t 17 years, five months and six days, the Buriram United forward scored two goals for the home team, in the 12th and 79th minutes, which earned him another career record.

Earlier, he had become the youngest scorer in Thai League (at 15 years, nine months and 22 days in the game against Air Force Central, 2018) and in the AFC Champions League (at 16 years, eight months and seven days in the game against Beijing Guaon, 2019).

Thailand’s other goals were scored by Samut Prakan City striker Jaroensak Wongggorn twice in the 89th minute and injury time and by Supachok Sarachat in the 47th minute.

The win was a welcome morale boost for the home team after their dismal result in the December SEA Games in the Philippines where they, as the multi-time champions, crashed out in the preliminary round.

Their recent poor shows have led to a huge drop in popularity of the national team with just some 7,000 fans showing up for Wednesday’s game at the 50,000-capacity stadium.

However, the superb performance on Wednesday evening should have restored the fans’ faith in coach Akira Nishino’s side. Thailand lead the Group with three points while Iraq and Australia are second and third respectively after their goaless game on Wednesday. Bahrain are fourth.

Thailand’s national coach Akira Nishino 

Thai sensation Jazz Janewattananond bagged a total of four awards, which include the coveted 2019 Order of Merit crown and the prestigious Players’ Player of the Year accolade.

The 24-year-old Jazz also topped the statistics categories for Lowest Stroke Average with his record of 68.28 strokes and Total Birdies made with 265 from a total of 15 tournaments throughout his season on the Asian Tour.

Jazz was the toast of the 2019 season as he capped a phenomenal year with four victories and six top-10s which saw him break US$1million in total earnings and rise to career-high of 40th place on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).

He is the youngest player to claim six victories on the Asian Tour and only the second player to secure four wins in a single season in the Tour’s history.

“It’s an honour to win the Players’ Player of the Year award. I’m glad the players think I deserve this award. Thanks to all my friends for voting and making me feel worthy of this award,” said Jazz at the Awards Gala which was held at the Courtyard by Marriott in Sha Tin on Tuesday evening.

Sadom Kaewkanjana was named the Rookie of the Year after collecting the most OWGR points from Asian Tour events amongst the newcomers in 2019. The 20-year-old Thai, who came through the Qualifying School, won on his very first start on Tour at the 2019 Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open in Bangladesh.

Adilson Da Silva of Brazil was the most accurate off the tee (84.17%) in 2019 while Thailand’s Pavit Tangkamolprasert, who won his second Asian Tour title at the Sabah Masters last November, hits it the furthest with an average drive of 307.50 yards.

Sattaya Supupramai of Thailand emerged as the top scrambler after converting 71.20% of his missed greens in regulation to save par in 2019. Finland’s Teemu Putkonen, on the other hand, hit the most greens in regulation (75%).

Chinese Taipei’s Wang Wei-lun, who successfully kept his card by finishing inside top-60 on the 2019 Order of Merit, rode the hottest putter as he averaged 27.55 putts per round last season.

The Best Spectator Experience award went to Shinhan Donghae Open, a popular event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the Korean PGA Tour, as an acknowledgement for its digital initiative and activities catered for fans.

The SMBC Singapore Open was voted by the players as the Tournament of the Year and its host venue Sentosa Golf Club, recently named the ‘World’s Best Golf Course’ at the annual World Golf Awards last October, was also ranked the number one golf course by the players.

The 2020 Asian Tour season gets underway at the Hong Kong Open on Thursday. The US$1 million event is sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the Hong Kong Golf Association, with the European Tour continuing to stage the tournament and it will be held once again at the Hong Kong Golf Club.

