Matthew Cheung on the chills of a Hong Kong home crowd and playing freely after missing out on victory

Matthew Cheung finished tied second at the Link Hong Kong Open on 25 October 2026, yet the most revealing part of his post-round remarks was not his score. Speaking to the Asian Tour, the Hong Kong golfer described the emotional effect of hearing spectators call his name as he arrived at the 18th green. He said the reception gave him chills. It was a personal moment at the end of a week that also established a new benchmark for local players.

The player's own assessment

In the Asian Tour's official report, the 31-year-old expressed gratitude for the crowds and said he was disappointed not to win but overwhelmingly happy with his performance. Going into Sunday, he had resolved to play with freedom rather than tighten up while pursuing a home title. He associated that more relaxed approach with the golf that had taken him to the lead earlier in the tournament. These points are faithful paraphrases of his published remarks, not invented quotations or a reconstruction of a private interview.

A recovery that mattered

Cheung had delivered a bogey-free 62 on Friday and led by three after 36 holes. Saturday's 72 undid much of that advantage. On Sunday he recovered with a 67 that featured four birdies and one bogey. He reached 15 under for the week, sharing second with Finland's Kalle Samooja. American John Catlin won by five strokes at 20 under after a closing 64. There was therefore a clear distinction between Cheung's excellent final round and the even stronger performance required to win.

The finish was historically important. Asian Tour records in its report identify Cheung's position as the best achieved by a Hong Kong player in the event, surpassing the fourth-place finish by Dominique Boulet in 1996. The response on the closing green was shaped by that local significance: an audience watching one of its own come closer than anyone before him to the title.

What playing freely can — and cannot — explain

It would be simplistic to suggest that a mental switch alone produced the 67. The difference between Friday's 62, Saturday's 72 and Sunday's 67 reflects the unavoidable variability of elite golf. Course management, execution and the quality of other players' rounds all matter. Cheung's comments nevertheless illuminate how an athlete responds to an uncomfortable change in circumstances. Rather than trying to force a miracle after losing the lead, he sought a playing rhythm that felt familiar and trusted.

For recreational golfers, the useful idea is not to suppress ambition. It is to return attention to a repeatable routine and the next manageable decision after a poor stretch. The score then becomes an outcome, not an instruction for every swing.

Cheung had separately discussed the confidence he gained from switching to a longer putter after Friday's round. This article covers a different and later public statement: his reaction after the final round, the home crowd and the lessons of finishing runner-up.

Primary source: the Asian Tour's official report dated 25 October 2026: https://wp-asiantour.ocs-sport.com/blog/catlin-joins-many-of-the-games-greatest-as-winner-of-link-hong-kong-open/

Illustration: archival 2016 photograph of a pavilion at Hong Kong Golf Club, Fanling, by Wpcpey / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Neither Cheung nor the 2026 final is pictured. Image · License.