DUBAI \u2014 Thailand\u2019s Pongsapak \u201cFifa\u201d Laopakdee has a ritual during tournaments where he sings songs to calm the nerves. There were plenty Sunday during the final round of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, where the Arizona State junior won a dramatic playoff at the Emirates Golf Club to punch his ticket to the 2026 Masters and 154th Open Championship.<\/p>\n
Laopakdee borrowed the music idea from his close friend and fellow Thai golfer, Jeeno Thitikul, the women\u2019s top-ranked golfer. But what tune could possibly take a 20-year-old amateur\u2019s mind off Augusta National, Royal Birkdale and the biggest win of a career?<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, we rocked a lot of Bruno Mars today, like, \u2018Marry you just the way you are,\u2019\u201d Laopakdee said after becoming the first Thai golfer to win the event run jointly since 2009 by Augusta National and the R&A.<\/p>\n
Fifa’s moment. pic.twitter.com\/NUy7BCTHVx<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (@AAC_Golf) October 26, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWhen I\u2019m playing college golf at ASU, there are a lot of big events with all the top guys and I feel a lot of pressure and I just want to start just singing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n There was certainly pressure. The overnight leader by five shots, Japan\u2019s Taisei Nagasaki, had five bogeys in the first 12 holes but stayed in contention. On the 72nd hole, the 16-year-old hit an exquisite pitch shot over a greenside bunker but missed a four-foot birdie putt for the win. His 74 put him in a playoff with Laopakdee at 15-under 273. Japan\u2019s Rintaro Nakano was third at 13 under.<\/p>\n Laopakdee and Nagasaki went toe-to-toe before Nagasaki blinked at the third extra hole. He caught a pitch shot heavy for this third at the par-5 18th and only managed par.<\/p>\n Afterward, Nagasaki wiped a stream of tears away while speaking about the loss.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I think of big stages like the Masters and the Open, I still get nervous, and I feel that I\u2019m not yet strong enough mentally,\u201d he said. \u201cI will practice more and get winning experiences to win at this stage next year.\u201d<\/p>\n Laopakdee put the tournament away with a 6-iron second shot that only carried the water by inches, hanging up on a bank above a yellow hazard line. His up-and-down for birdie was his fifth consecutive from the 71st hole in regulation. \u201cAfter I finished 18, I didn\u2019t know I shot five under on the back nine; I laughed with my caddie,\u201d he said. \u201cAmazing golf. Shout out to Taisei as well. He made my life so hard.\u201d<\/p>\n Truth is, Laopakdee made it look easy coming from a six-shot deficit with a four-under 68. He made the turn at one over but birdied 10, 13, 15, 17 and 18 to force overtime. Laopakdee then birdied all three playoff holes. With major debuts on the line, it was unfathomable golf from an amateur.<\/p>\n \u201cI tried not to pressure myself as much this year because I\u2019ve been over pressure myself for the past couple years at this event where I kind of choked at the end,\u201d he said. \u201cAt the start of the day, I say to myself, it\u2019s just another round of golf. Go out there and try to play your best golf and whatever happens, happens.\u201d<\/p>\n What happens now is the golf world gets introduced to a tall, powerfully built Thai golfer who made the Round of 64 at the U.S. Amateur, won the Thunderbird Collegiate and helped his team reach the quarterfinals of the 2025 NCAA Championships.<\/p>\n Comeback complete.<\/p>\n Fifa Laopakdee overturns a six-shot deficit to win the 2025 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship \ud83c\udfc6<\/p>\n \u0e1f\u0e35\u0e1f\u0e48\u0e32-\u0e1e\u0e07\u0e28\u0e20\u0e31\u0e04 \u0e40\u0e2b\u0e25\u0e48\u0e32\u0e20\u0e31\u0e01\u0e14\u0e35 \u0e04\u0e27\u0e49\u0e32\u0e41\u0e0a\u0e21\u0e1b\u0e4c \u0e40\u0e2d\u0e40\u0e0a\u0e35\u0e22-\u0e41\u0e1b\u0e0b\u0e34\u0e1f\u0e34\u0e01 \u0e2d\u0e40\u0e21\u0e40\u0e08\u0e2d\u0e23\u0e4c \u0e41\u0e0a\u0e21\u0e40\u0e1b\u0e35\u0e22\u0e19\u0e0a\u0e34\u0e1e \u0e04\u0e19\u0e44\u0e17\u0e22\u0e04\u0e19\u0e41\u0e23\u0e01\u0e17\u0e35\u0e48\u0e04\u0e27\u0e49\u0e32\u0e41\u0e0a\u0e21\u0e1b\u0e4c\u0e23\u0e32\u0e22\u0e01\u0e32\u0e23\u0e19\u0e35\u0e49 pic.twitter.com\/aWBL4Sfo9C<\/a><\/p>\n