Patrick Reed tied the tournament's lowest score in its 63-year history with his remarkable winning four-round total of 22-under-par 258 at the Link Hong Kong Open. Although it did not officially count because preferred lies were told, the performance will live on in people's memories for a very long time.Jose Maria Olazabal of Spain also shot 22 under when he won in 2001, but the course was played as a par 71 that year, so his winning total was 262. The only player with the same winning score at the Hong Kong Golf Club is Englishman Ian Poulter in 2010.
In the third round last week, Reed dominated the field with an impeccable 11-under-par 59 around the Composite Course. He hit all 18 greens and all 14 fairways in regulation, requiring just 25 putts. Aaron Rai's 61 in 2018 is still the course record because, once more, it could not be officially upheld due to preferred lies.
Reed, who is regarded as one of the best shot makers in the game, loves the tree-lined Fanling course, as evidenced by his statistics. He missed just nine greens, giving him the week's highest score of 87.5% in the Greens in Regulation (GIR) category. On the greens, he was equally impressive, averaging 1.62 putts per GIR (third in this category) and 28.5 putts per round (T16th). He averaged 287.75 yards (44th) off the tee and found the Fairways 80.36% of the time (T9th).
Ben Campbell. Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour took the photo.With 26 birdies during the week, the 2018 Masters champion also tied Sadom Kaewkanjana of Thailand. Additionally, he only made four bogeys this week, one on the 15th and another on Sunday, the 18th, when the tournament was virtually complete.
Second place After the first two rounds, Ben Campbell of New Zealand led the field at 12-under-par, and he did his best to defend the title. Despite his dissatisfaction with his performance over the weekend, he produced impressive results in every major stat category, placing T4th in Putts per Round (27.5), sixth in Putts per GIR (1.638), T9th in GIR (80.56%), and T2nd in Fairways Hit (89.29%), missing just six fairways during the tournament.
Ye Wocheng of China had an incredible week on the greens, winning the Putts per Round and Putts per GIR categories with scores of 26 and 1.53, respectively. Regretfully, he tied for 52nd place because the other aspects of his game did not play up to par.
Leaders in the following statistical categories (of players who made the cut) at the Link Hong Kong Open:
- Putts per Round: Ye Wocheng (CHN) – 26
- Putts per GIR: Ye Wocheng (CHN) – 1.53
- GIR: Patrick Reed (USA) – 87.5%
- Fairways Hit: Ajeetesh Sandhu (IND) – 91.07%
- Driving Distance: Eugenio Chacarra (ESP) – 332.75 yards
- Most Birdies: Patrick Reed (USA), Sadom Kaewkanjana (THA) – 26
- Fewest Bogies or Worse: Ben Campbell (AUS), Natipong Sritong (THA) – 3
- Scrambling: Chan Shih-chang (TPE), Chapchai Nirat (THA) – 83.33%