Then, there was also the birth of the former Asian PGA Tour, the precursor to the Asian Tour in 1995. With a schedule of tournaments, the Tour served as a catalyst for a pioneering batch of Chinese professional golfers such as Zhang and Cheng Jun to venture into a new world of opportunity.
During the early days, Zhang, now 51 years old, never had the opportunity to enjoy proper coaching or the best of golf equipment. Starting out as a caddie in Shenzhen, he watched and learned from others, and tried to copy their golf swings.
What he may have lacked in skill and technique, Zhang overcame with an abundance of heart and grit between his teeth as he rose to great prominence, first winning three China Amateur Open golf titles before joining the play-for-pay ranks in 1994.
The likeable Zhang’s journey of discovery soon saw him blazing a new trail as he amassed five Asian Tour victories and several notable scalps including those of Nick Price, whom he beat in a play-off at the Macao Open and Ernie Els, whom he famously defeated in Singapore with a heroic last hole birdie which will be remembered for ages.
Zhang’s success inspired another small group of golfers and Liang Wen-chong emerged, with the younger man coming under the wing of the trailblazing Zhang. Despite possessing an unorthodox golf swing, Liang became a force and was crowned China’s first Asian Tour Order of Merit champion in 2007. He is also currently ranked eighth on the Asian Tour’s all-time career earnings with US$3.48 million in winnings.
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