Who is Jazz Janewattananond? Thai golfer who was a monk hits insane bunker shot at British Open
Thai golfer Jazz Janewattananond hit the shot of the British Open with a spectacular bunker save on his knees, subsequently sharing on Instagram that he had been practicing the technique, news outlets revealed on Saturday, July 17.
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Janewattananond finished four over par on Saturday, leaving him in tied 64th place in the Open heading into the final day. The Thai blasted his tee shot into the bunker to the left of the green on the par-three 11th hole at Royal St George's.
Who is Jazz Janewattananond?
Atiwit "Jazz" Janewattananond is a professional golfer from Thailand who has competed on both the Asian and European Tours. In December of 2010, the 25-year-old became a professional. He made the cut and tied for 65th place in his debut Japan Golf Tour tournament and the 2011 Asia-Pacific Panasonic Open. The Bangkokian's nickname comes from his father who was an avid fan of jazz music. He made the cut at the 2010 Asian Tour International in Nakhon Pathom at the age of 14 years and 71 days, making him the youngest golfer to do so on the Asian Tour.
Janewattananond took a break from golf at the end of the 2016 European Tour season to enter the monkhood, and he attributes his improved performance on the course to it. According to Bunkered, Janewattanond became a student of Phra Maha Vudhijaya Vajiramedhi and joined the monkhood in Chiang Rai for two weeks at the conclusion of the 2016 season. He won for the first time on the Asian Tour in the February 2017 Bashundhara Bangladesh Open.
Speaking to Thai media in 2017, Janewattananond said, “I learned from him that happiness is the greatest thing in life." He added, “Before that, golf was everything to me, and it gave me so much pressure during competition. I have been competing with less pressure ever since and starting getting better results." Janewattananond said he was "instructed by the monk to learn to give". He continued, "So I start making merit and donating some of my prize money to needy children and charity. When you have more than enough, it’s better to share it with others who are in difficulties.”
On Saturday, the ball was too near to the trap wall for Janewattananond to assume a stance on the sand, so he went down on his knees and hit a remarkable improvised shot that landed just feet from the hole, Daily Mail reported. He was able to hole out for par and go on to the following hole without taking a significant hit to his card. Later, Janewattananond shared a video on Instagram demonstrating how he'd practiced the exact same shot the day before during a warm-up for his round. "Sometime (sic) you practice the right shot at the right time," he wrote.
South African Louis Oosthuizen, who won the major championship 11 years ago at the Old Course at St Andrews, the home of golf, is leading by one shot. Collin Morikawa (-11) and Jordan Spieth (-9) are his closest competitors.