Malaysia’s Ashley Lau continued her recent resurgence with a joint fifth place finish at the Epson Tour’s Circling Raven Championship on Sunday, vaulting her up to 47th spot on the tour’s Race for the Card standings.
Lau followed up a lacklustre opening 73 with excellent rounds of 68 and 65 to finish on 10-under-par 206 at Circling Raven Golf Club, three shots behind winner Yue Ren of China. Ren claimed her maiden Epson Tour title with a playoff victory over Thailand’s Chanettee Wannasaen.
Lau finished solo third in the previous week’s Wildhorse Ladies Golf Classic, which was shortened to 36 holes due to poor air quality caused by wildfires. Prior to the last two events, she had missed nine cuts in 13 starts.
“I’ve been hitting more greens in regulation and giving myself more birdie opportunities, compared to my previous tournaments,” said Lau, who nailed seven birdies in a flawless final round.
Lau, who hails from Bintulu, Sarawak, attributed her fine run to a new mental approach of not over-thinking during tournaments.
“I try to take it one shot at a time and be in the present. It’s easy to think too far ahead, so to take the pressure off, I try to stay in the moment,” noted the former University of Michigan standout, who turned professional in November last year.
Lau picked up a cheque for US$7,652 and moved 15 rungs up the Race for the Card into 47th spot with USD26,173 from 15 events. The top 10 players in the rankings following the season-ending Epson Tour Championship on October 5-8 will receive Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour cards for 2024.
“Top 10 on the Race for the Card would be great and it’s not impossible. But I’ve always liked to take baby steps, so for now top 35 is the goal for me,” said Lau.
A top 35 finish on the Race for the Card will earn Lau a place in the LPGA Q-Series, the final stage of qualifying for the 2024 LPGA Tour.
Malaysian number one Natasha Andrea Oon skipped the Circling Raven Championship but retained second spot on the Race for the Card with US$112,269. Compatriot Alyaa Abdulghany, who withdrew from the event, is in 21st place with US$49,269.
The Epson Tour takes a one-week break and returns with the Black Desert Resort Championship at Soldier Hollow Golf Club in Salt Lake City, Utah, on September 7-9. This will be the 18th of 22 stops on the tour’s 2023 schedule.
Lau, Oon and Alyaa will be in action on Malaysian soil this October 26-29 when the LPGA Tour’ US$3 million Maybank Championship tees off at Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club.
2023 Epson Tour Race for the Card (Top 10 as of August 29, 2023)
| Position | Player | Earnings (USD) |
| 1 | Gabriela Ruffels (AUS) | 156,283 |
| 2 | Natasha Andrea Oon (MAS) | 112,269 |
| 3 | Jiwon Jeon (KOR) | 108,616 |
| 4 | France Agathe Laisne (FRA) | 84,977 |
| 5 | Minji Kang (KOR) | 82,575 |
| 6 | Jenny Bae (USA) | 79,938 |
| 7 | Gigi Stoll (USA) | 76,637 |
| 8 | Jenny Coleman (USA) | 76,464 |
| 9 | Roberta Liti (ITA) | 76,208 |
| 10 | Alena Sharp (CAN) | 69,585 |