2019 Roll of Honour

Order of Merit champion – Jazz Janewattananond (Tha)

Players’ Player of the Year – Jazz Janewattananond (Tha)

Rookie of the Year – Sadom Kaewkanjana (Tha)

Lowest Stroke Average – Jazz Janewattananond (Tha), 68.28

Total Birdies – Jazz Janewattananond (Tha), 265

Driving Accuracy – Adilson Da Silva (Bra), 84.17%

Driving Distance – Pavit Tangkamolprasert (Tha), 307.50 yards

Scrambling – Sattaya Supupramai (Tha), 71.20%

Lowest Putting Average per round – Wang Wei-lun (Tpe), 27.55

Greens in Regulation – Teemu Putkonen (Fin), 75.38%

Players’ choice Golf Course of the Year – Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore

Tournament of the Year – SMBC Singapore Open

Best Spectator Experience – Shinhan Donghae Open

The winner of 10 LPGA tournaments has shed nine kilos over the past several months in her campaign to get into shape.

Speaking during a press conference with her sponsor SCG on Monday, Ariya said she has started to take better care of herself and has become more prudent with her diet choice.

“I need to stay healthy. And I want to play golf for a long time,” said Ariya, whose career highlights included two Major wins – at the Women’s British Open in 2016 and US Women’s Open in 2018.

“I have been more selective with food. I have cut off sugar,” added Ariya, who was advised by a doctor to restrict her sugar intake.

Since winning the Ladies Scottish Open in July 2018, the 24-year-old Bangkokian has yet to savour another victory. Ending the drought of titles is one of her 2020 goals.

“I want to start winning a tournament again as soon as possible,” she concluded.

The partnership aims to develop Muay Thai on a global scale.

The collaboration will see both organisations work together to establish One Hero Series Muay Thai in Thailand, which seeks to discover grass-roots Muay Thai talent at both the local and international levels.

The goal of the One Hero Series is to provide young up-and-coming Muay Thai athletes a global platform to showcase their skills and carve out a path towards a professional career in the sport.

The press conference was attended by One Championship president Jitinat Asdamongkol, One Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon, One Atomweight Kickboxing and Muay Thai World Champion Stamp Fairtex, former champion Jonathan Haggerty, Victor Pinto, Muangthai PKSaenchaimuaythai Gym and Sangmanee Sathian MuayThai Gym. Also in attendance were Khemmapol Auitayakul, secretary to the Tourism and Sports minister, and Tanukiat Janchum, director of the Professional Sports Development and Boxing Department.

“I am excited to announce a partnership with the Sports Authority of Thailand,” said One Championship chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong. “Together, we will work towards developing the sport of Muay Thai not just in the country but also globally. There is a lot of spectacular Muay Thai talent in Thailand. As an organisation, we want to be able to give them the tools they need to be successful. Our One Championship athletes are ready to showcase their incredible skills this Friday night,” he added.

“I’m honoured to be defending my One Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship in the first main event of the year, and more importantly, I am very happy to be able to do it in my home country of Thailand,” Rodtang said. “Jonathan Haggerty is a very talented fighter and he is a former champion. In our first fight, we put on a great show for the fans, and I am sure that we will do the same in this rematch. I am also sure that as in the first fight, I will show everyone that I am the better fighter and the rightful champion,” added Rodtang.

“I am thankful to One Championship for giving me the opportunity to challenge the title again, and I am thankful to Rodtang for accepting the bout,” Haggerty said. “I am excited to be able to compete in Thailand, and I welcome the pressure of being a visitor in hostile territory, or so to speak. Rodtang is a fantastic champion and he pushed me to my limit during our first meeting. But now, I am back to take down another Thai legend and reclaim my One Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship,” he vowed.

Said Jitinat: “It is our absolute honour to have the Sports Authority of Thailand in attendance today as we announce our partnership. At One Championship, we have a huge responsibility to guide the next generation of martial artists towards becoming honourable and respectable athletes. We believe developing our martial arts talent in true Asian values is of utmost importance. This partnership with SAT helps us provide our youth with a bright future, and a viable career in Muay Thai.”

“I take this opportunity to officially announce my turning pro here,” Atthaya told a press conference with her main sponsor SCG in Bangkok. “2020 will be a challenging year for me as I will from now on play on the pro tour. I have to restart everything, being on my own more. There won’t be any more company from national teammates [at the amateur level],” added Atthaya, who also became the youngest to win two Ladies European Tour titles following her triumph at the Phoenix Gold Golf and Country Club (the venue of the LET Thailand Championship) last May.

