By Adrian Flores

THE Asian Tour Invitational, the kick off leg of the 2009 Asian Tour season, tees off today at the Suwan Golf and Country Club in Thailand with five Filipino professionals, defending champion Lin Wen Tang of Chinese Taipei and an array of the region?s best vying for the championship.

Angelo Que, who finished second behind Artemio Murakami in the TCC Invitational two weeks ago, has his sights on the top prize, which could definitely boost his confidence for the rest of the year.

?Maybe I can get two victories this time. My game?s fine, swing?s okay, according to coach Bong Lopez. I am in perfect shape,? said Que, the reigning Philippine Open champ.

Frankie Mi?oza is looking to bounce back from a winless stint last year while his prot?g?, Murakami, is hoping to carry his The Country Club Invitational championship momentum in the season-opening $300,000 tournament by Asian Tour.

Juvic Pagunsan is also hungry and aching to get a win, which has been very elusive even to the elite RP cast in the last 14 months, dating back to October 2007 when Murakami won the Iskandar Johor Open in Malaysia.

?That?s way too long. I am eager to start here with a bang,? said the 31-year-old Pagunsan, a winner of the Pertamina Indonesia President Invitational two years ago.

Lin, winner of two titles en route to a career-high second place on the Order of Merit last season, will be joined by an elite field, which includes local heroes Thaworn Wiratchant, Boonchu Ruangkit and Prayad Marksaeng and recent Qualifying School winner Daisuke Maruyama of Japan.

?I?m looking forward to playing again. During the past few weeks, I?ve been playing practice rounds with friends and going to the range as well to keep my game in tune. I feel really good at the moment and I?m looking forward to the new season. I am hoping to start off strongly with a successful defense of my Asian Tour International title,? said Lin.