At 53, Prayad has also enjoyed multiple success in Japan and with more than two decades of playing in the Land of the Rising Sun, he is way too familiar with conjuring the winning formula again.

While Prayad may be at ease with playing in another event in Japan, he is wary of the challenges coming from his younger rivals and hopes to draw from his experience to stay ahead of the game at the Sobu Country Club.

“I like playing in the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup because I’ve got a good track record at this event,” Prayad said.

“I won this event in 2008 although it was not on this golf course. But it’s still feels good to play in an event which you know you’ve won before. I’ve been playing in Japan for almost 25 years already and I’m very familiar with the golf courses here.”

“I’ve been playing in Japan for almost 25 years already and I’m very familiar with the golf courses here.” – Prayad Marksaeng

With the involvement of the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation, the tournament has welcomed a large number of amateurs over the years. 

New Zealand’s Ben Campbell, who earned his Asian Tour card from Qualifying School last year, had the opportunity to play in the event before he joined the play-for-pay ranks and still holds fond memories of his time then.

As a professional now, Campbell is hoping for that breakthrough on the Asian Tour, having come close on a few occasions already.

Having secured his Tour card through the Asian Development Tour (ADT), Japan’s Shinichi Mizuno is on a steep learning curve but is hoping to make the cut for the first time in four attempts this year.

The Nagoya-born Mizuno moved to Hong Kong when he was a six-year-old and won his maiden ADT title at the season-ending event in Malaysia last year.