Not easy for Izz as he beats idol Rafiq to win at ‘home'
PETALING JAYA: National bowler Izz Naqiuddin Putera Islahuddin could not contain his excitement after stunning his idol and 2018 world champion Mohd Rafiq Ismail at the Kuala Lumpur International Open at Sunway Mega Lanes yesterday.
The 21-year-old rising star delivered a stellar performance to clinch the men's Masters title with a total of 1,993 pins, edging out Ahmad Azriq Izam (1,951) and Ahmad Aidil Abdul Halim (1,882), who finished second and third, respectively.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
2 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Adam Scott's ‘old-man par golf' keeps him in US Open contention with back-to-back 70s
OAKMONT, June 14 — Adam Scott finds himself sharing fourth at the US Open playing 'old-man-par golf,' and the 44-year-old Australian says he just might be playing well enough to capture another major title. Scott, playing in his 96th consecutive major tournament, has fired back-to-back 70s in the first two rounds at Oakmont to stand on 140, three strokes behind leader Sam Burns and the only player at par or better with a major title. 'I feel like this is what I've been working towards,' Scott said. 'I was kind of in the mix late at the PGA, and now putting myself in this one for the weekend — it's a long way to go, but I feel like my game is in good enough shape to do this.' World number 42 Scott became the first Aussie to win the Masters in 2013, beating Angel Cabrera in a playoff. The most recent of his 14 career PGA Tour titles was in 2020 at Riviera, although he was runner-up last year at the Scottish Open and BMW Championship. 'Of course I'd like to win lots more tournaments, any of them, to be perfectly honest. I'd like to win something,' Scott said. 'I've put together a nice career, but I think another major more would really go a long way in fulfilling my own self, when it's all said and done. 'This is all I'm really playing for are these big events. There's probably eight of them off the top of my mind a year that I really want to win.' Asked how he would describe his career window to win a US Open, Scott said, 'Ajar.' Scott, whose major streak began with the 2001 British Open, has the second-longest run of major appearances after the record 146 by Jack Nicklaus 1962-1998. Scott admitted that his consistency at playing in majors might go underappreciated. 'Maybe it does,' he said. 'But I'd be pretty proud of winning this thing on the weekend. That's really what I'm here to do.' Scott said he has quietly been building confidence. 'There has probably not been many signs to anyone else but me the last month or six weeks that my game is looking better, but I definitely feel more confident than I have been this year,' Scott said. 'For most of the first two days, I've been in the fairway off the tee, and therefore hasn't been too much stress in the rounds.' While handfuls of contenders have charged only to fall by the wayside, Scott's old-man golf is keeping him in the hunt. 'It's just hard out there,' Scott said. 'It's hard to keep it going when guys have got on a run. It seems like they've come back a bit.' Heavy rain drenched the course on Friday night, likely making the firm and fast greens more receptive come the weekend. 'The rain might keep it under control, hopefully, and spare us some frustrations,' he said. — AFP
New Straits Times
4 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Burns leads US Open, McIlroy squeaks into weekend
OAKMONT, PENNSYLVANIA: Sam Burns earned the halfway lead at the US Open on Friday to boost his hopes of a major breakthrough at Oakmont Country Club, where Rory McIlroy battled late to make the weekend and holder Bryson DeChambeau missed the cut. Burns went out early from the 10th tee and covered the punishing Oakmont layout with the low round of the week, a sizzling five-under-par 65 that put him at three under and one shot clear of overnight leader J.J. Spaun (72). The only other player under par is Viktor Hovland, who is alone in third place and two shots back of Burns after a two-under 68 that included a chip-in for eagle from behind the green at his eighth hole, the par-four 17th. Burns, who mixed six birdies with a lone bogey, ran into trouble at his final hole where an errant tee shot forced him to take a penalty drop but left his next shot on the green and then curled in a 22-foot, left-to-right putt up the hill to save par. "Honestly, I didn't really think of a score," said Burns, a five-times winner on the PGA Tour who lost in a play-off last week in Canada. "The golf course is really too difficult to try to figure out what's a good score and what's not. You're really just shot by shot and trying to play each hole the best you can." Spaun had led Burns, who finished hours earlier, by one shot with four holes to play but fell back after a three-putt bogey at the 15th, where his birdie attempt raced by the cup, and another dropped shot at the par-three 16th. A determined Spaun, who was the only player to go bogey-free on Thursday, drew level with a 22-foot bounce-back birdie at the 17th but was unable to scramble for par at the last after finding the rough behind the green. "I knew it would be hard to back