Scotsman Yates is something of a golfing curiosity, having based his career in Asia ever since the start of the Tour there in 1995. A two-time winner and twice third in the Order of Merit his better years appear to be behind him; you need to scroll back to 2010 to find any run of consistent form. But the 45-year-old does boast no less than ten top 10 finishes in Thailand (three of them second places) so the hot start is not entirely out of the blue. Starting from the 10th he swapped two birdies on 12 and 17 with two bogies on 13 and 14, but then turned the tide on the front nine, signing red numbers at 1, 2, 3, 6 and 7.
