Malaysia’ Aretha Pan is on course for her best ever season on the China LPGA Tour following a career-high T2 finish in last week’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Orient Masters in Fujian.
Pan carded rounds of 68, 70 and 68 for a total of 10-under-par 206 at at Orient (Xiamen) Golf & Country Club, finishing just one shot behind winner Ami Hirai of Japan.
Pan’s outing was highlighted by her first-ever hole-in-one during the second round, which came at the 137-yard par-three 12th hole using an 8-iron.
Pan scored her first-ever ace in the second round
The RMB60,000 cheque moved Pan up to 13th place on the 2019 China LPGA Tour Order of Merit with RMB112,960 in season earnings. She will play in two local PGM Tour events next month, and has one more event in China this December in the season-ending Macalline Women’s China Open.
“It’s my first time to be in the mix in China … I had a great week with the bonus of a hole-in-one,” said the 25-year-old from Kota Kinabalu, whose previous best season came in 2016 when she finished 14th on the money list with RMB117,947.
“My putting that week was superb, everything just went my way. I still have two more international events in December, in China and Taiwan, and my goal is still the same – to get my first win outside Malaysia,” she added.
Meanwhile, compatriot Genevieve Ling recorded her best performance in China with a T17 performance on one-under-par 215 (69-73-73). The other two Malaysians in the field, Michelle Koh and Dianne Luke, were T28 and T51 respectively.
For the full 2019 China LPGA Tour Order Of Merit, click here
