Wong and Choy Qualify for UBS HK Open

Local professionals James Wong Woon-man and Wilson Choy will tee it up alongside a host of world-class stars at next month's UBS Hong Kong Open after earning the two spots available at the qualifying tournament at Fanling on Wednesday.

Wilson Choy and James Wong Woon-man pose with the Hong Kong Open trophy

HONG KONG, 2 Sept 2015, (HK Golfer News Wire) - The pair recorded matching two-day totals of 140 (level par) to finish a stroke ahead of amateur Max Wong Chen-kun, a five-time Hong Kong Golf Club champion, who stumbled down the closing stretch to miss out on qualifying by the narrowest of margins.

Leading by two before heavy rain caused a temporary suspension of play after 11 holes of the second round, the amateur reeled off three bogeys in five holes to hand the advantage to his professional playing partners, who made no mistake by parring their way in.

"It's a good feeling to know I'm going to be back here in a few weeks for the Open," said 43-year-old Choy, who will be making his third appearance at the US$2 million event, which is co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours.

"Knowing that I'll be joining the likes of Dustin Johnson and Justin Rose in the field is very exciting. I'm feeling good about my game so I'm really looking forward to the week."

Wong, whose second-round 69 was the lowest on a difficult day for scoring, said his confidence had been buoyed by this performance and that he was looking to settle some unfinished business at the event, which will be played from 22-25 October.

"I've played the Hong Kong Open many times but never managed to make the cut," said the 35-year-old. "If I can manage to get to the weekend I'll be happy."