Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Rory Hie missed out on the European Tour, but his success in making it to the final stages of the Qualifying School for the tour has been hailed as an impressive achievement never equaled by an Indonesian golfer before.

The 2008 Qualifying School which concluded on Tuesday, gave 32 top players berths in the European Tour and a possible shot at the lucrative season-closing Dubai World Championship next November.

While Rory finished short of the shortlist, the competition saw the [20]-year-old prove his mettle against the rest of the world.

Rory’s European trip came one month after he had won the Mercedes-Benz Championship, part of the ASEAN Tour series, in his pro debut at the Imperial Golf Club in Tangerang.

This was his second tournament in Indonesia, following his participation (then as an amateur) in the Pertamina Indonesia President Invitational, in August.

“At his current level of performance, Rory is making himself a good role model for Indonesia’s other young golfers. He plays above the average here,” Indonesian Professional Golf Association secretary-general Agus Triyono said.

His impressive run has drawn sponsorship from Ancora Sports, which, according to Ancora CEO Patrick Young, tied the golfer to a three-year deal.

“The good thing about Rory is he can shoot low numbers … 65. He can beat the world’s best, like Anthony Kim,” Young said during a recent media briefing.

“He was one of only two Asian players in the final along with Chinnarat Phadungsil from Thailand. No players from Korea, none from Japan,” Young added.

The final stages of Qualifying School, which began Nov. 13, featured 156 players at the PGA Golf de Catalunya, Spain,

Rory may now be ruing his missed opportunity at qualifying for the European Tour, especially after his impressive late charge in the first four rounds.

Rory had been on par after rounds of 71, 72 and 73 before regrouping to card five under on 67 to make a cut among 80 players, but then fell to a 73 and 75 to end up in 62nd position.

However, he still has an opportunity to sharpen his skills further against strong contenders since he is entitled to the Challenge Tour, widely regarded as a valuable stepping stone before the European Tour.

In 2007, the European Challenge Tour incorporated 32 tournaments in 23 countries with prize funds totaling 5,279,935 euro, europeantour.com claims.

And Rory should not lack tournaments to hone his skills further while vying for a portion of prizes, a chance an Indonesian golfer has rarely seen.

With tournaments at home far from an international standard, Agus said, there were difficult prospects for Indonesian golfers competing against foreigners.

“Sponsors come and go,” Agus said, adding that the number of tournaments in Indonesia had dropped from 10 in 2007, to 6 this year.

“Therefore, Rory is lucky to be able to compete overseas,” he said.

Ancora Group head Gita Wirjawan said positively, “I believe he (Rory) can be a champion in a big tournament within five years.”

JEREZ - Indonesian golfer Rory Hie recorded a new historical achievement by qualifying for next season’s European Challenge Tour, after obtaining a conditional card from the 6th round of the European Qualifying School in Costa Bellena Golf Club, Spain.

In order to accomplish this feat, Rory competed against 160 of the best young golfers in the world. He made the cut with scores of 71, 72, 73, and 67. In the final two days, Rory carded 73 and 75 to position himself into the top 70, thus securing exemptions into the European Challenge Tour.

Rory stated that obtaining a conditional card to enter the European Challenge Tour will open many more opportunities that will greatly improve his golf career.

“The conditional card allows me to participate in eight to ten of Europe’s best events and compete against some of the world’s top elite golfers. This opportunity will certainly allow me to gain valuable experience and help accumulate points in the world rankings to compete in future tournaments,” said Rory, Thursday (11/20/08).

Patrick Young, as Rory’s manager, is proud of Rory’s accomplishment and will continue to support Rory’s journey to higher levels.

“We, and all of the Indonesian golf community, are truly proud of Rory’s success in overcoming difficult challenges thus far. Rory has shown us that he has an extraordinary talent, driven by an immense desire to succeed and to reach the highest level of achievement. He has successfully represented himself and his country with hard work and dedication in the world of sports, especially in golf,” said the CEO of Ancora Sports.

