Bo Jin makes another run at Asia-Pacific Amateur with 65

Bo Jin makes another run at Asia-Pacific Amateur with 65

Oklahoma State junior Bo Jin of China had a stressful time getting to the Asia-Pacific Amateur in Thailand

CHONBURI, Thailand (AP) — Bo Jin of China had plenty of stress getting to Thailand, and it was all worth it Thursday when he opened with a 7-under 65 to build a two-shot lead in the Asia-Pacific Amateur.

It's the second straight year Jin is off to a good start, having held the 36-hole lead a year ago in Dubai.

The junior at Oklahoma State overcame a bogey on his first hole at Amata Spring Country Club to lead over TK Chantananuwat of Thailand, James Leow of Singapore and Ryuta Suzuki of Japan.

The winner gets a spot in the Masters next April.

Chantananuwat is the highest-ranked amateur in the field at No. 12, already a winner of a professional event on the Asian Tour earlier this year.

Jin arrived at the Oklahoma City airport only to find his name wasn't on the passenger list. He managed to buy a new ticket to Los Angeles to make his connection to Qatar and made it to Thailand in time.

"I reached here in time for one practice round," he said. "I'd have ideally preferred two. And then I made a horrible bogey on the first and I nearly pushed my second shot into the water on the second. It somehow stayed in a bunker and I made a birdie which just changed everything. It was a very important birdie from the bunker.

"It's just the first round so there is a long way to go but I am delighted with the start."

His brother, Cheng Jin, won the Asia-Pacific Amateur in 2015.

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