He became an ordained monk. Now, he’s going to play in the Open Championship

Three years ago, Sadom Kaewkanjana carded a T11 finish at the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews. That finish was one stroke away from an automatic return to golf’s oldest major.

Twelve months after the talented Thai golfer put on an impressive showing at the home of golf, he took a two-week hiatus to become an ordained monk. Becoming an ordained monk is a rite of passage that is common for Thai men once they turn 20. Jazz Janewattananond went through the same process and won in his first start back.

“I was ordained because I wanted to return the greatest merit and repay my parents,” Kaewkanjana said in 2023 when he returned to the course. “During this time of ordination, it was of great value and experience, even though the ordination was a short period of time.

“I was cut off from the rest of the world when I was ordained, that made me feel more calm. I was able to concentrate more, which will help me improve my game of golf.”

Kaewkanjana played in the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill but hasn’t played on golf’s biggest stage since. But his major championship return is now set in stone after Kaewkanjana won the Asian Tour’s Kolon Korea Open on Sunday to punch his ticket to the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush.

The Kolon Korea Open is part of the Open Championship Qualifying Series, offering the winner a spot in golf’s oldest major. It is Kaewkanjana’s first individual win since the 2022 Singapore Open, which got him into the Open at St. Andrews.

Kaewkanjana started Sunday’s final round at the Dunes Course at La Vie Est Belle golf club trailing fellow countryman Poom Saksansin by one stroke. Kaewkanjana bogeyed the first hole to fall further behind, but the roller-coaster day was beginning. Saksansin double bogeyed No. 2 to bring the two all square, and the lead yo-yoed back and forth between the two seven times before Kaewkanjana finally took a two-shot lead with three holes to play.

“It is a big honor to win this event; it’s one of the biggest in the region,” Kaewkanjana said Sunday. “I tried to concentrate more than last three rounds, so I could do it. I’m very happy.”

Kaewkanjana is the latest feel-good story to secure a spot at Royal Portrush.

Australian Ryan Peake completed his redemption story when he won the New Zealand Open to earn his way into golf’s oldest major. Peake was part of an outlawed motorcycle gang when he was 21 and eventually wound up being sentenced to five years in prison for his role in a serious assault.

“I’ve just changed my life,” Peake,31, said after his win at the New Zealand Open. “This is what I do. I want to be here and just play golf. The story is what it is, but I’m just out here playing golf.

The Open Championship will take place at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland on July 17-20. Kaewkanjana is thrilled about the state of his game and the major opportunity ahead.

“Yeah, honestly, I’m very excited, of course,” Kaewkanjana said Sunday about Royal Portrush. “I have changed my swing a little bit, I was trying to find a way to get better. So now I think I have, and I can rely on it.”