallists in the Southeast Asian Games.
Thanyakon, who also earned his Asian Tour card in Qualifying School, hopes to draw confidence with a good result this week to kick start his season.
“I was feeling very nervous when I played in the Indonesian Masters (he missed the halfway cut) last week. I do not know why. I didn’t have the confidence I used to have so I hope to play well this week and gain more confidence for the rest of the year,” added the Thai.
Chinese Taipei’s Hsu, posted a flawless 66 with three birdies in each half to lie one stroke from the clubhouse leader.
“It was an okay round for me. Everything worked out as plan and I’m happy with the position I’m in. It sets me up perfectly for the next three days,” said Hsu, who finished second on the Asian Development Tour Order of Merit last season.
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