Singapore: Korea and China made bright starts to the 31st Women’s World Amateur Team Championship at Tanah Merah Country Club’s Tampines Course.
With Oh Soo-min firing a four-under-par 68 and Park Seo-jin contributing a 69, defending champions Korea ended day one of the Espirito Santo Trophy in second place, just one shot off the pace being set by the United States of America.
China, for whom Xu Ying had a 70 and Zhou Shiyuan a 71, are joint fourth with England, while Thailand and Japan have a share of sixth spot on 142.
Led by a five-under 67 from Farah O’Keefe and complemented by a bogey-free, three-under 69 from reigning US Women’s Amateur champion Megha Ganne, the US soared to the summit.
“I think my ball-striking was just really good,” said O’Keefe, a junior at the University of Texas who is seventh in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) and who also represented the US in this year’s Arnold Palmer Cup. “It was a really good, patient, mental round where I was just letting the birdies come to me, rather than trying to force things to happen.”
Oh Soo-min, 14th in the WAGR, snared four birdies and an eagle against two bogeys en route to a 68. Runner-up at this year’s Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific, Oh reached the 533-yard, par-five eighth in two, converting a 10-foot uphill putt and notching the only recorded eagle of the day.
Team-mate Park Seo-jin tallied four birdies of her own, adding a three-under 69 to the team’s seven-under total of 137.
“I think Soo-min and I had very good teamwork today,” said Park, runner-up at this year’s Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation Junior Girls’ Championship. “It wasn’t that good of a run for me on the [outward] nine, but I was just patient. I could have had more birdies on the [inward] nine.”
Spain, who held a share of the lead with Korea heading into the final round in 2023, finished with a five-under total of 139. Stanford sophomore Andrea Revuelta carded a bogey-free round of her own, finishing with a 68. Her team-mates Paula Martín Sampedro and Carolina López-Chacarra both added one-under 71s.
Only the best two of each team’s three daily scores count toward the total.
“It was a very solid round. I hit 18 greens, so I basically played perfectly from tee to green. Didn’t miss one shot,” said Revuelta. “We know we have a chance to win this tournament. We have three amazing players. It’s just giving ourselves the opportunity of being in the mix at the end.”
Host country Singapore is tied 16th after round one. Chen Xingtong, runner-up at this year’s US Girls’ Junior at Atlanta Athletic Club, notched five birdies and finished at three-under 69, sitting tied-fifth individually. Team-mates Valencia Chang and Inez Ng carded rounds 78 and 79 respectively.
Ng, a senior at the University of North Carolina who is competing in her second WATC, had the honour of hitting the opening tee shot.
In the individual standings, Japan’s Aira Nagasawa matched Oh’s 68, while Rianne Malixi of the Philippines carded a 70. Malixi won last year’s US Women’s Amateur and US Junior Girls’.
Malixi said: “It’s been a while since I’ve really represented my country, since I got injured. Now I’m in college and representing the Philippines while in college is really amazing, being given this opportunity is always an honour.”
Leading Team Scores
136 – United States
137 – Korea
139 – Spain
141 – China, England
142 – Canada, Japan, Thailand
144 – Denmark, Sweden
Selected Scores
145 – Hong Kong, China; Philippines
147 – Australia, Singapore
148 – Chinese Taipei, Malaysia
150 – New Zealand
156 – Vietnam
176 – Guam
Leading Individual Scores
67 – Farah O’Keefe (US)
68 – Oh Soo-min (Korea); Andrea Revuelta (Spain); Aira Nagasawa (Japan)
69 – Chen Xingtong (Singapore); Park Seo-jin (Korea); Megha Ganne (US); Nellie Ong (England)
70 – Rianne Malixi (Philippines); Vanessa Borovilos (Canada); Xu Ying (China); Meja Ortengren (Sweden); Silje Ohma (Norway); Alexis Yanet Lamadrid (Mexiuco)
Selected Scores
71 – Kritchanya Kaopattanaskul (Thailand); Prim Prachnakorn (Thailand); Zhou Shiyuan (China); Elin Wang (Hong Kong, China)
73 – Eunseo Choi (New Zealand); Jeneath Wong (Malaysia); Ella Scaysbrook (Australia); Chun Liao-hsin (Chinese Taipei)
74 – Ren Yijia (China); Anna Iwanaga (Japan); Jazy Roberts (Australia); Raegan Denton (Australia); Sabrina Wong (Hong Kong, China)
75 – Grace Pauline Quintanilla (Philippines); Zi Yu Foong (Malaysia); Mamika Shinchi (Japan); Sung Ai-jin (Korea); Chen Yu-chu (Chinese Taipei)
76 – Junia Gabasa (Philippines); Leung Hei-tung (Hong Kong, China); Hsu Huai-chien (Chinese Taipei)
77 – Pimpisa Rubrong (Thailand); Vivian Lu (New Zealand); Le Nguyen Minh Anh (Vietnam)
78 – Valencia Chang (Singapore); Charlayne Chong (Malaysia)
79 – Inez Ng (Singapore); Chuc An Le (Vietnam)
