Rory Hie came agonizingly close to becoming only the 2nd Indonesian golfer to ever win his countries National Open after a final round 2-under par 70 left him just one shot behind eventual champion Thaworn Wiratchant at the US$1 million dollar Indonesian Open.
Trailing overnight leader Wiratchant by 4 strokes, Hie cruised through the front nine in 3-under par to draw level with the Thai after the leader made bogey on the 9th. Wiratchant then dropped another shot on the 11th to give Hie a 1-stroke lead with 7 holes to play. Both players birdied the short par 5 13th hole before Rory dropped a shot on the difficult par 3 15th. Hie, playing in the 2nd to last group, stood on the 18th tee with a share of the lead but unfortunately his tee shot rolled into the hazard. After taking a penalty drop, Hie managed to land his 3rd shot on the green but could not convert the par-saving putt and dropped back to 12-under par for the tournament. This gave Wiratchant a one shot advantage playing the final hole and a sudden-death play-off beckoned after his tee shot found an awkward lie on the edge of a bunker. Wiratchant was forced to play the shot with his feet in the trap. He splashed it out just short of the green and then chipped to within a foot of the hole to secure his par and the 2011 Indonesian Open title.
Although disappointing for Rory not to go on and claim his maiden Tour victory, it was yet another terrific performance from the 22yr old, who collected a cheque for US$72,500. Hie started working on his golf swing at our Academy in March this year and in the 4 months since then has recorded seven top 10 finishes in tournament play. He has been outstanding in major competition on his home soil, also finishing 2nd in the 2011 Indonesian PGA Championship as well as 9th place behind former World No.1 Lee Westwood in the 2011 Indonesian Masters.
It is only a matter of time before this kid breaks through to the winners circle. Congratulations Rory on another fine effort....great play!
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