Thailand’s Gunn Charoenkul will be hoping to build on the positive results he enjoyed in Singapore last month when the JGTO season resumes with the Token Homemate Cup in Nagoya next month.

A tied-65^th finish at the SMBC Singapore Open may not be the bestresult for Gunn to shout about, but the 29-year-oldhas every reason to be upbeat considering he is still carrying a nagging injury to his left thumb.

“It’s been tough with the injury and everything, but I’m trying to find my tune again,” vowed Gunn, who marked his Tokyo Olympics debut with a joint-44^th place finish in last year’s August.

“It’s definitely a positive thing for me to be able to make the cut in my last two events (including the Singapore International where he finished tied-60^th).

“I have been going back and forth to see my doctor. Hopefully things will get better soon.”

Gunn first sustained the injury after trying to model after big-hitting American Bryson DeChambeau’s playing style.

"I was trying to do some Bryson stuff last October (2020). I was just trying to swing harder but the problem is my swing is really steep and the harder I swing the more I pull the head of the club, so it gets even steeper and puts a lot of strain on my thumb,” Gunn told Bangkok Post in June last year.

After a difficult 2020-21 season, Gunn will be aiming to regain or at least get close to the splendid form displayed back in 2019.

He missed only one cut in 18 starts and finished no worse than a top-15 on 14 occasions.

Gunn ended the year 21^st on the money list – a major improvement as compared to the 77^th placing he mustered during his rookie season in 2018.

But Gunn will not be short of motivation once he returns to Japan – a country that holds a special place in his heart.

Gunn admits he loves just everything about Japan, on and off the course.

“The crowd, they are very passionate when it comes to golf. Whether it’s raining or it’s really hot day, they (the fans) still come out in numbers to cheer for their favourite players,” said Gunn.

“I like the courses and the weather too.

“My favourite city is Nagoya, everything is good there and I’ve got a couple of friends there too.

“When I’m not playing, I spend my time mostly on food hunting, going to the onsen and make some trips to the countryside to see some places.

“I also love visiting shrines and temples. My wife speaks Japanese, so she’s been taking me to many places.

“My favourite food? Katsu curry and Unagi!”

Despite competing regularly in Japan for four years now, Gunn still finds it hard to converse in Japanese.

“Listening is okay but for me it’s still kind of hard because the grammar is in different places,” he quipped.

“I have been trying to memorise grammar and some vocabs but so far it’s still been very hard for me!”

Practice makes perfect and like his golfing talents, Gunn’s proficiency in the language could also shoot up another notch- just as long as he takes aim at perfecting it.