Typhoon Koinu disrupts Hong Kong Tennis Open and Sha Tin racing – but Aramco golf event settled by dramatic play-off
- Raising of storm signal wipes out Aramco Team Series’ final round in Fanling, sending Janet Lin and Ko Jin-young into a play-off on the 18th
- Officials left to find gap in schedule to replace Sha Tin horse racing as it is axed along with Hong Kong Premier League and Hong Kong Tennis Open qualifying
Typhoon Koinu wrecked the closing round of the Aramco Team Series golf tournament on Sunday, and also put paid to horse racing at Sha Tin, the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open and domestic football.
With the storm barrelling towards the city, moving to within 90km (56 miles) in the afternoon, the Observatory raised the No 8 warning at 12.40pm.
Officials were given advanced warning of the decision though, meaning golf and racing were cancelled early on, while the Hong Kong Football Association waited until just after noon to confirm the day’s Premier League fixtures were off.
At Hong Kong Golf Club, the announcement that the signal was being raised between noon and 2pm forced organisers to scrap the final round, sending Janet Lin Xiyu and Ko Jin-young into a play-off.
Tied at 11 under after the first two days, the pair were left to battle it out on the 18th hole to decide the title, and it took two goes before Lin prevailed, holing a monster 40ft birdie putt to seal the victory after missing a simpler one for par to win on the first attempt.
The Chinese golfer, who attracted a lot of support from local fans during her time in Fanling, added the ATS title to the Asian Games bronze she won last week, and said she was “still a little in shock”.
“I mean, everything happens for a reason,” she said. “I didn’t hole my putt in the first play-off hole. I told myself to stay patient. And then it was another good drive and a good close shot. And, you know, making that putt is pretty phenomenal.”
The 18th has seen its fair share of drama over the years, from Rory McIlroy’s bunker shot in 2011 to Taichi Kho’s winning putt earlier this year in the World City Championship, and Lin called it “a great stage for a play-off”.
“It means a lot, when you can capture a win in front of a field that includes the world number one and three,” Lin said. “It was a pretty good feeling and also this week, I got so much support from the local fans and I feel really grateful. This means a lot to me and will always hold a very special place in my heart.”
While Lin was able to win her maiden ATS title, there was no chance of racing taking place in Sha Tin, with the Jockey Club deciding that in the “interest of public and equine safety, the Sha Tin race meeting scheduled today will be cancelled”.
It is the third consecutive season that has seen a meeting lost to weather and officials will be scouring the calendar for a place to fit a replacement fixture.
Although there are few gaps in the schedule as a result of the season starting a week later than normal, for the second successive year, there is a small window between Christmas and New Year’s Eve which could potentially fit an added meeting at a stretch.
In the Hong Kong Premier League, defending champions Kitchee were denied the opportunity to close the six-point gap on leaders Lee Man when their away match at HKU23 fell victim to the weather.
The fixture between BC Rangers and Crownity North District, who have played only two league games since the season began seven weeks ago, was also cancelled.
Round two of qualifying at the Hong Kong Tennis Open was postponed and rescheduled for 11am on Monday, with main draw matches set to begin from 3pm.
