Thai professional, Sadom Kaewkanjana won the 2025 Kolon Korea Open by two strokes on Sunday to earn his second Open Championship start and third Asian Tour victory.
The Korea Open marked the latest event in the R&A's global Open Qualifying Series, with only the winner securing a place at Royal Portrush in July.
Kaewkanjana closed with a one-under score of 70 to reach seven-under for the week and see off fellow countryman, Poom Saksansin at La Vie Est Belle Golf Club's extremely tough Dunes Course - a layout which raised eyebrows before a ball was struck after a video showed a scarily-tight fairway on a long par-5.
Saksansin and Kaewkanjana exchanged places at the top of the leaderboard throughout the final round, but it was the latter who ultimately managed to overcome a one-stroke deficit before play began and claim the $360,000 first-prize check.
Reacting to his latest win, Kaewkanjana said: “Yeah, honestly, I’m very excited, of course. I’m very happy. It is a big honour to win this event – it’s one of the biggest in the region. After a memorable debut at St Andrews in 2022, I told myself I will be back at The Open one day. I did it today."
Three years after finishing T11 at St Andrews, Sadom Kaewkanjana will play in The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush thanks to his victory in the KOLON Korea Open, part of the Open Qualifying Series. pic.twitter.com/51utqUGiQhMay 25, 2025
Despite a brutal test of a course, the former LIV golfer hung tough on his way to securing a first Asian Tour triumph since 2022.
Back then, Kaewkanjana lifted the Singapore Open to earn a tee time at the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews, where he would go on to surprise plenty by finishing in a tie for 11th.
His shock result took place at a time when he was enjoying a strong run of form otherwise - a feat which earned Kaewkanjana a spot among the field for the inaugural LIV Golf League campaign.
Having made his debut with LIV at Centurion around a month before travelling up to Scotland for The Open, Kaewkanjana went on to feature in each of the first five LIV Golf Invitational Series competitions, finishing inside the top-20 at least twice, before being dropped ahead of the season's penultimate event in Jeddah.
The moment that Sadom Kaewkanjana claimed victory and secured his spot in The Open at Royal Portrush ⛳️🤝#KolonKoreaOpen #TimeToRise pic.twitter.com/DBZgH0VblwMay 25, 2025
Between the disappointment of losing his place with the PIF-backed circuit and returning to the winner's circle, the 26-year-old had ended second on three occasions - including at this year's Smart Infinity Singapore Open - and recorded five other top-five results.
Thanks to his Korea Open win, Kaewkanjana now tops the Asian Tour's Order of Merit ahead of Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz and American Ollie Schniederjans. The Asian Tour's next tournament is not until 3-6 July, when the International Series Morocco takes place at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam.
