The 14th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC), which starts at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia on Thursday, October 26, will continue to be one of the most widely distributed amateur golf tournaments in the world.
Fans across all seven continents and more than 190 countries will be able to follow the live action as the top 120 players from 40 Asia-Pacific region countries take on the Dr. Alister MacKenzie-designed sandbelt masterpiece, consistently rated as one of the finest golf courses in the world.
It will be a chance for the fans of the sport to identify future champions, who will be able to follow in the footsteps of such luminous alumni as two-time former champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan.
Highest Ranked Player
Japan’s Yuta Sugiura, the highest-ranked Asia-Pacific player at number 16 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), is the leading player in the field, which also includes No. 19 Wenyi Ding of China, No. 33 Kazuma Kobori of New Zealand and No. 41 Yunhe ‘Sampson’ Zheng of China.
China’s Bo Jin (No. 136), last year’s runner-up and the brother of 2015 champion Cheng Jin, will also return after finishing one stroke back of champion Harrison Crowe in 2022.
About the Championship
Organized by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the Masters Tournament and The R&A, the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship winner will receive an invite to the 2024 Masters, as well as a guaranteed spot in The 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon next year and The 129th Amateur Championship (provided they retain their amateur status).
All eyes will be on host Australia, represented by ten players, and if they are able to defend the title won by Crowe last year at Amata Springs Country Club in Chonburi, Thailand.
Local fans unable to be present at the golf course to watch players like Jeffrey Guam and Jack Buchanan lead the Australian charge, can switch on the Championship’s three-hour-long high-definition broadcast on each of the four competition days on Fox Sports Australia.
Other broadcasters include iQIYI (China), SBS Sports (Korea), Tokyo Broadcasting System (Japan), SPOTV (Pan-Asia), Sky Sports (United Kingdom), ESPN (United States and Latin America), SuperSport (Southern Africa), TSN (Canada) and Warner Bros. Discovery (Europe).
Digital Coverage
All coverage will be simulcast live on the championship website AACGolf.com, which will also feature unique video and editorial content. In addition, championship’s social media channels (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube) will add in-depth and interactive coverage throughout the week.
Coverage begins at 16:00 local time on both Thursday, October 26, and Friday, October 27. Weekend coverage will air from 13:00-16:00 local time on Saturday, October 28 and 14:00-17:00 local time on Sunday, October 29.
Coverage in the United States will be on a tape delay. A 30-minute wrap-up show will also be produced following the conclusion of the final round.
ESPN Coverage (all times EST)
Thursday, October 26: 01:00-04:00 on ESPN2
Friday, October 27: 01:00-04:00 on ESPN2
Saturday, October 28: 22:00-01:00 on ESPN Plus and re-aired 02:00-05:00 on ESPN2
Sunday, October 29: 23:00-02:00 on ESPN Plus and re-aired 02:30-05:30 on ESPN2
A 30-minute highlight show will air at the conclusion of the broadcast on ESPN2 from 17:00-17:30 on Sunday.
Team and Partners
NBC’s Rich Lerner will be the host of the English-speaking commentary team, which will include Frank Nobilo as an analyst, Paul Gow and Colt Knost as on-course reporters, and Amanda Renner handling interviews.
Six Proud Partners support the championship: 3M, AT&T, Delta Air Lines, Mercedes-Benz, UPS and, for the first time, Bank of America. In addition, two Scoring Partners support the event: IBM and Rolex.
Broadcast Details:
Apart from our broadcast partners, the coverage will also be simulcast live on AACgolf.com at the following times:
Thursday, October 26: Starts 16:00 local time (13:00 EDT/17:00 GMT)
Friday, October 27: Starts 16:00 local time (13:00 EDT/17:00 GMT)
Saturday, October 28: Starts 13:00 local time (10:00 EDT/12:00 GMT)
Sunday, October 29: Starts 14:00 local time (11:00 EDT/13:00 GMT)
