15 Arab nations qualify for Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Japan

A total of 15 Arab nations, consisting of 18 competitors, have qualified for the 2024 Asia-Pacific Championship at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba in Japan, 3-6 October 2024.

Created in 2009, the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was established by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), The R&A and the Masters Tournament to further develop amateur golf in the Asia-Pacific region.

The champion will receive an invitation to compete in the 2025 Masters Tournament and The 153rd Open, while the runner(s)-up will gain a place in Final Qualifying for The Open.

Players from 38 APGC member organisations have accepted invitations with 113 players confirmed thus far for the 120-player field.

The field is highlighted by defending champion Jasper Stubbs of Australia and four players representing China inside the top 100 of the World Amateur Golf Ranking: Wenyi Ding (No. 4), Xihuan Chang (No. 36), Xiangyun Bai (No. 61) and Paul Chang (No. 97).

Arab Nations Competing:

Bahrain – Khalifa Almaraisi, Mohamed Diab Alnoaimi

Iran – Sajjad Karam Pour Barjouei

Iraq – Zaidoon Zakaria

Mousa Shana’ah

Jordan – Salem Alabdallat, Mohammad Alrawashdeh, Hashem Shana’ah, Mousa Shana’ah

Lebanon – Rachid Akl, Geoffrey Laklak

Azzan Al Rumhy

Oman – Azzan Al Rumhy, Ahmed Al Wahaibi

Qatar – Saleh Alkaabi, Ali Abdulla Al Shahrani

Saudi Arabia – Ali Asakha, Khalid Attieh

United Arab Emirates – Rayan Ahmed, Abdulla Kalbat

Notable past competitors include 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama, a two-time winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur, and 2022 Open champion Cameron Smith. Over the Championship’s 14-year history, the Championship has served as a springboard to some of the world’s top players, including Matsuyama, Smith, Cameron Davis, Ryan Fox, Si Woo Kim, Satoshi Kodaira, Kyoung-Hoon Lee, Min Woo Lee, Keita Nakajima and C.T. Pan. Collectively, alumni of the Asia-Pacific Amateur have gone on to win 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour to date and more than 130 across the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour.

In 2021 Keita Nakajima (Japan) famously triumphed when the event was hosted at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, Dubai, U.A.E

As the host nation, Japan will lead the list of up to 43 APGC member nations represented with 10 players in this year’s field. A player from Japan has won four of the 14 editions of the Championship (Matsuyama/2010, 2011; Takumi Kanaya/2018; Nakajima/2021).

Designed in 1977 by Shunsuke Kato, Taiheiyo Club Gotemba underwent a renovation in 2018 overseen by Rees Jones with consultation from Hideki Matsuyama. The hillside course, situated 100 kilometres southwest of Tokyo, features views of Mount Fuji. The flagship of Taiheiyo Club’s 18 golf courses, Gotemba has hosted a number of international events, including the Taiheiyo Masters, the ISPS HANDA Championship and the 2001 World Cup of Golf won by South Africa’s Ernie Els and Retief Goosen