Defending champion Lee Westwood described last year’s victory in the Maybank Malaysian Open as his most satisfying Asian win, and the Englishman is hungry for more success at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
The 41 year old has a brilliant record in Asia with 14 titles, the last of which came last April as he romped to a seven shot victory at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club for his first win on The European Tour for nearly two years.
That was also the most gratifying for Westwood, who posted rounds of 65, 66, 71 and 68 for an 18 under par total, leaving joint runners-up Nicolas Colsaerts, Louis Oosthuizen and Bernd Wiesberger trailing in his wake.
“The way I played here last year and to win by seven was very satisfying,” he said. “I also won by a lot in Thailand a couple of years ago. I was 20 under for the first two rounds. That was just great golf. That was probably the most satisfying scoring-wise, because I shot 60 on the first day.
“I played very well in the first two rounds here and I think I was 13 under par. So I built a big lead that was always going to take some catching. I’m a pretty good frontrunner and nobody came out of the pack at me.
“I struggled a little in the heat on the Saturday but played well again on the Sunday and didn’t make a single bogey. It was nice to play the last few holes with a big cushion.
“I was only here just before Christmas for the PGA Tour event, so I feel like I’m really getting to know the golf course very well. I feel like a member!”
Westwood made his first appearance of the season in last week’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic, and a tied ninth finish has given him plenty of reason to be confident in the Malaysian capital this week.
“Last week was very good considering it was my first event of the year,” he said. “I got off to a good start with a 65 in the first round, but I was a bit unlucky on the greens over the next three days.
“On Sunday I made a good start – I was three under through five – but let it slip a little bit and had a double bogey on the ninth. That wasn’t great. A top ten in the first tournament of the year is pretty good though. I’ll take that.
“Hopefully I can carry that form into this week, onto a course I know like the back of my hand now. I’d love to win here again, that’s why I’m here.”
