Beijing, China: Just weeks after finishing as the top player at the World Amateur Team Championship, China’s Xu Ying has entered the pro ranks determined to take her impressive game to new heights.
“First of all, I’m very happy to have turned professional,” said the lean 16-year-old who is in Beijing this week for the Fila Golf Women’s Classic, a RMB700,000 CLPG Tour event being played at Bayhood No. 9 International Golf Club. “I feel this is a new identity and a new journey for me.”
The Zhuhai teenager, a two-time winner on the CLPG Tour this year, has had an eventful month that began with the World Amateur Team Championship. With the world’s top female amateurs in Singapore to contest the Espirito Santo Trophy, Xu topped the field by four strokes in helping the China team to an equal-fourth finish at Tanah Merah Country Club, its best result at the biennial event.
After placing equal seventh against a pro field at the Buick LPGA Shanghai the following week to earn top amateur honours, Xu turned pro at the Women’s China Open the next week. With the RMB11,200 she earned from finishing equal 28th at the national championship, Xu, who is 277th in the Rolex World Rankings, said she was aiming for a strong finish to the season with only three events left to move up the CLPG Tour Points Ranking.
“I think this gives me even greater motivation to push forward and catch up. It means I’ll train even harder in my daily practice and I believe I’ll compete with even more passion,” she said.
Others in the field this week include Michelle Zhang Yunxuan and Liu Wenbo, both of whom are returning from competing in the United States, current Order of Merit leader Wang Zixuan, Pang Runzhi, the Women’s China Open champion, and amateur Cui Jinghan who last weekend won the individual gold medal at the Asian Youth Games in Bahrain, among others.
With the exclusive Bayhood No. 9 hosting a pro tournament for the first time since opening in 2007, weather is likely to be a factor this week. The forecast calls for possible afternoon showers for Thursday’s opening round with the temperature dipping to six degrees Celsius for the Friday and Saturday rounds.
The Bayhood layout, created by the late Canadian course designer Neil Haworth, will provide another challenge. The spectacular par-72, 6,457-yard course in the capital’s northeast features rolling hills and tree-lined fairways, culminating in a memorable but watery 130-yard, par-three finishing hole set against the clubhouse.
“The main challenge on this course is the greens – they’re firm, making it difficult to stop the ball, and reading the breaks is tricky. I’ll be spending extra time on my putting over the next few days,” said Shenzhen native Zhang who is back home after recording four top-10 finishes on the Epson Tour this year to earn her LPGA Tour playing card for next season.
“Many have congratulated me and asked how I’ve changed but honestly, I don’t feel drastically different. Having spent 2½ years on the Epson Tour, I’m still gradually adapting to life on the US Tour. Next year will be a fresh start and a transition period. I’ll focus on adjusting to new courses and try to enjoy the experience.”
Fresh from her one-stroke win at the national championship a fortnight ago, the big-hitting Pang currently sits second on the Order of Merit with 281.517 points. This week, the 18-year-old will be trying to close the gap on leader Wang (333.625 points) with another strong performance.
“My confidence is high right now. With the Fila Golf Women’s Classic being held in Beijing, close to my home in Tianjin, and given my current form, I’m hopeful for a strong performance,” Pang said. “I finished second in the money list last year, and now I’m back in that position. I’ll give it my all through the end of the season and aim to finish with no regrets.”