Loosely translated from an article by Ria Nurdiani:

JAKARTA (bisnis.com): Rory Hie made a historical achievement in Europe by becoming the first ever Indonesian golfer to advance to the final stage of the European Tour Qualifying School.

Rory carded scores of 69-73-65-71—278 (10-under), finishing T-14th in the 2nd stage to obtain a berth in the final qualifying event of the European Tour.

“Rory’s performance was outstanding, having had extremely limited time to practice,” said Patrick Young, CEO of Ancora Sports (manager and sponsor) in the press release received by Bisnis.

Young stated that Rory only had time for a walk-through of the course just prior to the first round, immediately after arriving in Spain. His arrival in Spain was somewhat delayed due to visa issues.

Young further remarked that Rory is an exceptional young man, and as his manager and sponsor, Ancora Sports is truly proud of Rory’s accomplishment.

“In the third round I shot a 65, 7-under, which was my best score this week. I’ve been able to overcome jet lag issues from the Jakarta-to-Spain trip, and I felt comfortable with my game this week . Now I can focus on practice rounds,” said Rory before going to the final qualifying stage in the PGA Golf de Catalunya in Barcelona.

The final round of the European Qualifying School will be comprised of six rounds of stroke play, with a cut after the fourth round. After the fifth and sixth rounds, the top 30 players will qualify for European Tour membership for the 2009 season, and a chance to compete in Dubai.

“I’m very proud to be the first Indonesian to advance this far to the final European Qualifying stage,” said Rory.

The tournament was held in Costa Bellena Club de Golf, Jerez, Spain.
“I understand my responsibilities as a professional golfer and will work hard on my game to accomplish my goal in Europe and represent the country,” he added.

Loosely translated from an article by Mulia Ginting Munthe

JAKARTA: Winner of Asean Tour Rory Roland Hidayat is optimistic of advancing to the qualifying stage to be the first Indonesian to play in the European Tour.

Rory, 20, on October 25 won an Asean Tour tournament by shooting 10 under par, 278 (72-65-70-70), which was held in Karawaci Golf Club, Tangerang. Last August at the President Invitational in Kapuk, he did not make the cut.

“I’m optimistic that I’ll be able to advance from the first qualifying stage beginning on November 5, 2008 by placing in the top 20 …” said Rory who had resided in California for 10 years.

While living in California, the former student of the University of Southern California often represented his university in many collegiate tournaments. Before returning to Indonesia in August 2008, he had four amateur and collegiate tournament victories under his belt.

The Indonesian Professional Golf Organization (PGPI) has recognized Rory as a professional golfer. Beginning last August Rory has decided to live in Indonesia and intend to bring his mother and two sisters who currently still reside in California.

Loosely translated from an article by Ria Nurdiani

JAKARTA (Bisnis.com): Young Indonesian golfer Rory Hidayat Hie returns to the Indonesian homeland after 10 years of living in the United States.

The golfer born on September 1, 1988 has only been in Indonesia for a month. Recently Rory successfully won the Asean Golf Tournament that was held in Imperial Golf Course, Karawaci, on October 26. As is known, every amateur golfer must pass the playing ability test (PAT) to attain professional status and participate in the qualifying school (QS).

Last October 12, Rory completed the PAT and became a member of the Indonesian Professional Golf Association by recording a 12-under, the lowest score in the history of the qualification process in Indonesia.

The golfer who was once the 6th-ranked amateur in the world debuted as a professional in the Pertamina Indonesia President Invitational last August in the Damai Indah Golf and Country Club, part of the Asian Tour series.

He will leave for Spain next month to participate in the European Tour Qualifying School. Rory relinquished his full-ride scholarship to the University of Southern California to pursue his dream of being a world class professional golfer. “I hope I can be an inspiration to other young golfers in Indonesia,” said Rory in the press conference held at the Moonlight House of Rhythm today.

Mr. Gita Wirjawan, head of Ancora Group who sponsors Rory Hie, is optimistic that Indonesian golfers can aptly compete in the international golf arena. “Rory can be an ambassador,” he said.

