Ji Yuai of China
In a rush to finish the final round before the arrival of Tropical Storm Bebinca on Sunday, China’s Ji Yuai held it together in the wild and windy conditions to close with an even-par 72 and win the inaugural Fila Golf Women’s Classic by two shots in Shanghai.
With the players teeing off the final round from a shotgun start on the Yangtze Links at PGA Golf Club Anying, Ji finished on 10-under 206 to claim the RMB180,000 winner’s purse.
Amateur Tang Rongze finished runner-up after also posting an even-par 72 playing in the final group, while Cai Danlin was third at four shots back after a three-under 69. Chinese amateurs Ren Yijia (70) and Zhou Shiyuan (71) were equal fourth, five shots off the pace.
Ji, who becomes the first two-time winner on the China LPGA Tour this year after having won the Tianjin Women’s Open in April, put together a steady round in difficult conditions that included three birdies, a double-bogey six at the 359-yard fourth hole, followed by a bogey at the par-three next.
“It’s great to enter the winner club, again. But I haven’t lost my game since Tianjin, it’s just one or two little troublesome things which blocked the way to the winner’s podium. I was confident going into this week. Since the first birdie in the first round, I became more and more confident,” said Ji who moved to second on the CLPGA Tour Order of Merit with RMB257, 913 in earnings.
“With the weather prediction, I knew that we didn’t have many options. I prepared for the shotgun start. In fact, I expected that our tee time would be earlier than 6:30am. I woke up at 4am and knew I could be very tired without a buggy. I didn’t panic after the double-bogey, bogey. I knew it was an early stage. With the winning experience, I knew it’s a long day. Anything could happen.”
Tang Rongze
Tang, who was gunning for her first win against a pro field, lamented a missed opportunity after being tied with Ji through five holes. Her round featured three birdies offset by three bogeys.
“This is not a great round. I had a steady start, but my iron play wasn’t great. I didn’t have much birdie chances. I also had a couple of annoying lip-outs. But I had a fantastic birdie (on the 18th) with a great chip at the end of the day. I felt great about it,” said Tang, a 15-year-old from Qingdao.
“This my best finish on the China LPGA Tour, which is a great honour. But I can’t help thinking that triumph was possible with a better score today.”
Cai Danlin
Cai, a 21-year-old from Hainan, solidified her place on the money list in moving into third on the Order with RMB224.646 from five events.
“I knew it was going to be hard going into the final round seven shots out of the lead. But after three rounds, I was just four shots behind and felt a little bit regret to be honest. I missed plenty of opportunities during the competition. Ji is a good player and she hits long. The course suits her. She deserves this.”
