The Macau Golf and Country Club will play host to the 2024 edition of the SJM Macao Open between tomorrow and Sunday, with 144 golfers from across the globe competing for a prize pool of US$1 million.
Now in its 21st year, the tournament will feature a number of top players, including defending champion Min Woo Lee, who is currently ranked 40th in the world; two-time winner, Scott Hend; and John Catlin, who was crowned the champion in the International Series Macau back in March.
The three golfers spoke during a press conference yesterday, with Min telling local media that “It’s always nice to come back to a course that you play well at.” The Australian golfer almost broke the Asian Tour Record by attaining a 30-under-par score in four days last year, a new record for the tournament.
Fellow Australian golfer, Hend, lowered expectations for his performance, revealing that “my game and my health [are] not 100 percent,” although he vowed to do his best.
[See more: Golfing star Min Woo Lee makes a return to the SJM Macao Open]
Meanwhile, as the current leader of the Asian Tour Order of Merit, Catlin described the event as “a good challenge,” adding that “there are so many great players.”
The competition will also see participation from Macao golfers, Kelvin Si and Hun Pui In. The former, who is only 22 years old, recently took part in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Japan on behalf of his home city. In 2022, he also took part in the men’s golf event in the Asian Games, where he earned eighth place.
Speaking about the competition, Si said, “My expectation for this week is pretty simple, make the cut and see what I can do from there.” In terms of the challenges, the amateur golfer highlighted the course’s windiness and hilly terrain as areas of concern.
Free tickets to the event can be obtained via its official website.
