Paul Lakatos/R&A/R&A via Getty Images
Natthakritta Vongtaveelap in action during the opening day of the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific championship at Abu Dhabi Golf Club on November 10, 2021. 

By Kent Gray
By way of background intel, know that Natthakritta Vongtaveelap’s friends call her “Sim” and that she is one of the bigger hitters in women’s amateur golf.

Know also that the Thai is the early pace-setter at the 3rd Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific championship (WAAP) after overcoming an early bout of nerves and a dropped shot on the par-5 2nd to sign for a brilliant six-under 66 at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.

Vongtaveelap leads by two strokes from the trio of Chun-Wei Wu (Chinese Taipei), Mizuki Hashimoto (Japan) and Viera Permata Rosada (Indonesia).

“I was very nervous at the beginning. My heart felt like it would jump out of my body,” said Vongtaveelap. “But I somehow managed to calm myself down by thinking that I can do it.”

Vongtaveelap showed just what she is capable of with birdies on the 7th and 8th before picking up five strokes on the homeward nine including a memorable four on Abu Dhabi’s famous par-5 18th.

“I loved my birdie on the 18th hole. I think I hit all perfect shots there. A driver that went absolutely straight into the headwind, followed by a very nice second shot with a hybrid that reached the green and left me with a 15-feet eagle putt. I missed that even though I hit a good putt but that birdie was sweet.”

Just as significant was the par Vongtaveelap made on the previous hole, one of the tougher par-4s in the UAE. She showed steely nerves on the 17th after sprinting a birdie attempt well past the hole before calmly draining the near six-foot return putt.

Eight players were tied for fifth at three-under-par, including Korea’s Youmin Hwang, the highest-ranked player in the field at number four in the World Amateur Golf Ranking® (WAGR®), India’s Anika Varma, Australia’s Kelsey Bennett and the Malaysian trio of Ashley Lau, Audrey Tan and Natasha Andrea Oon.

Hamda Al Suwaidi, from the host nation of the United Arab Emirates, had the honour of hitting the first tee shot of the championship.

While Al Suwaidi did not have the best day on the course (she signed for a 92), she is a proud Emirati. “It was a lot of pressure and I was nervous but I was also honoured to represent the UAE. I hit the first shot and it went well.

“It’s a big opportunity for us to play against the best amateurs in the Asia-Pacific region. I learned a lot from this round and the practice sessions. It was such a good experience for me and of course for the rest of the UAE team.”

With a two-over 74, adopted Indian Natalii Gupta is the best-placed of the four UAE players after the opening round. Hannah Cheryl Alan and Alia Al Emadi carded rounds of 86 and 87 respectively.

The third edition of the championship, organised by The R&A and the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), is being held in the UAE for the first time. The 72-hole strokeplay event runs until Saturday.

The four days of the championship are being broadcast live for four hours from 6am-10am GMT (10am-2pm UAE time) on TV across the region, as well as live streamed through The R&A’s YouTube and Facebook channels and on RandA.org.

The championship was won in its inaugural year by Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul, who has graduated to become the number one player on the Ladies European Tour (LET) this season, and by Japan’s Yuka Yasuda in 2019.

WAAP is one of the most important events on the calendar for players from the Asia-Pacific region, with the champion golfer earning a place in two major championship fields – the AIG Women’s Open and the Amundi Evian Championship, as well as the Hana Financial Group Championship and an invitation to play in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.