Taisei Nagasaki Surges Ahead In Dubai With Record Lead
Sixteen-year-old sensation sets sights on history at Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship
Dubai, UAE – Japan’s Taisei Nagasaki, just 16 and making his Championship debut, stormed into a five-shot lead after a blistering third-round 65 at Emirates Golf Club’s Majlis Course on Saturday, moving to 17 under par — a new 54-hole record at the Asia-Pacific Amateur.
Nagasaki began the day one back but birdied four of his first seven holes to seize control. A solitary bogey at the 12th did little to slow him as he answered with four birdies coming home, including a trio in succession on the back nine.
“The good thing today was that I was able to get four birdies in the front nine; in the back nine, I didn’t play well at No. 12, but got one back at the next par 5, which also led to three consecutive birdies so that was good,” said Nagasaki, who turned 16 earlier this month. “I was thinking that I need to be in a good position today to play well tomorrow and win, so I’m happy with my score today.”
A student at Tommy Nakajima’s Academy, Nagasaki has already made headlines this season after earning co-medalist honours at the Toyota Junior World Cup and finishing runner-up at the Japan Amateur Championship. He said he and Nakajima, the 48-time Japan Tour winner and four-time major top-10 finisher, made a promise to “go to the Masters together.”
Inspired by past Japanese winners Hideki Matsuyama, Takumi Kanaya and Keita Nakajima, Nagasaki is aiming to become the fourth from his country to lift the trophy — and earn invitations to both the Masters and The Open. His nearest challengers heading into Sunday’s final round are compatriot Rintaro Nakano (12 under), Thailand’s Fifa Laopakdee (11 under), and a trio at 10 under: Australians Billy Dowling and Harry Takis, and Vietnam’s Khanh Hung Le.
Japan’s Kanichiro Katano added a bright