“I’m happy not because I won twice but because I have ensured that the trophy remains on home soil,” said Atthaya, who put her amateur status behind her after winning the women’s team bronze medal at the SEA Games in the Philippines last month.

The precocious girl’s big goal in her first pro year is to finish in the top 25 on the LET money list, which will earn her a card into the British Women’s Open. She is however too young for the LPGA, which is open to those over 18 only.

“The LET is a good tour which will allow me to gain experience from pros and learn various types of course conditions. I need more experience before the LPGA Tour,” she said.

Former world No 1 Ariya Jutanugarn is convinced Atthaya, due to her talent, will become the next force to be reckoned with in women’s golf.

“I’m proud to see her win at only 14. As she is a talented player, I’m sure she will do well this year. My only advice is she has to work hard and enjoy everything. When you look back one day, this is just a tiny part of your life,” Ariya said.

Jordan McRae bobbed in place. Bradley Beal danced like a Fortnite character. Thomas Bryant skipped along the sideline. The Wizards, taking in the action like enthusiastic spectators, could not contain their joy while Ish was happening.

Wizards backup guard Ish Smith scored a career-best 32 points and made his co-workers look like giddy schoolchildren with his fourth-quarter outburst in the team’s 128-114 win over the Denver Nuggets.

“Can we just talk about Ish,” Coach Scott Brooks said to reporters following the game. “Ish was on fire.”

When Smith fooled a defender with a hesitation move and pullup midrange jumper with less than eight minutes to play, teammates on the bench peeled from their seats and stalked the sideline. A moment later, when Smith repeated the feat, forcing the Nuggets to call timeout, Beal did a jig in his slim-fitting suit.

Then, as Smith extended his range to the 3-point arc, drilling the shot and giving the Wizards a 15-point lead in the final minutes, his teammates rushed the court as soon as the whistle indicated another Denver timeout.

“Ish was amazing tonight,” Troy Brown Jr. said, then posed a question: “How many points did he score . . . in the second half?”

The only response Brown received from the assembled media was “a lot,” but Smith scored 13 points in the fourth quarter and 23 of the team’s 67 points in the second half.

“It was crazy. It was ridiculous. It was literally like ‘Give Ish the ball and get out the way,’ ” Brown said. “So at that point, all I was focused on was rebounding and just making sure we were getting rebounds and getting stops.”

Smith’s breakout game was formed out of frustration. He said he didn’t like the way he shot his open midrange looks over the previous two games.

“I wanted to kick myself,” Smith said. “Kicked myself all last night, just kind of thinking about knocking down those shots. Not overthinking it, but still wanting those shots to fall in. I’m blessed. I thank God that those shots fell for me tonight. We had a good win against a really good team.”

Just as Smith scored, Brown and the bench also soared.

The Wizards’ second unit contributed a whopping 92 points, the second most points by a bench since the 1970-71 season, according to Elias Sports Bureau. Brown produced 25 points, 14 rebounds and three assists while Isaac Bonga enjoyed his most aggressive night of his career, scoring 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Center Anzejs Pasecniks added 13 points and eight rebounds.

Inside the locker room, the Wizards celebrated the performances of Smith and Bonga – who received water bottle showers. It was the second time this week the Wizards soaked the locker room following a momentous win. On Monday, Washington shocked the Miami Heat, 123-105.

While the Wizards raved and water flowed, down the hallway and across the arena, the Nuggets were in mourning over losing to an 11-24 team.

“We didn’t show up. That was embarrassing. That’s an embarrassing performance,” said Nuggets Coach Mike Malone after his team fell to 24-11. “We had a mind-set of: ‘We can just show up, I’m going to win a game because maybe some of their starters are out.’ What happened tonight is exactly what the doctor ordered. I’m embarrassed, I really am.”

Malone, still fuming, added: “We as a group, we as a team, as a coaching staff, players, got our [tail] kicked tonight.”

