By Chuah Choo Chiang
When 120 of the region’s top golfers arrive in Dubai for the 16th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship from October 23-26, they won’t just be aiming for a trophy.
They’ll be chasing a dream once realized by Hideki Matsuyama, the Japanese star who turned a teenage breakthrough into a Green Jacket and has since inspired a new generation of golfers bursting through the talent pipeline across Asia.
Emirates Golf Club’s Majlis Course, which is set against the gleaming Dubai skyline, will host the region’s premier amateur men’s Championship where at stake is not just the coveted silverware, but golf’s two golden tickets – an invitation to the Masters Tournament and an exemption into The Open.
No figure looms larger over the Asia-Pacific Amateur than Matsuyama, who is now arguably the greatest male golfer Asia has produced. A two-time Asia-Pacific Amateur champion, the 32-year-old parlayed his victories in 2010 and 2011 into a trophy-laden professional career that now boasts 11 PGA Tour victories and, most memorably, the 2021 Masters, where he became the first Asian man to slip on the prized Green Jacket.
“Winning the 2010 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship gave me the opportunity to play in the Masters Tournament,” Matsuyama recalled. “Making the cut that week helped me realize I could actually have a career playing golf.
“I owe a great debt of gratitude to Augusta National and will be eternally grateful for the opportunity to play in the Masters and helping me reach my dream to play professional golf. Winning the 2010 Asia-Pacific Amateur was life-changing for me.”
Hideki Matsuyama
Hideki Matsuyama, 2010 AAC
Hideki Matsuyama, 2011 AAC
For a player like Japan’s Rintaro Nakano, he has dreams of following in Matsuyama’s footsteps, and also of fellow countrymen Takumi Kanaya and Keita Nakajima, who won the Asia-Pacific Amateur in 2018 and 2021, respectively. It will be his third appearance following a third-place finish at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba last year and a T-28 result at Royal Melbourne in 2023.
“I think this will be my last Asia-Pacific Amateur, so I want to enjoy it,” said the 21-year-old. “Of course, I have winning in mind, and I want to play with my full effort while appreciating this Championship that has helped me grow.”
The Waseda University student has produced some impressive results in recent months, reaching the last 16 round in The Amateur Championship and last 32 at the U.S. Amateur. Winner of the 2023 Japan Amateur Championship, he said the Asia-Pacific Amateur has pushed him to become better in the sport where his ambition is to win major championships.
“I felt the high level of Asian golf during my first Asia-Pacific Amateur in Australia, and last year, I was able to level up to compete for the win,” he said. “I watch (Hideki’s) golf swing a lot, and he is a role model to me.”
The Republic of Korea’s 16-year-old Seonghyeon An will spearhead the country’s five-man charge where compatriots Chang-won Han and Chang-woo Lee won the Asia-Pacific Amateur in 2010 and 2013, respectively, and enjoyed appearances at the Masters.
Touted as a rising star, An underlined his massive potential by becoming the first Korean to win The R&A Junior Open in Scotland last year. In 2022, he became the youngest player to make the cut on the Korean Tour when he was 13 years and four months old.
“I'm happy and excited to be competing again this time,” said An, who finished T-5 last year and T-48 in 2023. “I gained a lot of experience in Australia and Japan. I believe I can achieve a good result based on that experience.”
China’s Ziqin Zhou, 19, will also be on a mission to improve on last season’s runner-up finish to compatriot Wenyi Ding. “The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship has provided players in the region with an excellent tournament experience. Over the past few years, especially with my performance last year in Japan, I’ve gained more confidence in myself,” he said.
“Now, I’ve matured a bit more both physically and mentally, and I’ve also made some technical improvements. I hope to be in as good condition as last year. My biggest goal is, of course, to win the Championship, but the key is taking it shot by shot,” added the University of California, Berkeley student.
For Singapore’s Justin Kuk, a return to Dubai where he made his Championship debut in 2021 is an enticing prospect, especially when compatriot and fellow amateur Hiroshi Tai earned an invitation to the 2025 Masters for his win at the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Individual Championship.
“I’m excited to be able to play in the Asia-Pacific Amateur again,” said Kuk. “It’s always been a dream for myself and many players to play in a major, and to have this opportunity by winning the Asia-Pacific Amateur would be very motivating for myself. It is definitely one tournament I have in mind at the start of the season and I consider it as the biggest Asia-Pacific tournament.”
Notable Returners
Rintaro Nakano, 2024 AAC
Seonghyeon An, 2024 AAC
Created in 2009, the Asia-Pacific Amateur was established by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), The R&A and the Masters Tournament to further develop amateur golf in the Asia-Pacific region. The champion will receive an invitation to the 2026 Masters Tournament and an exemption into The 154th Open; the runner(s)-up will receive an exemption into The Open Qualifying Series; the top-three finishers will receive an exemption into The 131st Amateur Championship.
