Shin wins second PGA Tour title in Macau

Canada’s Justin Shin won his second PGA Tour Series-China title yesterday, winning RMB378,000 at the season-finale in Macau. This was in place of the Hong Kong season-finale which was to be held at Clearwater Bay Golf & Country Club this coming weekend, but was canceled due to social unrest.

Starting the final day at Macau’s Caesars Golf with six strokes clear of China’s Zecheng Dou, after 63-62-66 in the opening rounds, Shin continued his flawless game to achieve a 3-under 68, finishing the weekend with 25-under and a three-stroke victory.

American Max McGreevy, tied at 41st, was named Player of the Year Honors over compatriot Trevor Sluman, who had missed the cut this week. McGreevy, who had nine top-10s and a victory this season, will have full playing rights for the 2020 Korn Ferry Tour season. Finishing third was American David Kocher, followed by France’s Cyril Bouniol and South Korea’s Luke Kwon, who placed fourth and fifth respectively.

Shin was flawless all week, carding 24 birdies and two eagles against only three bogeys to win his first title on the Tour since winning the 2015 United Investment Real Estate Open.

Speaking to PGA Tour-China, Shin said, “I just really wanted to have a second win here in China. My last one was in 2015 and I wanted to win so badly right away but it didn’t happen until now.” He is hoping that more victories will follow from now on.

Shin, who played a full season on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2017, had been struggling with his game in China. He came into this week ranked 67th on the Order of Merit and in danger of losing his Tour card for next season.
However, a putter change last month followed by two good results in the Korean Tour helped Shin to regain his confidence and concentration on his game, despite the pressure from partner Dou.

“I knew I needed to keep playing aggressively because I knew Dou could make a lot of birdies, and he did. On the first nine, he was 3-under, and he was catching,” said Shin. “Luckily, I made a nice long putt on 12 [hole], which helped me make it through.” RM