up a bogey-free four-under at Oakmont in the U.S. Open. So I'm just glad that I kept it together," said Spaun. "Kind of fell asleep on the back nine towards the end there, but responded with a nice birdie on 17." PLAY SUSPENDED Adam Scott, playing in his 96th consecutive major, carded a second consecutive even-par 70 and was three shots off the pace and in a two-way share of fourth place with Ben Griffin (71). For the first time since 2021, there will be no players with at least one U.S. Open title on his résumé among the top five and ties after 36 holes, according to Elias Sports Bureau. Play was suspended due to lightning with 13 golfers still on the course in a driving rain, including Thriston Lawrence, who was looking at a three-foot par putt on his final hole to stay at one over on the week when the horn sounded. "Just about when I was going to take my putt, the siren sounded," said Lawrence. "A bit frustrating in that sense, but those are the rules." The South African made a fast start to his round and reached six under par for the week after four holes to build a three-shot lead before sliding back. FRUSTRATED MCILROY McIlroy, struggling to regain his form ever since winning the Masters, was in a fight to make the cut after two early double-bogeys and launched a club in frustration after mis-hitting his approach shot at the 12th. McIlroy's chances did not look good when, at the drivable par-four 17th, he sent his ball into the rough before promptly destroying the nearby tee box with a violent swing of his club. The Northern Irishman managed to par the hole and then closed with a birdie to make the cut with a shot to spare after his approach shot caught a ridge and rolled to a stop four feet from the hole. He enters the weekend nine shots off the lead. Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, who came into the week looking to become the first back-to-back U.S. Open winner since Brooks Koepka in 2018, was not so lucky as he carded a seven-over 77 that left him at 10 over for the week. Pre-tournament favourite Scottie Scheffler, fresh off the worst first-round score relative to par of his majors career, mixed four birdies and five bogeys for a one-over 71 that left him at four over on the week. "Today was, I think with the way I was hitting it, was easily a day I could have been going home and battled pretty hard to stay in there," said Scheffler, who will start the third round seven shots back.
New Straits Times
5 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Scott's 'old-man par golf' has him in the hunt at US Open
OAKMONT, UNITED STATES: Adam Scott finds himself sharing fourth at the US Open playing "old-man-par golf," and the 44-year-old Australian says he just might be playing well enough to capture another major title. Scott, playing in his 96th consecutive major tournament, has fired back-to-back 70s in the first two rounds at Oakmont to stand on 140, three strokes behind leader Sam Burns and the only player at par or better with a major title. "I feel like this is what I've been working towards," Scott said. "I was kind of in the mix late at the PGA, and now putting myself in this one for the weekend – it's a long way to go, but I feel like my game is in good enough shape to do this." World number 42 Scott became the first Aussie to win the Masters in 2013, beating Angel Cabrera in a play-off. The most recent of his 14 career PGA Tour titles was in 2020 at Riviera, although he was runner-up last year at the Scottish Open and BMW Championship. "Of course I'd like to win lots more tournaments, any of them, to be perfectly honest. I'd like to win something," Scott said. "I've put together a nice career, but I think another major more would really go a long way in fulfilling my own self, when it's all said and done. "This is all I'm really playing for are these big events. There's probably eight of them off the top of my mind a year that I really want to win." Asked how he would describe his career window to win a US Open, Scott said, "Ajar." Scott, whose major streak began with the 2001 British Open, has the second-longest run of major appearances after the record 146 by Jack Nicklaus 1962-1998. Scott admitted that his consistency at playing in majors might go unappreciated. "Maybe it does," he said. "But I'd be pretty proud of winning this thing at the weekend. That's really what I'm here to do." Scott said he has quietly been building confidence. "There has probably not been many signs to anyone else but me the last month or six weeks that my game is looking better, but I definitely feel more confident than I have been this year," Scott said. "For most of the first two days, I've been in the fairway off the tee, and therefore there hasn't been too much stress in the rounds." While handfuls of contenders have charged only to fall by the wayside, Scott's old-man golf is keeping him in the hunt. "It's just hard out there," Scott said. "It's hard to keep it going when guys have got on a run. It seems like they've come back a bit." Heavy rain drenched the course on Friday night, likely making the firm and fast greens more receptive come the weekend. "The rain might keep it under control, hopefully, and spare us some frustrations," he said.
