No surprise that ‘Seoul Sisters’ take the podium at Singapore Women’s Open
With two-thirds of the 102-woman field being South Koreans, the $1.1 million Singapore Women’s Open saw an outpouring of “kimchi kindred-ship” at Tanah Merah Country Club’s Tampines course from Dec 9 to 11.
And with the Korean company Hana Financial Group being the sponsor, it was all about the Land of the Morning Calm not just for the three days but also the whole week.
So, the main talking point during the event was about the strength of the Koreans in the world of women’s golf with almost a third of the top 100-ranked golfers being Koreans.
The 70-strong Korean legion at the Tampines course raised conversation about how Pak Se Ri pioneered a Korean onslaught on the global women’s game with the “Seoul Sister” remaining a name stuck in their DNA.
Pak was the only Korean on the LPGA Tour in 1998, her spectacular triumph in the US Women’s Open that year was the stage from which she launched four other Major victories among 25 LPGA wins and became a Hall of Famer in 2007.
Today, there are hundreds of Koreans on several women’s Tours and golf in the country has flourished since Pak stoked the fires of interest with her immaculate showings.
Said Hong Ji-won, my pro-am flight partner who won the Hanwha Classic in Chuncheon, Gangwon in December: “Pak is the country’s main ambassador. I was born two years after she won the US Open, but her name is still mentioned among my colleagues. She is an icon, and we all look up to her.”
So numerically, the odds were in favour of a Korean winner for the $198,000 title on a pristine course that the TMCC organisers had laid out.
And so it was, with Park Ji-young declared the winner after two rounds with the final day’s play suspended because of inclement weather, causing only seven groups to set foot on the challenging layout before play was halted at 8.50 am.
The world No. 72 claimed the honours after shooting a six-under 66 on Friday and 67 on Saturday to win by a shot on 11-under 133, leaving compatriots Hong Jin-min, Park Hyun-kyung and Lee So-yong to claim joint-second spot.
It was Park Ji-young’s fifth victory on the Korean LPGA Tour. She said: “Of course, I would have loved to have a round, but rules allow for a 36- hole victory, so I’ll savour it. I did accomplish come-from-behind victories previously, but never from a shortened tournament.
“So, it is really different. It feels very special. A win is always fulfilling regardless of how I attained it.”
The home crowd had plenty to cheer as Singapore’s leading professional Koh Sock Hwee, who shot 68 and 72, finished joint-26th, a position she shared with Hong Kong’s star player Tiffany Chan, who registered a hole-in-one on the first day.
Singapore’s Laguna-National sponsored Shannon Tan, the world No. 82 amateur, claimed the amateur title with rounds of 76 and 67.
For Shannon, 18, who studies at Texas Tech in the United States, this was her first cut in a professional event and she made it with the 67 on Saturday that propelled her from tied-88th to tied-53rd on Saturday, inside the cut of 60 and ties.
Pre-tournament favourites world No. 3 Atthaya Thitikul of Thailand and world No. 14 Park Min-ji posted 68 and 69 on Saturday to finish in a seven-way tie for ninth on 137.
Former world No. 1 Shin Ji-yai, who won the HSBC Women’s Champions at the Garden course in 2009, finished in the same position as Shannon with rounds of 74 and 69.
Despite the curtailed event, the field enjoyed two good rounds at a layout considered one of the best in the Asia-Pacific region. Said Hong during the pro-am: “This was my first time on the course and I must say that it is a fabulous layout. Each hole has a distinctive character, and I love the par-threes. The par-four 15th is a tough hole and I found the bunker on my approach. I will surely want to come back.”
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