Date: October 18, 2015
Author: Martin Blake

Hend wins Asian title number seven

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Scott Hend's lucrative habit of winning in Asia continued today with his triumph at the Venetian Macau Open.

The Australian's win in the $US1 million Open made it the fourth season in a row he has won a tournament on the Asian Tour.

It was the 42-year-old Queenslander's seventh win on the Asian Tour.

Hend began the final round with a three-shot lead and carded a final-round 66 without a single bogey to hold off the order-of-merit leader Anibarn Lahiri of India by three shots, finishing at 20-under par.

Lahiri, the defending Macau champion, chased Hend all the way but a costly error at the par-four 16th hole, where the Indian air-mailed the green with a wedge for a bogey, pushed Hend's lead out from two to three shots. At the same hole another challenger, India's Chirag Kumar, three-putted to virtually hand the title to Hend.

It was the third year in a row that the Australian and Lahiri had duelled in Macau; in 2013, Hend won, then last year Lahiri prevailed. "I knew he wasn't going to go away,'' said Hend. "He's a great player.''

Relief was the emotion that came to him afterward. "I wanted to come out, do my own thing, not worry about what the boys were doing. I knew they had to shoot a good score to catch me.''

Hend, whose world rank leading into the tournament was 167, has been playing on the European Tour, but kept his Asian Tour card this year.

Today's win secures his spot in the World Golf Championship- HSBC Champions event in Shanghai next month, while Lahiri, the International team's Presidents Cup player, is dominating the Asian order of merit. Hend has leapfrogged to second.

He defends his Hong Kong Open title next week.

MATT KUCHER of the United States held firm to win the Fiji International by four shots.

Masterful on the opening two days in strong winds, Kucher was never threatened on the final day, with his father Peter carrying his bag.

Hometown hero Vijay Singh broke the course record at Natadola Bay with a 65. Aaron Price of Australia finished second.

"Winning is a hard thing to do regardless of where you are, US PGA or Fiji, there are great players everywhere," Kuchar said.

"I knew I had to play some really good golf to try and have a chance at this title and I played some great golf this week. I was excited to come out on top. With the wind blowing the way it was on Thursday and Friday, if you're not hitting it good you many not break 90, it was that challenging."

LEXI Thompson won the LPGA's Hana Bank Championship in South Korea by a shot from former world No. 1 Yani Tseng.

Australia's Minjee Lee finished tied-25th, nine shots from the lead.

The Perth teenager, who is a member of Golf Australia's rookie squad of young professionals, remains in the top 15 on tour in her debut season.

The final day was notable for the nine consecutive birdies made by South Korea's Amy Yang, a first in LPGA history. Yang carded a 62, tieing the course record.

ON THE PGA China Tour, Victorian Bryden Macpherson continued his outstanding run with a second-place finish.

Macpherson has won two tournaments on the tour in the past month, and is second on the order of merit.

The top five at the end of the season win cards to play on the secondary Web.com Tour in the United States.