Veerman Leads Strong Cast To Combiphar Golf Invitational At Gunung Geulis

Bogor, Indonesia, November 22 - Asian Development Tour (ADT) Order of Merit leader Johannes Veerman of the United States will challenge for a second title at ‘home’ when he steps up to the tee at the Combiphar Golf Invitational on Wednesday.

The 22-year-old Texan, whose mother is Indonesian, will lead a host of up and coming players, including 25 ADT champions, to the inaugural US$60,000 event which will be held from November 23 to 26.

Eight players from top-10 on the current ADT Order of Merit will also be part of the 132-man field from over 20 countries vying for honours at the Royal Tulip Gunung Geulis Golf Resorts in Bogor, a city in the West Java province of Indonesia.

Veerman, who came through the Qualifying School earlier in January, enjoyed his best result on the Asian Tour when he finished tied-second at the BANK BRI-JCB Indonesia Open last week. He will be looking to continue his fine form when he returns to the ADT this week.

Johannes Veerman - Photo Asian Tour

“I have played a lot of tournaments on the ADT and there are a lot of great competition out here. All of that playing experiences and practices on the ADT have been polishing my game,” said Veerman, who claimed his maiden ADT win in Chinese Taipei in July.

“There are a lot of talented players out here. I have been playing great so far this season. Golf is a long and hard road. You need to keep playing well to stay up there. Winning in Chinese Taipei earlier was a confidence booster for me,” he added.

Veerman will feature in the Combiphar Golf Invitational alongside Malaysia’s Gavin Green, Sweden’s Oscar Zetterwall and Itthipat Buranatanyarat of Thailand, placed second, fourth and fifth respectively on the Order of Merit.

George Gandranata, the first and only Indonesian to win on the ADT, will spearhead the home charge alongside Ian Andrew, Jordan Irawan and Danny Masrin, who emerged as the best Indonesian in tied-14th place at the recently-concluded Indonesia Open.

Almay Rayhan Yaqutah, who was the best amateur in tied-27th place at the Indonesia Open, will get another chance to play against the big boys in the Combiphar Golf Invitational, what is the Tour’s second stop in Indonesia this season.

Other notable players in the field include Asian Tour stalwart Antonio Lascuna of the Philippines, Steve Lewton of England, a one-time winner on the region’s premier Tour, as well as American Brett Munson.

All ADT events offer Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points. The winner will receive six OWGR points while the top six players and ties will also earn points based on a sliding scale.

The top-five finishers on the final Order of Merit will secure their Asian Tour cards for 2017.