Third Time Lucky?

That never say die attitude served him particularly well at the Close. Trailing perennial championship contender and Hong Kong Golf Club member Max Wong by a shot going into the last hole, Lam coaxed a curling 15-footer into the cup for a brilliant birdie before Wong missed a four-footer for a par that would have taken the contest to a sudden-death play-off. Aside from taking home the silverware for a second time, Lam also earned a much-coveted berth into the UBS Hong Kong Open. The US$2 million European and Asian Tour co-sanctioned event, says Lam, can't come quick enough.

"I hadn't played that well for a long time, so it was very satisfying to come through and birdie the last hole and win," Lam says of his Close victory. "To get back into the Hong Kong Open has been a goal of mine for a long time. I'm really looking forward to playing again. I'm feeling good about the way I'm hitting the ball."

In his two previous appearances at the championship – in 2008 and 2009 – Lam failed to get things going, comfortably missing the cut over a course he knows so well. This time, thanks to a tip he received from multiple European Tour winner Jeev Milkha Singh, Lam believes he can make it through to the weekend action.

"I've always struggled on the greens during the Hong Kong Open," says Lam, who is considered a very good putter. "I spoke to Jeev – who always putts well at Fanling – about it and he gave me some great advice about the grain [on the green] and how much the putts break. It's given me a lot of confidence. It won't be easy, of course, but my aim is to make the cut this time."