PETALING JAYA: The stage is set for a thrilling finish to the PKNS Selangor Masters 2026, as a day of mixed fortunes for yesterday’s front runners resulted in a bunched-up leaderboard at the season-opening event of the 2026 Asian Development Tour (ADT).
Halfway leader Nicklaus Chiam of Singapore battled to a round of two-over-par 73 at the challenging Seri Selangor Golf Club, and was caught by Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung who shot a superb 66, Australian rookie Adam Coull who carded 67, and Thailand’s Poom Pattaropong with a round of 69.
The four players share the lead on nine-under-par 204, two shots clear of another Thai, Runchanapong Youprayong (66), American Marcus Plunkett (69), and England’s Matt Killen (71).
This is Cheung’s second appearance at the PKNS Selangor Masters, following the 2022 edition when he missed the cut. The 30-year-old carded three birdies and an eagle in a blemish-free five-under-par round.
“My game feels like it’s there. I’ve worked a lot on my short game and my putting, and it’s finally come through. I’m excited for tomorrow. I missed the cut here in 2022, so it’s actually nice to come back and see how much my game’s improved,” said Cheung, who will be welcoming his first child in April.
Pattaropong finished third here last year and reckons that the Seri Selangor course suits him. “I just love this golf course! Coming from the off-season, I feel like my distances are a bit shorter, and my dispersion is tighter. This course is tight, so my misses are still in play.
"I’m excited about tomorrow – that’s why you play, to be in contention,” said the 30-year-old from Bangkok.
Coull is playing in only his sixth tournament as a professional and his first ADT event, having made the switch to the paid ranks last November. The 25-year-old from Sydney has shown no signs of nerves, carding rounds of 69, 68 and 67 to put himself in prime position for a maiden victory.
“I’m enjoying life as a professional so far, and I like the travel. Seri Selangor is a really good course, demanding off the tee. You must have a good gameplan,” said Coull, who earned his ADT status through last year’s qualifying school.
Killen was among the frontrunners for most of the round, but hit a bad drive at the last hole that ended up in the water hazard on the right. He wound up with a double bogey and a round of even-par 71.
“I hit it OK, but a lot of things didn’t go my way, and I missed a few short putts. Would have been nice not to have dropped those two strokes at the last, but I’m just two behind. Let’s see what happens tomorrow,” said the 36-year-old Englishman, who won the ADT’s Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament in 2025.
Thailand’s Kosuke Hamamoto, who was in second place, two shots behind Chiam, at the halfway stage, dropped to joint eighth place on six-under-par 207 following a third round 74.
Tied with Hamamoto are Indonesia’s Jonathan Wijono and Malaysian Khavish Varadan, who signed in a round of even-par 71 to add to his earlier scores of 70 and 66.
The highly-rated Khavish is the best-placed local among the seven who made the halfway cut, and leads the race for the RM10,000 bonus for best Malaysian professional.
“My 71 today doesn’t really translate to how well I played out there. I hit the ball really good, especially off the tee, and just had some bad breaks. Overall, I’m quite pleased,” said the 25-year-old Khavish, who earned his Asian Tour card for this year with a joint 22nd finish in the final stage of qualifying school.
For the second year in a row, the US$175,000 tournament is the season-opening event of the 2026 Asian Development Tour (ADT). The field of 144 players is made up of 80 players from the ADT, 40 from the Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM) Tour, and 24 invitees. With the top 10 players on the final Order of Merit earning Asian Tour cards for the following season, there is much incentive for the ADT players to do well this week and start their 2026 campaigns on a positive note.
This is the 13 th staging of the PKNS Selangor Masters, which is promoted by PKNS Golf Management Services, a subsidiary of the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS). PKNS has been the title sponsor since 2022.
Leading Third Round Scores:
204 (-9): Matthew Cheung (HKG) 66-72-66; Adam Coull (AUS) 69-68-67, Poom Pattaropong (THA) 68-67-69, Nicklaus Chiam (SGP) 64-67-73.
206 (-7): Runchanapong Youprayong (THA) 69-71-66, Marcus Plunkett (USA) 69-68-69, Matt Killen (ENG) 70-65-71
207 (-6): Jonathan Wijono (INA) 71-68-68, Khavish Varadan (MAS) 70-66-71, Kosuke Hamamoto (THA) 65-68-74
