Ruangkit guns for Singh in Volvo Matchplay

JAKARTA (JP): Thailand's Boonchu Ruangkit set up a second round showdown with Jeev Milkha Singh of India, who beat him in last year's final, in the Volvo Asian Matchplay Championships at the Emeralda Golf and Country Club yesterday.

Ruangkit earned the rematch in the Omega Tour event after narrowly overcoming first round opponent Paul Friedlander of Swaziland by one hole.

The 40-year-old Thai won after making a par four on the last against a bogey by Friedlander, who hooked his tee shot into the trees on the left and was forced to chip out onto the fairway.

"The most Friedlander was ahead for the first 10 holes was two up so I always thought I could get back into the game," Ruangkit, winner of the Omega Tour's Lexus International in Thailand in September, said.

In the upset of the day over the 7,090-yard par-72, which was designed by Arnold Palmer, Korea's Choi Kyung-ju beat Thammanoon Sriroj of Thailand on the 21st hole.

Sriroj, who finished third on this year's Omega Order of Merit after recording two wins, was three up with three to play but finished with three bogeys in a row while Choi took the match into overtime with three pars.

Choi and Sriroj halved the first two extra holes, the first and second, with pars before Choi won the match on the third with a par four.

Sriroj bogeyed the 21st hole following a poor second shot from 150-yards that came up 10 yards short of the green. He chipped up and missed from five feet.

South African Richard Kaplan showed some of the good form that won him the Omega Tour's Royal Classic in Thailand last month by crushing compatriot Craig Kamps six and four.

Kaplan was three under for the day when he closed out the match on the 14th while Kamps finished four over. After they had halved the first two holes, Kaplan ran away with the match winning the next five holes.

"I won the third, fourth and fifth with pars and then birdied the next two.

Craig struggled today, he couldn't really get it going," Kaplan said.

In other matches, Australian Jeff Wagner defeated Korea's Kwon Oh-chull five and three, Kenny Walker of Scotland beat American Eric Rustand four and three, John Kernohan of the USA defeated Glenn Joyner of Australia four and three, Thailand's Thaworn Wiratchant beat Felix Casas of the Philippines three and two, and South African Nico van Rensburg beat Paul Foley of Australia by one hole.

The first round winners square up against the eight seeded players today. (yan)