Scott Hend has created an historic Asian Tour first and with still two rounds of the final event of 2916 to be played at the UBS Hong Kong Open.
Hend will win the 2016 Asian Tour Order of Merit title and in the process become the first Australian-born golfer to do so.
And winning the Asian Tour Order of Merit will see Hend tee-up in the Masters for a very long overdue first time in his career.
Heading into this week’s co-sanctioned event in Hong Kong, Hend had earned $US 996,592 from his 10 Asian Tour counting events and helped by two victories this season along with a second place finish behind Swede Alex Noren at the co-sanctioned European Masters in Switzerland.
Scott Hend on his way to Augusta for a first time as also the first Australian to win the Asian Tour Order of Merit title. (Photo – South China Morning Post).
Hend is currently $US 302,619 ahead of fellow Australian and Rio Olympic Games team-mate Marcus Fraser, and there is now no way Hend can lose the title even if Fraser, who is trailing in 49th place at level par and 11 shots off the lead, were to win the event.
If Fraser did win he would earn a prize cheque of $US 328,895 Hend, who shares 18th place at three under par, would need to finish no worst than 13th place to secure the No. 1 Asian crown.
Hend was runner-up on the Asian Tour Order of Merit last year and 2013.
“It is something that I always wanted to achieve and it’s something I could have wrapped-up a while ago but I didn’t,” he said.
“If you go back and pick things apart I pared the last hole at the CIMB Classic a few weeks ago when a birdie would have done the job while I look back to Crans and the European Masters because if I had of won that and not lose out in the play-off the title would be done and dusted.
“Every shot over the year you play helps to adding to the dollars you earn and the dollars add up to where you are on the Order of Merit.
“So the Order of Merit prize is the culmination of the year.”
Hend already is lying third overall on the Asian Tour all-time money list with earnings of $US 3,795,696.
And this is a far cry from the inaugural Asian Tour Order of Merit season in 1995 when Taiwan’s Lin Keng-chi earned $US 177,856.
