Chongming Island, Shanghai, China: Teenager Tang Rongze is the latest in a long line of rising Chinese amateurs to stamp her mark on the China LPGA Tour.
The 15-year-old from Qingdao produced a mature display on the Yangtze Links at PGA Golf Club Anying to finish runner-up in the inaugural Fila Golf Women’s Classic.
In a mad rush to finish the final round before the arrival of Tropical Storm Bebinca, Tang posted a closing even-par 72 in wild and windy conditions.
With a 54-hole aggregate of eight-under 208, Tang ended two strokes behind the victorious Ji Yuai.
Tang lamented a missed opportunity after being tied with Ji through five holes. Her round featured three birdies offset by three bogeys.
“I had a steady start, but my iron play wasn’t great. I didn’t have many birdie chances. I also had a couple of annoying lip-outs. But I had a fantastic birdie (on the 18th) with a great chip,” said Tang, who began the week in 419th place in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).
“This my best finish on the China LPGA Tour, which is a great honour. But I can’t help thinking that a triumph was possible with a better score today,” added Tang.
The current strength in depth of Chinese female amateurs was illustrated by Ren Yijia (144th in the WAGR) and Zhou Shiyuan (198th), who ended in a share of fourth place.
Ren already has the distinction of savouring victory against the professionals, winning May’s Beijing Women’s Championship. She further underlined her potential by finishing seventh in July’s R&A Junior Open in Scotland.
With her latest victory, Ji became the first two-time winner on the China LPGA Tour this year, having also won the Tianjin Women’s Open in April.
“It’s great to enter the winner club, again. 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 China LPGA Tour Order of Merit with RMB257, 913 in earnings.
