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A score of 59 is a ‘dream score.’ It is a score not easily conquered.

John Catlin is cheering after making a winning birdie in the second playoff of the Asian Tour International Series Macau. [Macau=AFP·Yonhap News]

For the first time, a player has broken 60 on the Asian Tour. The protagonist is John Catlin (USA). On the 16th, at the Asian Tour International Series Macau (total prize money of 2 million dollars) held at Macau Golf & Country Club (par 70) in Macau, he set a new milestone in the 3rd round. Without a single bogey, he made 1 eagle and 9 birdies to shoot 11-under-par 59. He recorded 9-under-par over 17 holes, and on the final 18th hole (par 5), after successfully reaching the green in two shots, he sank a 6-meter eagle putt to achieve this great record.

This year, scores in the 50s have appeared four times. Joaqu?n Niemann (Chile) shot 59 at the LIV Golf Mayakoba event, Crist?bal del Solar (Chile) and Aldrich Potgieter (South Africa) shot 57 and 59 respectively at the PGA Tour Korn Ferry (2nd tier) Astara Championship. Catlin exclaimed, "I am speechless and overwhelmed to have shot 59. It’s truly a special feeling."

John Catlin is smiling brightly holding the trophy immediately after winning the Asian Tour International Series Macau in a playoff. [Macau=AFP·Yonhap News]

Catlin finished on a high note. After shooting 59 to firmly establish his name, he tied with ‘LIV Golf powerhouse’ David Puig (Spain) on the final day, then won the playoff on the second extra hole with a ‘winning birdie’ on the 18th hole. This was his 5th Asian Tour victory, earning a winner’s prize of 360,000 dollars (about 500 million won).

Catlin is a skilled player. He has won five times on the Asian Tour and has also secured three wins on the DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour) over the past four years. He is a champion with a total of eight professional wins. However, before becoming the ‘man of 59,’ Catlin was relatively unknown. His presence was minimal. Before this tournament, his world ranking was 435th, but with this thrilling playoff victory, he rose to 221st. His highest individual world ranking was 76th in May 2021.

Catlin was born in November 1990 and is 33 years old. He was born in Sacramento, California, USA. His amateur career was brilliant. He won the NCGA State Match Play Championship consecutively in 2010 and 2011, and the Memorial Amateur Championship consecutively in 2011 and 2012.

His main stages are the DP World Tour and the Asian Tour. He turned professional in 2013 and started his first season on the PGA Tour Canada. From 2015, he played on the Asian Tour, gradually making a name for himself. He was named Asian Tour Player of the Year in 2018 and earned DP World Tour status the following year. On the DP World Tour, he won twice in 2020 and once in 2021.

There is also an anecdote related to COVID-19. In August 2020, before the English Championship, he was caught violating the tour’s safety protocols while at a restaurant with his caddie. He became the first player on the DP World Tour to be barred from competition due to a COVID-19 violation. One month later, he won his first European stage victory at the Andaluc?a Masters. It was a ‘wire-to-wire’ win, leading for all four days.

After his first DP World Tour victory, three months later at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, Catlin shot a final round 64 to beat Aaron Rai (England) by two strokes. In April 2021, at the Austrian Golf Open, he defeated Maximilian Kieffer (Germany) after a fifth playoff.