There is little question that the level of competition on the Asian and Japan Tours is not quite on par with that of Europe or the United States (insert OneAsia references/jokes here), but anytime a teenager barely old enough to drive competes at the highest level of any recognized tour, it is a major accomplishment.

Thus we must first offer a major tip of the cap to 17-year-old Korean Seung-yul Noh, who not only competed, in but actually won, last weekend's Midea China Classic, an official stop on the Asian circuit. The 2005 Korean Amateur champion, Noh became the third youngest winner in Asian Tour history by carding a 17-under-par 267 total, good enough to edge veteran Australian Terry Pilkadaris by one at the Royal Orchid International Golf Club in Guangzhou. More importantly, Noh has already proven his status as a legitimate Asian Tour star by thrice finishing runner-up in 2008, notably at May's Maekyung Open, where he lost to countryman Inn-choon Hwang in sudden death. Last week's victory moved him to 8th on the Order of Merit while also whetting our appetites for next month, when we'll see how he stacks up against some of the E Tour's best at the HSBC Champions and the Hong Kong Open.

Meanwhile, in Japan, 17-year-old Ryo Ishikawa - already an established star after rather incredibly winning the 2007 Munsingwear Open as a 15-year-old amateur! - contended for his second official victory at the Japan Open, ultimately finishing second, four shots behind Shingo Katayama. For Ishikawa, 2008 has been an up-and-down campaign, for he opened the year by tying for 5th at theToken Homemate Cup, and later tied for 3rd at July's Sega Sammy Cup - but also failed to better 17th in 14 additional starts, and managed to miss an impressive nine cuts. Such inconsistency has resulted in Ishikawa currently ranking only19th in the Order of Merit, but he's certainly receiving his share of much deserved attention.

And then we return to America, where one of the more revered surnames in the history of professional golf was revived in Las Vegas on Sunday when 30-year-old Marc Turnesa won the event formerly known as the Las Vegas Invitational. Turnesa is the grandson of six-time PGA Tour winner Mike Turnesa, whose six legendary golfing siblings included 1952 PGA Champion James, 13-time PGA Tour winner (and twice a Major championship runner-up) Joe, and one of the World War II era's great amateurs Willie, who claimed one British and two U.S national titles. Currently ranked 75th in 2008 earnings, Marc - who had never played in a PGA Tour event prior to 2008 - is now fully exempt on the PGA Tour through 2010, giving him a chance to potentially re-establish the Turnesa franchise with a vengeance. As to the how's and why's of such golfing talent skipping a generation, that's anyone's guess - but serious inquiries might best be addressed to Tommy Armour III, the previous poster boy for the concept.