Tiffany Among World's Best

Tiffany Chan proved she can be counted among the world's best young golfers with a brilliant performance at the Callaway World Junior Golf Championship in California last month.

Seventeen-year-old Chan, who has swept all before her on the local golf scene over the past couple of years, opened up with rounds of 75, 71 and 70 over the famed North Course at Torrey Pines, which was playing at 6,298 yards to a par of 74) to lie in a share of second place in the Girls' 15-17 bracket with one round to play.

Chan, who attends Diocesan Girls' School, wasn't quite at her best on the final day, and after an encouraging start stumbled slightly on the back nine to finish with a two-over 76 and a share of fifth place, 11 strokes behind runaway champion Kim Hyo-Joo of Korea.

Nevertheless, it was a fine result, one of the best ever achieved by a Hong Kong player at the world's pre-eminent junior championship.

"I'm very proud of Tiffany," said National Coach Brad Schadewitz (pictured here with Chan). "She handled herself extremely well and proved she can mix it with the very best young players around. She'll take a lot of confidence from the result and I'm looking forward to seeing how she goes on from here."

Hak's Stock Continues to Rise

There was more great news Stateside as Jason Hak stormed to a brilliant seven-shot victory at the prestigious Rolex Tournament of Champions, an American Junior Golf Association tournament held in Oregon late June. Tsim Sha Tsui-born Hak, 17, carded a four-day total of six-under 282 over the Crosswater Course at Sunriver Resort to ease to his first AJGA title.

"I just played my game and I didn't make many mistakes," said Hak, who made international headlines in 2008 when he became the youngest player in history to make the cut at a European Tour event when he achieved the feat at the UBS Hong Kong Open. "My [playing] partners were playing really well so I had to be on top of my game."

Thanks to his win, Hak has moved up to number two in the AJGA's rankings, one spot behind American Jordan Spieth, who has been making news himself of late having featured prominently at the PGA Tour's Byron Nelson Championship in May. Hak has also risen to an impressive number 79 in the R&A's World Amateur Golf Rankings.

"It's means a lot to win this championship," continued Hak, who bases himself in Lake Mary, Florida. "My junior golf career has been pretty good so far, but this win is the high point of it."

Despite spending the majority of his time in the US, Hak regularly returns to Hong Kong and has represented the SAR in a number of international team events.