Washington secured an impressive win against one of the best teams in the Western Conference despite shaky moments from the starters.

On Saturday, the NBA announced Isaiah Thomas was fined $25,000 for making inappropriate contact with an official in the first quarter of Friday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers. Thomas defended his actions as unintentional.

Thomas indicated he would not appeal the penalty and expressed a desire to move past the incident, which led to his second ejection in two weeks. Although Thomas remained on the court against the Nuggets without incident, he did not make an impact.

In the first half, Thomas picked up three personal fouls and missed six of his seven attempts from the floor. His modest numbers carried through the starting five.

Gary Payton II, who made his fifth consecutive start, did not attempt a shot in his 11 minutes of action. McRae, who scored a season-high 35 points the previous night, finished 3 for 15 from the floor. During a timeout with 3:15 remaining in the third quarter, frustrations appeared to boil over as McRae and center Ian Mahinmi engaged in a lively conversation. McRae eventually walked away, but was still animated while speaking to John Wall and Beal.

However by the fourth quarter, the frustration faded. Smith and the second unit carried the weight as McRae, Thomas and all the players on the injury list laughed and danced and applauded their way to another big win.

– – –

Rookie Rui Hachimura is expected to miss at least two more weeks as he recovers from what the team described as a “minor procedure” after he was kicked in the groin by teammate Isaac Bonga on Dec. 16.

“It’s been kind of weird because I’ve never [been] away from basketball like this but I watched the games on TV and stuff,” Hachimura said Saturday night before missing his 10th straight game. “I’ve been good. I’m just ready to play. I can’t wait to play. I can’t wait to get back to the team and play games.”

Before the game vs. Denver, Hachimura addressed media in both English and Japanese for the first time since the injury and at times could not contain his laughter while talking about his lower region soreness.

“I mean, you saw the video,” Hachimura said through chuckles. “It was just different. Never felt like that, it was just different. Weird.”

“Being the national team coach is the highest honor for me, and it also means a huge responsibility,” Li, who was named as successor to Italian Marcello Lippi by the Chinese Football Association on Friday, said.

“My coaching team and I will try our best to build the new Team China into a more competitive squad. I hope all the fans could continue to support us.”

Shenyang-born Li was a member of the only Chinese squad to ever play at a World Cup, in 2002. After retiring as a player, he began his coaching career at Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande as an assistant to Lippi before taking head-coaching position at Hebei China Fortune and Wuhan Zall.

Li was famous for his ambition of becoming the national team coach, which he clearly expressed during an interview with Chinese media in 2011. The new job was a dream come true for the 42-year-old.

“I was very excited when I knew that I had the chance of competing for the position of Team China’s head coach,” Li said. “This has always been my dream. When I have the chance of serving my country, I won’t consider other things too much. My contract with the CFA will last to Jun 9th 2020. Even if the CFA and I only have a one-day contract, I’ll sign it without hesitation.”

Despite Li’s confident in his new job, Team China is struggling to enter the second round of Asian qualifiers of the next World Cup in Qatar. A 2-1 World Cup qualifying defeat to Syria in November prompted Lippi’s sudden resignation and left China’s qualification chances hanging by a thread.

With four more first round qualifiers to play, Team China is now eight points adrift of Group A leader Syria. The eight group winners and four best second-place finishers will enter a second phase of Asian qualifying. China is currently ranked as the sixth best runner-up team.

Speaking of the current situation faced by the team, Li said that the priority is to find players with strong hearts.

“The mentality is an old problem of the national team, I hope our players could have normal performance when they pay for the national squad,” Li, who left for Guangzhou where the national squad reassembled for training directly after the media conference, said.

“Many players who have great performance in the league matches could not shoulder the huge pressure in the national team games. We will consider players’ mentality during the player selection and we will work on helping them to cope with the pressure.”

The forward’s first league goal of the campaign also ensured that Espanyol’s third coach of the season, Abelardo Fernandez got off to a positive start as the club seeks to avoid relegation

Espanyol looked to stifle Barca on the ball, but although the league leaders had plenty of possession they did little to threaten Espanyol before David Lopez put the home side ahead with a flicked header following a free kick from the right.

