Ashok is joint third in Myanmar Open

Among other Indians in the fray, Arjun Singh finished sixth with a tally of 282 (71-70-70-71) while Gaurav Ghei was placed way down the leaderboard with 288 (73-71-74-70). Kumar earned $11,200 for his effort in the tournament that was won by Australian Scott Strange.

“Playing in the last group, I felt I had a chance to win and was aggressive in the way I played. But I made some mistakes and missed a few putts out there,” Kumar said.

“It is nice though to finish high up on the leaderboard as the money earned could help me get into more events on tour,” said the player who had five birdies against as many bogeys. For strange, it turned out to be a stunning two-shot victory which dashed Jaidee’s hopes of back-to-back titles. The 27-year-old strange fired a final round of five-under-par 67 to lift his maiden Asian Tour title with a winning total of 11-under-par 277.

Leading final scores

277 – Scott Strange (AUS) 69-72-69-67; 279 – Rick Gibson (CAN) 76-66-69-68; 280 – Thongchai Jaidee (THA) 67-70-69-74, Ashok Kumar (IND) 75-68-65-72; 281 – Lu Wen-teh (TPE) 70-70-71-70, 282 – Arjun Singh (IND) 71-70-70-71; 283 – Jason Dawes (AUS) 69-73-73-68; 284 – Anthony Kang (USA) 71-71-74-68.