Rory’s triumph in Europe

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.