Golf: New pro at ease under pressure

Kevin Chun has clinched his Asian tour card. Picture / The Aucklander

Aucklander Kevin Chun has been a professional for less than two months but has already shown he can react to the pressures of playing for pay.

Since November the 20-year-old from Albany has pre-qualified and then made the cut in the Australian Open, earned playing rights on the Australasian tour, and last week, with fellow Kiwis Brad Iles and Matt Holten, clinched his card on the Asian tour.

In every case Chun, who played as an amateur at Titirangi and represented New Zealand in the last Eisenhower world amateur championship, had to play well under extreme pressure.

He was still an amateur when he played in the pre-qualifying for the Australian Open with his father and coach, Man-dong, as caddie. Chun shot three-under and then survived a playoff.

"I birdied three out of the last four holes," he recalled. "I hit a good drive down the last, which is a par-five, and dad said, 'Just lay up and make par and we'll probably get in'.

"I personally thought I needed birdie to have a realistic chance. He disagreed but I decided to go for it and I hit two-iron to about 12 feet.

"I just lipped out for eagle but made birdie and when we got into the clubhouse they told me I needed three under so it was lucky I went for it."

Chun was lying 19th in the Open after two rounds but faltered in the closing stages to finish 39th. It was the second year in a row he had made the cut in Australia's premier tournament.

In the final qualifying for the Australian PGA tour, with 35 cards at stake, Chun was 25th starting the final round. He raced up the leader board by shooting a four-under 68 - the only player to break 70 - to finish ninth equal. That ranking will be important for getting into fields without pre-qualifying.

The Asian tour schools in Malaysia started with 600 players from round the world chasing just 40 places for this season. Chun, Iles and Holten were exempt until the final stage.

The weather was hot and wet. Chun played just nine holes of his second round before play was abandoned for the day and he ended up having to complete 22 holes on the third day and 25 on the last.

At the start of the final 18 he was 10 places out of the qualifying group but he birdied four of his first five holes. He finished the first nine three under.

"These media guys from the Asian Tour came over and wanted to film me.

"I don't think it affected me but immediately they started filming I made double on 11.

"I made bogey on 16 and by then I was only one under after being four under at one stage.

"I was quite afraid because I didn't know how others were playing.

"The wind had picked up and I knew the scores wouldn't be that good, but golf is an unpredictable game."

Chun took out some of the uncertainty by holing a putt from off the green on the 17th, then parred the last for two under and a safe qualification in 31st place.

Man-dong and wife Hyun-sook owned an indoor driving range in Korea before migrating to Auckland with 9-year-old Yong-chan - soon to be Kevin. Man-dong had learned to play golf from books and videos, but father and son honed their techniques with professional Rhys Bishop.

Now Kevin will campaign in New Zealand, Australia and Asia, with his next tournaments the Victorian PGA and the Victorian Open.