Leading Lights Relishing WAAP Opportunity

Bangkok, Thailand: Leading lights from Australia and New Zealand are targeting a win at next month’s Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific (WAAP) championship.

To be staged over the Waterside Course at Siam Country Club from November 3-6, the championship will feature 86 of the region’s finest golfers, representing 21 countries.

The first three editions of the WAAP have been won by players from Thailand (Atthaya Thitikul, 2018) and Japan (Yuka Yasuda, 2019 and Mizuki Hashimoto, 2021).

In 2022, Australia will field a six-strong squad, all ranked inside the top-152 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).

Spearheading the challenge is Kirsten Rudgeley, the 2021 English Women’s Amateur champion. At 34 in the WAGR, she’s the top-ranked Aussie. Joining her will be Kelsey Bennett, joint runner-up in last year’s WAAP in Abu Dhabi, Justice Bosio, a quarter-finalist at this year’s 73rd US Girls’ Junior Championship, Maddison Hinson-Tolchard, Caitlin Peirce and Sarah Hammett.

The New Zealand team also comprises six players, with world number 72 Fiona Xu, who matched Bosio’s quarter-final effort at the US Girls’ Junior Championship, as their leading star. Others in the team are Vivian Lu, Eunseo Choi, Tara Raj, Darae Chung and Sumin Kang.

Bennett’s tied second place in Abu Dhabi is the best result by an Australian in the championship that is organised by The R&A and the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) and was first held in 2018. For New Zealand, Wenyung Keh’s play-off loss to Atthaya in the inaugural championship in Singapore in 2018 remains the nation’s best finish.

The field in Thailand is stacked with stars, including Saki Baba, Japan’s world number four and the reigning US Amateur champion. Korean world number 11 Lim Ji-yoo and local star Natthakritta Vongtaveelap, aiming to go one better than her tied second-place finish last year, will be strong contenders as well.

The winner at Siam Country Club will earn the opportunity to compete in two Major championships in 2023 – the AIG Women’s Open and the Amundi Evian Championship. They will also be invited to the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Hana Financial Group Championship.

In April, 21-year-old Rudgeley became the first Australian to make the cut at ANWA and play the final round at Augusta National Golf Club where she finished tied eighth. She’ll be making her debut in the WAAP. The West Australian has already had a taste of Major championship golf, earning a place in the 2021 AIG Women’s Open at Carnoustie through Final Qualifying.

Rudgeley, whose last win was in the third week of January at the Avondale Amateur, said: “I have heard so many good things about the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific championship and how the girls have enjoyed their previous experiences. I am excited to finally become a part of it this year.

“I know what is on offer to the WAAP champion. It was incredible to play and be in the mix at the ANWA this year and playing at the AIG Women’s Open last year was just a whole other level. Having had a taste of Major championship golf, I know that is where I want to be. Winning WAAP would be a huge boost to getting back there.”

Bennett missed a chance to make a birdie on the par-five 18th hole at Abu Dhabi Golf Club in the final round to force a play-off in the third WAAP championship. But the 22-year-old from New South Wales won hearts as she smiled her way through the disappointment.

Bennett said: “I played really well last year. Even though I didn’t quite get a win, it was an awesome experience. All year I’ve been thinking about the WAAP and getting a second crack at it. I’m excited to be back this year and hopefully I can go one better.”

The 17-year-old Xu became the third New Zealander to win the Australian Amateur crown, following in the footsteps of her idol Lydia Ko, who achieved the feat in 2012. That gives the soft-spoken Xu bragging rights to be called the best women’s amateur golfer Down Under. She is also the defending New Zealand Amateur champion.

Xu said: “I have had some great success in the past year, but the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific championship will be another step up for me. There are some remarkable players in the Asian countries and the competition will be intense. So many factors are involved in winning a tournament, but I am sure I won’t be short on confidence and belief when I tee up in Thailand.”

The WAAP has been developed by The R&A and the APGC to inspire future generations of women golfers and provides the champion with an unparalleled launchpad early in their career through exemptions into multiple women’s major championships and other elite amateur championships.

The WAAP is proudly supported by Rolex, Nippon Kabaya Ohayo Holdings, Trust Golf, Hana Financial Group and Samsung.