Barca coach Ernesto Valverde looked to inject some more urgency into his side, replacing Ivan Rakitic with Arturo Vidal and he got his reward in the 50th minute when Suarez, who had earlier hit the post, produced a sharp finish at the near post.

The Uruguayan then produced the cross that allowed Vidal to head Barca in front in the 59th minute.

Espanyol keeper Diego Lopez twice saved well to deny Suarez a second goal of the night, before Frenkie de Jong was sent off with 15 minutes remaining after receiving his second booking of the game.

Wu Lei came on as a substitute for Espanyol a minute before De Jong’s sending off and quickly tested Neto with a header which the keeper saved well

However, Neto could do nothing in the 88th minute when Wu Lei found space on the right of the Barca area and drilled a low shot into the corner of the net to spark wild celebrations in the stands.

Real Madrid had defender Raphael Varane and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to thank as they won 3-0 away to Gefate.

Varene headed in Madrid’s two opening goals – the first with the collaboration of Getafe keeper, David Soria, while Courtois kept Getafe at bay with a series of impressive saves, before Luka Modric scored Madrid’s third goal deep into injury time.

All of the goals came in the first 18 minutes as Atletico Madrid beat Levante 2-1 in the Wanda Metropolitano stadium.

Angel Correa opened the scoring in the 13th minute, only for Roger Marti to equalize for the visitors three minutes later with his ninth goal of the season.

Felipe Monteiro then netted the decisive goal two minutes later and Atletico were content to keep Levante at bay for the rest of the game, although the visitors almost snatched a point in the last seconds only for Jan Oblak to produce a stunning save to deny Enis Bardhi’s header.

Maxi Gomez’s 27th minute header gave Valencia three points at home to a hard-working Eibar and the visitors’ day was made worse in injury time when defender Paulo Oliveira was sent off after seeing a second yellow card.

Friday saw two games with Sevilla held to a 1-1 draw at home to Athletic Club Bilbao, who took the lead thanks to a first half goal from Ander Capa, only for Unai Nunez to put the ball into his own net while trying to cut out a dangerous cross on the hour.

Meanwhile Leganes’ improvement continued under Javier Aguirre as the side from the south of Madrid took a 2-2 draw from their visit to Valladolid with Martin Braithwaite and Roque Mesa’s goals for the visitors cancelled out by two goals from Enis Unal.

To address these issues, the Nats targeted two free agents who’ve been exceptional in recent years, but who are also often viewed as perilously close to baseball old age by much of the sport.

One was Houston reliever Will Harris, who has a spectacular 2.36 ERA over the past five seasons. The Nats signed him Thursday for $24 million for three years. “They made me a priority from the beginning,” said Harris, who had a 1.50 ERA in 68 games last season for the Astros.

The other is third baseman Josh Donaldson, who hit 37 homers last year in Atlanta. The Nats now are in a nine-figure bidding war for him with the Braves, Twins and maybe the Dodgers.

If the Nats land both, watch out.

Washington would be well-loaded for its title defense with a third baseman almost as good as Rendon and a reliever who could catalyze a major bullpen improvement.

If the Lerner’s need bidding motivation, just consider how easily the Nats can complete a powerful roster – if Donaldson is part of it. Add a solid middle reliever, bring back Ryan Zimmerman to platoon at first base with Howie Kendrick, put free agent Starlin Castro – who agreed Friday to a two-year deal worth $12 million – at second base, and saddle up.

Castro, 29, who played 162 games in Miami last year with 22 homers, 86 RBI but a mediocre .736 OPS, is basically a younger, durable and inexpensive upgrade on Brian Dozier. His arrival means the only remaining need is third base.

Donaldson aside, the addition of Harris is crucial. It’s risky because Harris is 35, but the Nats place a value on experience.

Since 2015, Harris has the game’s third-best ERA of any reliever behind Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman and just ahead of Josh Hader and Kenley Jansen. He’s durable, with a combination of a nasty cutter and killer curveball that makes him equally effective against lefties and righties. The coming rule that relievers must face a minimum of three hitters only adds to his value.

