Hua Hin, Thailand, 23-02-2020

Honey Baisoya earns his maiden Asian Tour card with tied 23rd finish at Qualifying School

Twenty-three-year-old Honey Baisoya, a six-time winner on the TATA Steel PGTI and one of the brightest young talents in Indian golf, marked a major career milestone when he secured his maiden Asian Tour card through the Qualifying School at the Lake View Resort and Golf Club in Hua Hin, Thailand, on Sunday.

The Delhi-based Baisoya shot rounds of 69, 67, 70, 70 and 72 to finish tied 23rd at seven-under-348 at the Final Stage of the Q School that was played over five rounds of 18 holes each. The top-35 players and ties earned their cards at the end of the fifth and final round. Among the 18 Indians competing in the Final Stage, Honey was the only Indian to earn full playing rights on the Asian Tour.
 
Honey, who turned professional back in 2013, fired a last round of one-over-72 to drop 11 spots from his overnight tied 12th. Baisoya shot his only over-par score of the week during the fifth round which featured five birdies, three bogeys and a triple-bogey. He was in the top-15 of the leaderboard through the second, third and fourth rounds.

Baisoya, who’s six previous attempts at the Asian Tour Q School were unsuccessful, said, “I was pretty consistent through the week. My hitting and chipping were terrific on all five days and that more than made up for my loss of putting form on the last three days.

“On the last day, the five-putt that led to a triple-bogey for me on the 10th served as a wake-up call. But I managed to focus well thereafter by making some quality chip-putts to end up with a 72.  

“My back injury last year had an impact on my season and my performances as I missed a few events and played a few other events despite the discomfort from the injury. I have now fully recovered and am looking forward to my first full season on the Asian Tour.” 

The event was won by Zimbabwe’s Benjamin Follett-Smith who totaled 15-under-340.

The four other Indians who had made the fourth round cut of the top-70 and ties but did not finish among the top-35 and ties after round five and thus missed their card, were Veer Ahlawat (tied 40th at four-under-351), Yashas Chandra and Khalin Joshi (both tied 52nd at three-under-352) and Manu Gandas (tied 64th at one-over-356).