(June 30, Beijing) - 17-year-old amateur Han Zilin won the 2024 Reignwood China Women's Classic with her strength and luck, becoming the first Hong Kong, China champion since the first season of the Women's China Tour in 2009.
Han Zilin
Finishing the final round at the Reignwood Ecopark Golden Bear Course on Sunday, Han was six shots behind and tied for fourth, having no expectations for the title and just putting her head down when she completed 72 holes, tying the lowest of the week at 65 to move to the top of the leaderboard, while Thai peer Pin Pisa was officially confirmed for the "Green Goddess" trophy after missing a birdie putt on the final hole.
Han Zilin shot a four-round 278 (68-73-72-65), 10 under par, to win by one shot.
Reignwood Group sponsored player Pin Pisa to enter the tournament with a wild card, and made three birdies in the final round to shoot a bogey-free 69 and finish second at 9-under par with a 279 (70-69-71-69).
Pin Pisa
54-hole leader Pang Yunzhi had an up-and-down day, but made two birdies on the final three holes and shot a 73 to finish third at 8-under par 280 (72-69-66-73). Since the first and second place finishers are amateurs, the 17-year-old girl from Tianjin received a championship check of 150,000 yuan and will continue to be at the top of the women's China Tour prize list.
Liaoning girl Zhou Jiayi shot a four-round 286 (74-68-72-72), two under par, and tied for seventh. The other player in the top 10 is Tang Rongze. Entering the lineup through an 18-hole qualifying round, amateur Tang Rongze shot a 287 (76-70-71-70), one under par, and was alone in tenth place.
Zhou Jiayi
Sunday's highlight show begins with Pang Yunzhi and Pin Pisa battling it out for the top spot. The Thai girl, who will study at Arizona State University in the future, birdied the first two holes, and when she made her third birdie of the day on the seventh hole, she took a three-shot lead because of the same hole, Pang Yunzhi made a mistake on the second shot and swallowed a double bogey.
But then the plot took a 180-degree turn. Han Zilin gradually stepped onto the center stage. She birdied the par-5 8th, dead birdie 1 or 2 feet to the edge of the flagstick on the 9th and 10th holes, and birdie fourth in a 12-foot putt on the 11th hole.
Han Zilin
After a hole-in-one, she holed 12 to 15 feet long putts and birdies on the 13th and 14th holes to take a solo lead.
But it was the final two holes, the par-3 17th, that Han said made her prettiest birdie of the day, and she putted 20 feet to take a two-shot lead.
The 18th hole, par four, Lady Luck favored her. After Han Zilin's three-wood tee shot into the fairway bunker, the second shot hit the green bunker with 50 yards remaining. Remembering Bryson-DeChambeau's U.S. Open win in the bunker this year, she used a 56-degree wedge and hit the green before luckily spinning back to 10 feet while she made two putts to save a bogey.
Han Zilin's advantage was only one shot, and as it turned out, it was enough to help her get on the championship podium.
Han Zilin's interview video
"During the game, I always knew my results, but I didn't know the leaderboard, I knew that I played well today, but I thought that the players behind me would definitely hit the first place and have a good performance," Han Zilin said, "so I didn't worry at all." I didn't think about what was going to happen in the future, I just focused on how much I'm playing now. ”
Han Zilin also believes that 30% of her winning the championship is luck, 40% is psychology, and 30% is technique. "I don't think I did anything for four days, I didn't change my movements, my putting, I just went to training over and over again," she said, "and I was able to do that on the last day because I was very determined and I did a good job with every ball and every club." I don't think about anything else, I only have a link to my ball, I don't link to anything else. I only play against the ball, against the environment around me. ”
Although she won the trophy in the women's middle school, Han Zilin said that she still will not change the trajectory of her life, and will study at the University of Oregon next year, after which she will consider whether to change careers.
Pang Runzhi
Singapore Masters champion Pang Yun Chi did not win, but on the par-5 hole, he birdied the par-5 with two putts and a dead bird on the 18th hole from 125 yards out, and bounced back to finish in third place. It was also the second consecutive race in which she earned a championship check.
"I was very happy with the result, and when I knew I had to birdie the last hole to get the championship money, I told myself I had to birdie. I didn't expect that I to play so well in that shot," Pang Runzhi said of the women's China Tour prize winner, "Now in this position, the prize money king is definitely a goal for me, and I will continue to work hard for this in the second half of the year." ”
The Reignwood China Women's Classic is the last race of the first half of the 2024 Women's China Tour. A total of 938 birds and 24 eagles appeared in the four-day competition, and Reignwood Group donated 986,000 yuan to the "Reignwood Road" Future Star Youth Series in accordance with its pre-race commitment.
Hole-by-hole results in the final round
Stadium Shadows
Photographers: Liu Zhuang, Wang Liming