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By John O'Brien
SINGAPORE, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Local hope Lam Chih Bing remained in a positive mood after a roller-coaster week at the Singapore Open where his chances of a glorious home victory wilted in the Sunday sun.
Lam lurked near the top of the leaderboard through the first three rounds of the $5 million event until a closing eight-over-par 79 saw him tumble from second place into a share of 18th, much to the disappointment of the packed galleries.
Finishing eight shots behind eventual champion Jeev Milkha Singh of India, the 31-year-old Singaporean refused to let his last-day woes get him down and focused on earning his Asian Tour card and playing a final round with Phil Mickelson.
"It was pretty amazing to play the last round of the Barclays Singapore Open with Phil, it can't get any better than that," Lam told reporters.
"At least I know that for three rounds, I can hang out with the best in the world. I can take a lot of positives out of this week."
Lam blamed his performance on the greens for his poor score, admitting that the tough flag positions proved to be key to his downfall.
"I didn't hit it close to the pins and have five three-putts out there which was disappointing," he said.
"I wish I drove it a little better and made a few more putts but I will learn from this and come out a better player."
Another positive for the Singaporean was that his $60,666 in winnings were enough to earn him an Asian Tour card for the first time in his career.
"Getting my full tour card is a big step for me. I just need to believe in myself more and with more hard work, I think I could really produce good results," he said.
"Phil was very encouraging. He told me I have a good game and that makes it an unbelievable tournament for me. I now know I can compete."
(Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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