Houston, Texas, United States: China’s Muni He has extra incentive and high hopes as she prepares for this week’s Aramco Houston Championship, the fourth stop in this season’s PIF Global Series.
Outside of the Majors, the five PIF Global Series events offer the biggest purses on the Ladies European Tour (LET) and this week’s stop at Golfcrest Country Club in Pearland is the penultimate one of the season.
“These tournaments feel like a fun challenge for us players,” Muni said ahead of her first practice round of the week. “There’s still some pressure, but it’s the kind of pressure we look forward to. That’s not always the case with other events – sometimes you know it’s going to be a grind.
“With the Aramco events, we know it’s going to be a great week regardless, and that makes us really excited to be here.”
The Golf Saudi-backed PIF Global Series has already taken in stops at the PIF Saudi Ladies International, the Aramco Korea Championship and the PIF London Championship.
A total prize fund of US$2 million is up for grabs at each event, with US$500,000 set aside for the team competition and the remaining US$1.5 million going to the individual competition.
This week’s field comprises 104 professionals representing 35 nationalities and they will be competing in a 26-team format over the first two days, with an individual stroke play competition concluding on the final day.
Muni has been teamed up with Germany’s Aline Krauter, Anna Magnusson of Sweden and Denmark’s Smilla Tarning Soenderby.
Muni said: “It’s definitely going to be a lot of fun. Aline is a great player, and we’ve played together quite a bit this year. There are some familiar faces and some new ones from the LET, so it should be a lot of fun.”
Muni plays most of her golf on the LPGA Tour where she has produced a mixed bag of results this year, making six cuts in 11 starts with just two top-25 finishes.
“I started the year feeling really good after a great off-season, and I was happy with the start," said Muni, who spent one year at the University of Southern California where she majored in communications before turning professional. “Then I hit a bit of a rough patch in the middle of the season with a few missed cuts, but that’s golf.
“The important thing is to reflect and realise that my game wasn’t in a bad place, it just lacked momentum. Now, for this final stretch of the year, I feel like my game is in a good spot again. It’s just about making a few tweaks and building that momentum to finish strong.”
Asked what her expectations were for this week, Muni said: “Just to go out there and do my best. My goal is always to be as close to the top of the leaderboard as possible, and with the team element in these events, it makes it even more fun to see how we stack up against the other teams.”
The PIF Global Series is enjoying its first visit to Houston as the Golf Saudi-backed event looks to extend its reputation for showcasing the world’s greatest female golfers on iconic global stages.
Along with 104 top-class players competing for the individual and team prizes, several activations at Golfcrest Country Club will be focusing on giving youngsters their first go at the sport including Golf Saudi’s Go Golf Clinics.
