Trailblazer Siddikur all set for new season

Kuala Lumpur, January 28 (PTI) Bangladesh''s first andonly winner on the Asian Tour, Siddikur Rehman, hopes tocontinue his winning form as he prepares for the 2011campaign.

One of the revelations of 2010, Siddikur won his maidenAsian Tour title at the Brunei Open and finished an impressiveseventh on the Order of Merit.

In 16 appearances across Asia, the average built Siddikurwas very consistent and missed only three cuts. He finishedthe year with USD 267,692, ahead of stars like Singaporeanveteran Mardan Mamat and Thailand''s Prayad Marksaeng.

Siddikur begins his season with the Asian DevelopmentTour''s season-opening event, the Grameenphone BangladeshMasters at the Kurmitola Golf Club in Dhaka next week.

Through 2010, he also finished second at the MercuriesTaiwan Masters, losing in a play-off to Thailand''s PariyaJunhasavasdikul.

He also made heads turn at the CIMB Asia Pacific Classic,Malaysia, co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and US PGA Tour. Hecapped the season with a tied fifth-place finish at the HeroHonda Indian Open, the joint richest full-field Asian Tourevent.

Siddikur''s is a remarkable rags-to-riches story. "I knowI have won a lot of money but my motivation to achieve moresuccess is not driven by money. I just want to become a goodplayer on the Asian Tour and maybe on the PGA Tour some day,"said Siddikur.

"I''ve got full confidence that 2011 will be anotherwonderful year and I believe I will be back to challenge forhonours again," said the 26-year-old, who started playing golfwith a makeshift seven iron head stuck to an iron rod.

Siddikur''s accomplishments on the Asian Tour have openedthe door for many aspiring golfers in Bangladesh to chasetheir dream of playing professionally, and they will stand achance to test their mettle at the Grameenphone BangladeshMasters, which makes its debut on the region''s secondarycircuit from February 3-6, 2011.

"I believe the tournament will be good for the futuregeneration. I think it is important to expose players inBangladesh to more professional events," said Siddikur. PTICorr AH