Staff WriterKyle Stanley has never been one to shy away from a new challenge, and after a week in Indonesia, the two-time PGA Tour winner may have just found his next chapter on the Asian Tour.
The 37-year-old American spent the week teeing it up at the Jakarta International Championship—the fifth stop on this year’s elevated LIV Golf-backed International Series—and left with more than just frequent flyer miles.
Stanley, who’s best remembered for that remarkable eight-shot comeback to win the 2012 Waste Management Phoenix Open just a week after heartbreak at Torrey Pines, was candid about his growing interest in making the switch.
“This is only my fourth or fifth event this year, I haven’t really played much. I was really excited to have the opportunity to come over here,” he said.
A pedigree player looking for a new stage
Kyle Stanley has long held a reputation as one of the game’s ball-striking purists. After his Phoenix Open heroics, he went on to win the 2017 Quicken Loans National in a playoff against Charles Howell III—now plying his trade with LIV Golf.
Before turning professional, he was part of the formidable 2007 U.S. Walker Cup team featuring Dustin Johnson and Webb Simpson that beat Great Britain & Ireland’s side, which included a young Rory McIlroy, at Royal County Down.
This week in Jakarta, Stanley played on an invitation and soaked up every moment. Having previously withdrawn through injury at his only other Asian Tour appearance in Saudi Arabia, this was his first full run at the circuit—and he liked what he saw.
“Round one was just a little bit of rusty golf, if you will. I had a poor finish, made a six on my last and it was just kind of a sloppy around. Round two was much cleaner, and I was able to see a few putts going in, and I drove the ball pretty well,” he said.
A Q School tilt on the horizon
Encouraged by what he experienced, Stanley revealed he’s now weighing up a trip to Asian Tour Q School later this year, spurred on by some timely advice from compatriot Ollie Schniederjans, winner of International Series India presented by DLF.
“I talked to Ollie earlier this week. We just chatted about how much bigger the various tours are getting. The Asian Tour seems to be just picking up a ton of steam. I’ll go to Asian Tour Q School this fall and try to get through that,” he explained.
“Having a PGA Tour card for the last however many years it’s been, it hasn’t really been something I’ve thought about. But now that I have lost my status out there, I’m looking for other places to play, and this is a great option.
“Golf’s getting much, much bigger. There are a lot of other tours emerging and hopefully I can play a couple more out here.”
A rusty start, a spirited finish
Stanley’s opening round offered a reminder of golf’s unforgiving side: one birdie, three bogeys and a closing double. But round two showed why the American still commands respect.
Six birdies on the day had him flirting with the cut line before a couple of late errors, including a dropped shot at the ninth, left him level par—just shy of the two-under cut.
“Hopefully I can play a couple more out here. Gave it a nice run, it was one of my better rounds in a long time. So, I think it’ll be something that maybe we can build on moving forward,” he said.
His first visit to Indonesia clearly left its mark. “It was my first time to Indonesia. The main tour used to come to Malaysia back in the day, so I played that a few times.
This is a great golf course this week, in great condition. I love coming Asia. The people are so nice. The accommodation is second to none and it was a seriously fun week.”
For Kyle Stanley, this could be more than just a one-off appearance—it might be the start of a new career chapter played out on some very different fairways.
