Ren Denies Liu in Clash of China Teen Titans

Chengdu, China: In a battle of the teen titans, rookie pro Ren Yijia pipped amateur Liu Yujie by one stroke to win the China Golf Women’s Legacy event for her third victory of the CLPG Tour season.

In a final round during which the lead went back and forth several times at Poly Chengdu Golf Club, it was 16-year-old Ren who ultimately prevailed. She closed with a 69 for a 54-hole score of 17-under 199. It was the sixth CLPG Tour title of her young career. The victory was worth RMB144,000.

Playing in the penultimate flight, ahead of Ren, 15-year-old Liu narrowly missed an eagle attempt at the par-five 18th and signed for a 68.

Pang Runzhi (71), the first-round co-leader, finished equal third on 206, tied with Chinese Taipei’s Chen Yu-ju (69). Thai veteran Pimnipa Panthong (67) was a shot further back in equal fifth with Chinese amateur Cui Jinghan (68).

“I saw Liu Yujie miss her eagle putt on the 18th hole. That definitely relieved some of my pressure. I knew I only needed a birdie to win, so I felt a bit more relaxed after that,” said Ren, who only started playing golf six years ago on a simulator and was a member of the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation’s Patsy Hankins Trophy team that triumphed in the amateur team match play event against Europe at the start of 2025.

The Dalian teenager became the third player in CLPG Tour history to win six titles, and also the youngest to achieve six wins. She is now one victory away from Lin Xiyu’s all-time record of seven wins.

“I think I won because my mindset was relatively stable. I played steadily and consistently. Last week I made some adjustments to my swing and changed the way I generate power. I’ve definitely gained a lot of distance – I don’t know exactly how many yards, but it’s a lot. This week was about getting used to the new swing. Next week, I’ll be competing in the National Team Championship.”

Liu, 29th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), lamented a missed opportunity to get her second CLPG Tour title, but conceded that Ren was full value for the win.

She said: “Shooting 68 today is still a good result. It’s not that I didn’t play well. I played solid overall, and I can feel myself improving because I’ve shot in the 60s for three consecutive days. The start wasn’t very smooth today, but I played well toward the end. My long game, shot quality, and short game are all better now compared to a few years ago or even last year.”

Starting the day with a two-shot lead, Ren carded a birdie three at the first hole to open up a four-shot lead as Liu opened with a bogey-five. After Liu picked up a stroke at the 347-yard seventh hole, the Beijing native made another birdie at the ninth. Ren closed out the front nine with a three-putt bogey, her lead reduced to one stroke.

After making birdie at the 11th to catch Ren, Liu picked up another stroke at the 508-yard par-five 12th hole for the outright lead. Ren answered with a birdie at the 374-yard next to draw even as Liu could only make par.

Both players birdied the 390-yard 15th hole, but Liu dropped a shot at the next to fall one stroke behind Ren. At the par-five last, Liu reached the green in two shots, leaving herself an 18-foot downhill putt. She missed her eagle putt and tapped in for birdie to tie Ren for the lead.

Her advantage was short-lived as Ren also reached the green in two shots. She duly two-putted from 30 feet for a birdie to secure the victory.

There was consolation for Liu, whose group claimed the team victory for the second consecutive day. Although her final birdie didn’t earn her the individual win, it helped her group capture the team championship. Others on the team included fellow amateurs Cui Jinghan (68) and Zhou Jiaxin (72) and Indonesian pro Holly Victoria Halim (70).  

“Even though we didn’t know the final scores, when we got to the last hole I felt we had a really good chance. We played well and executed every shot well,” said 15-year-old Cui, 151st in the WAGR. “As for me personally, I made a lot of short putts. The only regret is that I didn’t make the birdie on the final hole. That was a little disappointing.”