Loosely translated from an article by Toto Prawoto

Jakarta – The newcomer in the local pro golf circuit, Rory Hie, emerged as the winner of the Mercedes-Benz International Championship 2008 that ended Saturday (10/25) in Karawaci Golf Club, Tangerang Banten. The professional golfer who begun his amateur career in the United States shot a 278 (72-65-707-70), or 10 under …

Rory himself in a brief statement noted that he was very happy and honored that the PGPI is now willing to recognize his name. “But I really did not expect to win, since I faced stiff competition from Andik Mauluddin,” said Rory, who had to leave immediately the following day for Spain to participate in the European Tour Qualifying School, representing Indonesia.

Rory’s success was able to answer many doubts. He “controversially” participated in the Pertamina Indonesia President Invitational, held in Pantai Indah Kapuk Golf Course last August, and did not make the cut. However with much more preparation for the 2008 International Championship, part of the ASEAN Tour series, he finally was able to conquer those qualms and came out a winner.

The Indonesian Professional Golf Association, represented by Ketua Marian PGPI, Nursalam Tabusalla, conducted a Playing Ability Test on October 12, 2008 in which Rory participated and successfully passed, before the International Championship.

Rory’s accomplishment also brings great pride to to Bintang Jultarso from the International Sports Tour, as the event organizer of the championship. “Last year the winner was Danny Chia from Malasia. This year’s is our own local golfer from the host country, which made us even more satisfied and proud,” said Bintang.

Loosely translated from Media Indonesia:

JAKARTA – Golfer Rory Hidayat Hie recorded history by being the first professional Indonesian golfer to win the International Tournament since the Kasiadi era in the last 1989 Indonesia Open. Yesterday, the golfer who studied in the University of Southern California, United States, succeeded in well-representing Indonesia by becoming the winner of the Mercedes-Benz Tour tournament, part of a series of seven Asean Tour tournaments, in Imperial Golf Club, Karawaci, Tangerang, Banten. Rory’s success in this tournament resulted from his brilliant performance in the final round, carding a 70 (2-under) with 4 birdies and 2 bogeys. Rory shot a total of 278, or 10-under par.

… “I didn’t expect to be able to win this fast,” said Rory, who is entitled to a prize of Rp 81,366,300.

With scores of 72-66-70-70, Rory was able to capitalize on being the overnight second and third round leader (shooting a course record in the 2nd round) to eventually win the championship. His final round consisted of 4 birdies and 2 bogeys.

From mercedes-benztour.com:

MAIDEN WIN FOR HIE IN INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
October 25: Indonesia’s Rory Hie completed an impressive victory in the US$50,000 International Championship on the Mercedes-Benz Tour today to quickly announce his arrival among the professional ranks.

Hie, who turned professional in August following a brilliant college career in the United States, fired a final round two-under-par 70 to finish three strokes clear of another rising star from Indonesia, Mauludin Andik.

Andik, the country’s top amateur who is on the brink of turning professional, carded a 69 at Imperial Klub Golf, near Jakarta.

Filipino Jay Bayron finished four strokes behind the winner in outright third place after closing with a 70.

“It feels great to win. I am glad I did especially as I had a four shot lead at the start of the day,” said Hie, who finished with a four-round-aggregate of 10-under-par 278.

The victory marked the first time an Indonesian has won on the Mercedes-Benz Tour and earned him a place in the season ending Mercedes-Benz Masters Thailand – which is the Tour Championship.

“This will certainly help my confidence especially as I am heading to the European Tour Qualifying School next month,” added Hie, who earned a cheque for US$8,126.

The 20 year old played for the University of Southern California and at one point was ranked sixth best amateur in the world. The talented golfer attended college for two years and then opted to leave prematurely as he felt he was ready for the professional game.

Andik, aged 26, got off to an inspired start and drew level with playing partner Hie after making birdies on the first four holes.

However, Hie restored order with birdies on the seventh and eighth and later 13 and 14.