NEWS

Chinese teen Guan wins Asia-Pacific Amateur, earns berth at 2013 Masters

By Associated Press
Published on
Chinese teen Guan wins Asia-Pacific Amateur, earns berth at 2013 Masters

BANGKOK -- Guan Tian-lang of China won the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship on Sunday, making the 14-year-old the youngest player to qualify for the Masters.

Guan closed with a 1-under 71 at Amata Spring Country Club, needing a par on the 18th hole to beat hard-charging Cheng-tsung Pan of Taiwan. Guan, who is in the eighth grade and weighs only about 125 pounds, couldn't reached the par 4 in two shots. He chipped to 5 feet and made the putt.

Guan will be the youngest player at Augusta National next April. The previous record was Matteo Manassero of Italy, who was about to turn 17 when he played in 2010. It's the second straight year a 14-year-old from China will play in a major. Andy Zhang qualified for the U.S. Open last summer.