WENTWORTH: Thai legend Thongchai Jaidee enjoyed a joint runner-up finish at the BMW PGA Championship on Sunday, a result which pushed him up to 35th position in the latest world ranking.
The three-time Asian Tour No.1 shot a closing three-under-par 69 to share second place with Spanish veteran Miguel Angel Jimenez to finish six shots behind South Korean winner An Byeong-Hun.
Thongchai earned €434,275 for his fine effort to move up to seventh place in the Race to Dubai.
He also moved up from his previous 51st position in the world ranking to 35th, which will reinforce his bid to qualify for the Presidents Cup in October.
Thai star Kiradech Aphibarnrat shared 27th place on 284 while compatriot Prom Meesawat was tied for 35th on 285.
Thongchai tried to keep up pace with a dominant An by getting to four under through 12 holes before a lone bogey of the day on the 13th snuffed out his title charge.
"Very good to come in second, pretty good for me," said Thongchai, who has won six European Tour titles.
"I know I have had a top‑10 here before. I have no complaints about my game this week. I had a fantastic game, putting, everything is coming back. My driving was a little bit shaky but my putter was good.
"I played solid on the front nine. I never missed anything, only one, up-and‑down [for par]. I had only one bad hole, and missed a short putt. Missed a birdie on the last hole [for second on his own]. It's good for me to finish second. I can't complain."
An, 23, secured his maiden title on the European Tour with a majestic closing round of 65 as he established a new tournament record of 21-under-par 267.
He was the youngest winner of the US Amateur Championship in 2009.
Thongchai was impressed with An.
"Yeah, nice to see an Asian boy win the tournament. This is a big tournament in Europe. I think he played really solid. It's very good to see. He's very young. He can be a star player in the future,'' the Thai said.