Confident Chan gears up for title defence in Thailand

Chan Yih-shin of Taiwan hopes his soaring confidence will bolster his bid for a successful title defence at the King's Cup starting on Thursday.

Chan, won his maiden Asian Tour title after defeating Englishman Nick Redfern and Simon Yates of Scotland in a three-way play-off last year, will be eyeing a happy homecoming at the Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club.

He will contend with a bevy of Asian Tour stars including Thai legend Thaworn Wiratchant, a 12-time Asian Tour champion, Angelo Que of the Philippines, South African Peter Karmis, who won on the Asian Tour in September, and Singaporean Lam Chih Bing at the 300,000-dollar event.

Chan has been a figure of consistency since his victory last year, notching three top-10s, and is placed 19th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.

"It is great to be back to the venue where you won your first Asian Tour title. Winning last year is one of my fondest memories in my career and I'm glad to be back to try and defend my title," said the 33-year-old.

"My confidence has been soaring since my win and I have been performing very well on the Asian Tour.

I'm definitely playing better than last year but there are many good players here and I'm not going to get ahead of myself yet," he added.

He believes the strong wind conditions will prove to be a tricky test for the players this week.

"This is a very tricky golf course and a good score will depend on the wind and some luck. The wind blows from different directions and if you are unlucky, you will get in trouble. Everyone has a chance to win here so I just need to concentrate on my own game," said Chan.

The tournament is held to commemorate the King of Thailand's birthday next month and local hope Chawalit Plaphol, a two-time Asian Tour champion, is determined to battle for the King's honour.

Chawalit, who has earned over one million dollars on the Asian Tour since 2004, hopes to recapture his winning form and bounce back from a 23-month lull where he has only managed one top-10 on the Asian Tour.

"My game wasn't at its best in the last two years where my driver was a let down. But it has improved and I've won three titles in local events in Singapore, Philippines and Taipei. Now, I'm looking forward to winning again on the Asian Tour especially in this event. A victory will be a good gift for the King," said Chawalit.

India's rising star Anirban Lahiri, who finished in tied sixth at the King's Cup last season, will be looking to break into the top-60 of the Order of Merit after enduring a mixed season on the Asian Tour.

"My form has been patchy," he said. "I haven't played as well as I would have liked to but I've won a few times in India (three times) and shot some really low scores so it has been a bit of a mixed bag. Hopefully I will pull out a good performance this week."

KHON KAEN, Thailand, Thursday AFP