Dayu golf meet gives PON 2004 qualifiers

Dayu golf meet gives PON 2004 qualifiers

Yoni Astuti, Contributor, Surabaya, East Java

The Indonesian Amateur Golf Association (PGI) will use next
month's Indonesian Open as a qualifying event for the 2004
National Sports Championships (PON).

The Indonesian Open, a national amateur golf tournament, will
be held at the Taman Dayu Golf Club in Pandaan, East Java,
from July 8 to July 11.

The competition will be divided into two events. The 72-hole
Event A will be for players with a handicap under nine, while the
36-hole Event B will be for those with a handicap of between 15
and nine.

Each event is limited to 140 players. The practice round will
be on July 7.

Abdul Hamid, the chairman of PGI's East Java chapter, said the
2003 Indonesian Open, where between four and five players from a
number of provinces will be given tournament entries, would be
the first-stage qualifying event for the next PON, which is
scheduled to be held in Palembang, South Sumatra.

The second stage of qualification will follow in Jakarta,
though no date has yet been set.

He said to qualify for PON players would have to shoot better
than eight-over-par during the four-day tournament.

"If the players succeed in shooting this they will
automatically pass the qualification requirement and will not
have to play in the second qualifying event in Jakarta," Hamid
said.

The women's selection will be held in Palembang next year.

PON will be limited to 86 men's golfers, a significant
increase from the 2000 PON in Surabaya where only 56 berths were
provided.

Hamid said the PGI would study the possibility of the
Indonesian Open amateur golf championship being held annually as
part of the PGI's campaign to improve golf in the country.

Meanwhile, Hausman T. Babu, a member of the management team of
the Taman Dayu Golf Club, said they would ready the golf course
to provide the challenge level needed for a professional golf
tournament.