Graduates from 2023 CLPGA Qualifying Tournament. Photo: CLPGA
Registration for the 2024 China Ladies Professional Golf Association (CLPGA) qualifying school is now open for aspiring professionals, seeking to make their breakthrough in China and beyond.
Held at the East Course of The Dunes At Shenzhou Peninsula, Hainan, from February 3-6, 2024, a maximum of 132 players will compete over four rounds in the 72-hole strokeplay qualifying tournament.
The top 60 players and ties will progress into the final two rounds. Players will be retired if their score is over 16 after each round. The top 40 players (including ties) after four rounds will earn their playing privileges on the CLPGA for 2024.
Since its inception in 2008, CLPGA Qualifying School has provided players not only from mainland China but from all over the world with a platform to earn their place with a career-changing spot on China’s premier ladies’ golf circuit.
The CLPGA has rapidly built a reputation for producing top players that have enjoyed success beyond its borders with previous CLPGA Order of Merit winners Feng Shanshan, Lin Xiyu, Zhang Weiwei and Thailand’s Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong – all having played on the worldwide LPGA tour.
Other notable CLPGA alumnus include Yin Ruoning, who put her name in the Guinness World Records when she won her first three tournaments as a professional at CLPGA Tour events in 2020. She became the second Chinese woman after Feng to win a major title on the LPGA Tour and also reached the number one spot in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings this year.
Lin, a six-time CLPGA winner, broke into the top 10 of the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking this year while Zeng Liqi, the youngest four-time champion on the CLPGA, showed her mettle abroad by playing at the 2022 Augusta National Women’s Amateur and will be making her rookie debut on the US LPGA after earning her status from the Q-Series.
International winners on the CLPGA in 2023 include American Angel Yin (Buick LPGA Shanghai), Thailand’s Dussavi Soopimijit (Guotai Cup Men’s and Women’s Professional Match Play), Kusuma Meechai (CTBC Ladies Classic) and Singapore’s Shannon Tan at the Singapore Ladies Masters, which was the first professional golf tournament to be held outside mainland China this year.
Li Hong CEO of CLPGA said: “CLPGA Qualifying School offers professionals the opportunity to achieve their dreams of playing in China and around the region. There is growing interest not only from Chinese players but also hopefuls from around the world,”
“We hope to provide players with a true test and look forward to welcoming those who eventually come through to compete on the CLPGA in 2024.”
The 2024 CLPGA Schedule can be downloaded here while registration and more details on the CLPGA Qualifying Tournament can be viewed and downloaded here.
