Atthaya and Kosuke bag golf crowns

Men's champion Kosuke Hamamoto, second right, and women's winner Atthaya Thitikul, third right, pose with teammates.

Kosuke Hamamoto and Atthaya Thitikul completed a golden double for Thailand yesterday.

The two youngsters, who have a combined age of 32, won the respective men's and women's individual titles at the Mines Resort and Golf Club.

Thitapa Pakdeesettakul also won silver in the women's event, while Kammalas Namuangruk took the men's bronze.

The 18-year-old Hamamoto shot a three-under-par 68 for 10-under 203 to win the men's gold. He finished one shot ahead of Singapore's Marc Ong, who hit a closing 69. First-round leader Kammalas (68) came third on eight-under 205.

Thai-Japanese Hamamoto, who shared the second-round lead with Ong, overcame a nervous start which saw him suffer two early bogeys on the first and third holes. He bounced back with five birdies on holes 2, 4, 7, 15 and 16.

"At the start of the round I felt a bit nervous," admitted Hamamoto, a Chiang Mai native. "But I told myself to calm down. It worked and I began to play a bit better.

"The key moment was at No.16 where I chipped in for a birdie while Marc Ong had a bogey. The last two holes I told myself to do it for Thailand and it gave me a push.

"I would like to thank everyone, all the fans, for their support," added Hamamoto, who made it six wins in a row for Thailand in the men's individual event at the biennial tournament.

Atthaya, 14, lived up to her billing as one of the brightest prospects in junior golf with a storming finish in the women's individual event.

She fired a bogey-free eight-under 63 yesterday to claim a massive seven-shot win.

Atthaya shot six birdies and an eagle to finish on 14-under 199 while teammate Thitapa concluded with a 70. Go Lois Kaye Lo (69) of the Philippines took bronze after finishing on four-under 209.

Atthaya made history by becoming the youngest known winner of a professional golf tour event with her victory at the Ladies European Thailand Championship in Pattaya last month.

The Ratchaburi native also took part in the Women's British Open this month.

The match-play team events begin today with the first round in the morning and the semi-finals in the afternoon. The finals are tomorrow.