Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China: Teenager Ren Yijia captured the second CLPG Tour title of her young career in dramatic fashion, a final-hole birdie giving her a one-stroke win in the Zhangjiagang Shuangshan Challenge.
Starting the final day four shots off the pace, the 15-year-old from Dalian closed with a four-under 68 for a 54-hole score of eight-under 208 at Zhangjiagang Shuangshan Golf Club, a Nelson & Haworth layout on an island in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.
Shi Yuli and amateur Li Menghan, the overnight co-leaders, both signed off with one-over 73s to finish equal runners-up at the RMB500,000 tournament. Pang Runzhi, Sui Xiang and Zhou Shiyuan, the country’s top-ranked female amateur, also posted closing rounds of 73 to end joint fourth.
Ren, who will join forces with Zhou and Xu Ying (73) to represent China at next month’s Espirito Santo Trophy, the World Amateur Team Championship in Singapore, opened her final round with consecutive birdies. After posting two bogeys and a lone birdie over the next 12 holes, the teenager made her charge late in the day in carding three birdies over the final four holes to secure the win. She sealed the success with a 15-foot birdie putt on the final green.
“I’m really happy with this win. Last night I thought about going for the win, but this morning I just went through my warm-up and played my game as usual without paying too much attention to the scores. Only in the last few holes did I check the leaderboard. On the 14th hole I made a bogey and felt a bit low, but I came back strong with two birdies and then another one on the 18th to finish on top. That was a great feeling,” said Ren, who became the CLPG Tour’s youngest champion when she won the Beijing Women’s Challenge in May, 2024.
“Over the past year I’ve played a lot of tournaments, including international events, and gained valuable experience. After my first win I wanted to win again right away, but my results weren’t good. It took time to settle down, and this year I’ve learned to keep a calmer mindset, enjoy my communication with my caddie, and play more freely. That has been the biggest improvement,” added Ren, a member of the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation team that won the Solheim Cup-style Patsy Hankins Trophy against the European Golf Association in the United Arab Emirates in January.
Shi, bidding for her maiden win, received RMB75,000 as the leading pro. Her round included an eagle-three at the 470-yard 13th hole, a birdie and four bogeys. It was her second joint runner-up finish of the season after finishing two strokes behind Lin Qianhui at the Beijing Women’s Challenge in May.
“The bogeys today were all because of my tee shots. My irons felt fine, and my putting was actually very good, but when the driver isn’t working there’s not much I can do,” lamented 23-year-old Shi.
“This year I’ve already had two runner-up finishes and have been on the leaderboard several times. My plan for the rest of the season is to focus on my driver, working on alignment and making some adjustments, and keep pushing for a win. Of course, finishing second again feels disappointing. It always seems like I’m just one shot away. But I feel my form is improving, and I believe my breakthrough will come soon.”
Li, who shared a two-shot lead with Shi going into the final round, struggled out of the gate with a bogey-five at the first hole. The Weihai native went on to post three other bogeys, including one at the last, and three birdies.
“Finishing runner-up does feel a little disappointing, but I also accept that Ren Yijia played great down the stretch. I did most of what I wanted to do, and executed well, except for the very last hole. Overall, I think it was still a solid performance,” said Li.
