KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will head into today’s final round of the World Amateur Golfers Championship (WAGC) World Final just five strokes behind second-placed Thailand after strengthening their challenge on Thursday.
The hosts returned a fourth-round team score of 276 to reach a four-day aggregate of 1,123, keeping them third behind defending champions China (1,097) and Thailand (1,118).
Malaysia, who posted scores of 270, 285 and 292 over the opening three rounds, bounced back with their best performance since the first day to remain in contention for a top-two finish.
China, however, will start the final round with a commanding 21-stroke advantage over Thailand and a 26-stroke cushion over Malaysia as they seek to retain their crown.
There was further encouragement for the home contingent in the mixed pairs competition, where father-and-daughter combination Fazel Naghshineh and Tara Naghshineh held a commanding 31-stroke lead.
Representing Malaysia’s DNAGS team, the pair compiled a 586 nett total after four rounds, well ahead of South Africa (617) and Spain’s Ideaterrazas 5 (630).
Meanwhile, Austria Team Pair led the separate World Amateur Golf Invitational (WAGI) competition with a 549 nett total, 10 strokes clear of the Philippines’ Summit Pt PH (559).
Another Filipino team, LeadsAgri PH, occupied third place on 571.
The championship, now in its 31st edition, has brought together golfers and delegates from 48 countries, with competition taking place across five courses at three Johor venues — The Els Club Desaru Coast, Forest City Golf Resort and Tanjong Puteri Golf Resort.
The five-round tournament concludes today, with the winners to be honoured at the gala dinner and awards presentation at the Desaru Coast Conference Centre on Friday.
Organised by the Johor Golf Tourism Association in collaboration with Delta World, the championship is being held in conjunction with Visit Johor 2026.