Thongchai Jaidee will tee off in the Maybank Malaysian Open at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club aiming to create a slice of golfing history - by becoming the first Asian player to win the same European Tour event for three consecutive years.
If successful, he would joint a select band of five golfers - Ian Woosnam (Monte Carlo Open, 1990-92), Nick Faldo (Irish Open, 1991-93), Colin Montgomerie (PGA Championship, 1998-00), Tiger Woods (WGC-NEC Invitational, 1999-01) and Ernie Els (Heineken Classic, 2002-04) - to achieve the feat.
Already, Jaidee is the first Asian to retain a European Tour title - an impressive achievement considering he was a late beginner in the sport as he grew up in Lop Buri, two hours north of Bangkok. Jaidee made his breakthrough in 2004, winning at Saujana Golf & Country Club with a total of 274, then lowered that score by seven shots in 2005 as he defended the title at the same venue.
Now he returns to Kuala Lumpur in search of a three-timer and said: “I have a lot of good friends in the city. I am always looked after very well and it feels like my second home. I have enjoyed some success there in the last two years and I will try to win for a third time. It would be very nice.
“Before the New Year, I went to Kuala Lumpur Golf & CC for some practice rounds. The course was very soft then but the rough was also up, so I think it will be a demanding week.
“I generally like the golf courses in Malaysia. The greens are receptive and that make it easier for us to control our approach shots. The greens are tricky in places because of the undulations and the layout is such that you need to think your way round that golf course. It will be a good test.”
European Ryder Cup players, Padraig Harrington of Ireland and Spain’s Miguel Angel Jiménez will lead a powerful European challenge to try to deprive Jaidee of his place in the history books.
The Dubliner will tee-up looking to end a run of near misses in the tournament, having been runner-up twice and finishing in the top ten on two other occasions. And he will be hoping to avoid a repeat of his experience at last year's event when he fell victim to a mischievous monkey at Saujana.
"I was playing a practice round with [fellow professional] Stephen Browne on the Monday when a monkey made off with my binoculars at the eighth tee and went straight up a tree with them," he recalls.
"We could see him trying to eat them and taunting us with them. A caddie went to get them back and an hour later he caught up with us with the binoculars in his hands.
"The monkey had done more damage to them with his teeth than anyone could have done with a knife. Buttons were ripped off and chunks taken out of them, but luckily enough they still worked!"
Harrington went on to finish joint eighth, fading from contention with a final round 74 that left him 11 shots behind Jaidee. He added: "I played very well in patches and got myself into contention, but didn't finish it off as I would have liked.
"It was nine weeks since my last tournament and I suppose my rustiness came out. I lost my focus at key moments, dropping shots that I perhaps normally wouldn't have. But it was Thongchai's week, he played well and thoroughly deserved to win."
Jiménez, 42, will be hoping for third time lucky in the Maybank Malaysian Open after tying for sixth in each of the past two years.
One of world golf's great characters, Jiménez combines fun on the course with the serious business of winning. He won twice on The European Tour last season and was a four time winner the year before.
Among the leading Asian challengers is Lian-Wei Zhang, 40, the trailblazer for Chinese golf, with five Asian Tour successes to his credit and string of victories over some world-class players. He made history in 2004 when he earned a rare invitation to play in the Masters Tournament, making him the first Chinese player to tee up at Augusta National.
This year, the Malaysian Open has a new title sponsor in Maybank, who have signed a long-term agreement, and a new venue, the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. The club boasts two par 72 championship golf courses, the East Course and the West Course, both designed by Canadian Neil Haworth.