If the Nats are wrong, they wasted, at most, 1/10th of the contracts just given to Stephen Strasburg and Rendon. And they did little damage to their future roster-building flexibility. But if they are right, they got a steal.

Nats fans remember Harris for the homers he allowed to Rendon and Kendrick in the last two games of the World Series. But if Harris pitches as he usually has, D.C. fans may gain a new perspective on him. Houston became so addicted to Harris that they used him an exhausting 80 times, including 12 appearances in October. Even then, Kendrick had to hit a perfect cutter low and away and conk that foul pole, too.

Late-bloomers are often underrated around baseball. The sport loves 21-year-old phenoms who project as possible hall of famers but turns up its nose at men who don’t become elite players until nearing age 30.

That’s one reason many fans would not guess that Donaldson, 34, has been the second-best player in the majors – by WAR – the past seven years, trailing only Mike Trout. Donaldson, the 2015 AL MVP when he was with Toronto, was invisible until he was 27.

Even fewer fans could tell you how highly Harris has ranked among all relievers in ERA – in part because he barely registered on the game’s radar until he was 30. In the past five years, he’s also 11th in expected fielding independent pitching (xFIP) and 16th in fielding independent pitching (FIP), further evidence that his low ERA is bona fide.

Counterintuitive as it is, getting an outstanding reliever like Harris may be just as essential an offseason fix as getting a star to replace Rendon. Why? The gap between Rendon and an average third baseman – say 20 homers, 75 RBI and a decent glove – is large. In analytics terms, as much as 30 or 40 runs in a team’s run differential.

Who might Mr. Average be? Before coming to the Nats late last season, Asdrúbal Cabrera started 93 games at third base for Texas with adequate range, few errors and a knack for starting double plays. He ended up 2019 with 18 homers and 91 RBI in 131 games. He can also help at second and first base. You could probably get Cabrera back, at a modest price, with one phone call.

Or, if the Nats don’t trade for a third baseman (like Kyle Seager), they could move their top prospect, 22-year-old Carter Kieboom, to third – a gamble since he’s played only 10 games there in the minors.

Now look at the impact that an average bullpen – just mediocre (4.35 ERA in ’19) – would mean to the Nats. It’s easy math: a decent pen means an improvement of about 73 runs. Or twice the impact of the 30-to-40-run gap between Rendon and an average man at third.

Also, the Nats’ untrustworthy relievers worked 500 2/3 innings, the least in MLB. That taxed the starting pitchers. An average pen worked 90 more innings than the Nats’ relievers did last year.

That is why signing Harris – the last impressive, consistent and durable reliever on the market – was so important. Without him, the path to that “decent bullpen” might not have existed. Now, with reliable closer Sean Doolittle, plus Tanner Rainey and Wander Suero, the Nats may be one or two arms from a representative bullpen.

Could that additional valuable pitcher be Daniel Hudson? If the Nats don’t land Donaldson, they’ll have so much payroll room under the competitive balance tax threshold, that I would certainly hope so.

Then the Nats might have the all-time ironic bullpen. Siting side-by-side on some summer night might be Harris, who took the Game Seven loss, and Hudson, who will be hugged long into old age by Nats fans for the moment he fired his glove in joy after his final strikeout pitch in that Game 7.

For weeks, the buzz has been whether the Nats would land Donaldson. Barely a word was uttered about Harris. But which one did General Manager Mike Rizzo sign first? “They seemed the most bullish on me than any team,” Harris said.

Some things are beyond a team’s control – like the free agent market skyrocketing to the point that the Nats didn’t think it wise to pay $245 million each to Strasburg and Rendon. Teams also can’t control where players want to be in their heart of hearts. Rendon sure seemed happy to become an Angel. And Donaldson may have warm feelings toward staying a Brave.

But by acting early and with conviction, there are some factors you can control. For example, you can lay the cornerstone in building a much better bullpen. Signing Harris was not just a first step.

It was a big one.