The vigorous performance of the "cross-border" professional arena has allowed Ding Wenyi, a rising star of Chinese amateurs, to be ranked in the world's top 500 or even the youngest player in the top 1,000 for a long time.
However, this record was broken last week! A more ferocious and even younger "back wave" rose like a rocket in the Asian high world, becoming the youngest golfer in the latest world ranking of the top 500.
He is ratchanon Chantananuwat, a 14-year-old Thai teenager.
The 14-year-old Rachanon almost won the Asian Tour
In the final round of the Singapore International Championship held last Sunday, Lachanon almost broke a historical record for golf - at just 14 years, 4 months and 19 days, he rushed to the asian tour after the transfer, and only a few holes away, he could become the youngest champion in the history of the men's and women's world rankings!
Unfortunately, on the last 7 holes, he only played +3, and finally missed the $1 million Asian Tour overtime game with a total prize money of 1 million, unfortunately relegated to the third place. However, for a 14-year-old who was still in junior high school and went abroad to participate in professional competitions for the first time in his life, he achieved such an amazing result, or swept the golf social network on Sunday afternoon. GOLF DIGEST and the U.S. Golf Channel both use titles such as "Phenomenal" and "Unbelievable" to describe the cross-border outbreak of Thai children.
"I could have won the championship... But for the results, I'm quite satisfied. "There may be people who feel sorry for me for dropping the bar, but I really feel like I'm working very hard and playing well." ”
The youngest professional golf champion, both men and women, are dominated by Thais
It was this 3rd place on the Asian Tour that allowed Lachanon to jump to 181st place in the world rankings, rising to 463rd place, becoming the youngest player in the world's top 500. At the same time, at the age of 14, he also set a record for the lowest age in the history of the men's golf world rankings, successfully breaking through the top 1,000! You know, whether it's Woods, McIlroy, Ram or Colin Morikawa, at the age of 14, they can only fight in the junior arena, which is not enough to reach the edge of the world ranking...
In fact, as early as 2020, Ratchanon had already achieved a tie for 17th place on the Thai tour, and emerged in the professional arena. In the second half of last year, he achieved an amazing record of being runners-up and tied for 5th place on the Thai Tour. When the Asian Tour "resumed work" in Phuket for the first time in 20 months in November, Ratchanon, who was shortlisted through wild cards, was a newborn calf who was not afraid of tigers, and successfully advanced to two consecutive Asian Tour games, becoming the 3rd youngest promoted player in the history of the Asian Tour after compatriot Jez Genivatalong and Chinese teenager Kuang Yang!
Lachanon with his father and caddie Tara
At the end of December, at the Thailand Masters, the finale of the Thai Tour held the same week as the Volvo China Open, Rachanon handed over a 64-69-66 runaway performance in the last three rounds, and finally only trailed his compatriot Chiladek Afi bangrath, who won the championship on the extra hole, and tied for third place. "It's a pleasure to play so well in 2021." Lachanon said at the time, "I feel that I am getting more and more able to face the pressure of competition, the batting distance is getting farther and farther, and all aspects are improving." ”
An amateur player who still belongs to the category of teenagers has delivered such an anti-heavenly performance in the professional arena that it is difficult for Chinese fans not to think of Ding Wenyi, the same rising star of hope. If we compare Rachanon and Ding Wenyi, we will indeed find many striking similarities: both are middle school students at the international school in the capital of their home country; both have advanced to the last 8 professional competitions; in the past two years, they have achieved thousands of "Great Leap Forwards" in the world rankings; and among the top 15 players in the world amateur rankings in Asia, they are both the youngest...
Ding Wenyi contrasts with Ratchanon
Of course, the two also have their own advantages: After all, Ding Wenyi has won the first professional championship (if you count last year's national championship, he has actually won two professional wins), and in the past two years, he has won all the world ranking points in the professional tournaments he has participated in, and both the number of amateur champions and the top ten professional tournaments are far more than thai brothers; but Although Ratchanom is two and a half years younger, he has played a world at a higher level in the Asian Tour, and last week's Singapore International and this week's Singapore Open. He has shown his hard strength through overseas competitions, which is still incomparable to Ding Wenyi, who has not yet been able to go abroad and has not yet appeared in the international professional arena.
Rachanon won the IMG World Junior Championship at the age of 9
Born in a middle-class family in Bangkok, Ratchanon began studying golf at the age of 4, began to win the championship trophy in youth events at the age of 6, completed the "triple crown" at the U.S. KIDS Golf World Championships in the United States in 2014-2016, and won the prestigious IMG World Junior Championships men's 9-10 years old at the age of 9.
"A lot of people have questioned me, why do you let a kid play so many games? Today, the results have given the answer. Tara, Whose father, who runs an imported clothing business and backpacks for him during the race, said, "At one of the games, I found TK copying a line in his chair: 'Winners never quit, quitters never win.'" His competitive spirit sometimes makes our parents feel relieved, even a little tired. ”
The Bird Sports fan base was equally impressed with Lachanon
From the age of 9, Rachanon began to compete with some older children, and he has always been a "winning general", he began to lose, his emotions were greatly affected, and he often ran to the practice field to vent. To this end, Tara even found a psychologist for her son. "The doctor said that this kind of emotion of wanting to win and afraid of losing is normal, and when he matures, he will naturally understand everything." If TK loses and then has some symptoms, you can come to me as soon as possible. The doctor's words made me laugh. "We would also give him some guidance, such as completing the daily swing training, riding the bicycle for a while, practicing putting every night, watching some cartoons..."
However, I believe that Ding Wenyi will also face the same troubles - in the face of more and more heavy schooling, and more and more competitions, now Lachanon's day will be arranged very tightly: every day after school, he will come to the practice field, from 3 pm to 8 pm. Then eat dinner at the clubhouse, take the car home, usually just get on the car for a few minutes, he has already taken a nap. And after returning home, he will practice putting and physical fitness for a while, and then go to sleep.
Rachanon swings at the driving range
And when it comes to playing abroad, Thai boys can't lose their studies because of the Asian Tour. Although practice days can cause Lachanon to miss physics and English classes, he makes up for it with online instruction in the evenings. "I knew that if I took a little time to review and talk to the teacher, I would be able to catch up on the lesson. I will schedule a period of study according to the tee time of each day, sooner or later. The 14-year-old said.
The stunning performance of the professional arena has allowed Rachanon to receive a large number of wild card offers, and this week, he will play in the Final Game of the Asian Tour and the opening match of the new season of the Japanese Tour (Chinese player Chen Guxin will also play in this game). Next month's $5 million, star-studded Saudi Arabia International Competition is also reported to invite the Thai supernova to participate. However, in Ratchanon's view, being able to play with a thai compatriot who has been an idol of the past is his biggest gain in the professional arena.
Rachanon excelled on the pro circuit
"My idol is Tongcha Jia Di, I have practiced with him and I am really happy! These seniors have told me that they want to enjoy the game and share some experiences with me, and I think I am really lucky. ”
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