There is much at stake as the Orient Women's China Open teed off on Thursday in Fujian province as the China LPGA Tour season finale determines who will win the much-coveted Order of Merit.
In a season-long battle, 19-year-old Ji Yuai, a winner in Tianjin and Shanghai, currently leads Pang Runzhi, winner of the Singapore Ladies Masters, by 12,891 yuan ($1,775). The two played together in the opening round at the Orient (Xiamen) Golf and Country Club with Thai veteran Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong, last year's money list winner, rounding out the marquee trio.
The Order winner will also receive a full-time playing card on the LPGA Tour of Korea for next season.
"For me, it is the same as always: I'll try my best. If others perform better, it's not my fault," reasoned Dalian native Ji who has earned 364,846 yuan this year to Pang's 351,955 yuan. "Pang Runzhi shot a 66 on the final day of the CLPG Tour Championship showing some real firepower. She's quite competitive. The money list battle will definitely depend on this event. As I said last time, I wouldn't be surprised if I win my third title. The key is whether I can wrap up the season with a perfect ending."
▲ Ji Yuai, CLPGA Order of Merit leader, tracks her tee shot during the first round of the China LPGA Tour season finale at the Orient (Xiamen) Golf and Country Club in Fujian province on Thursday. Ji shot a six 6-under 66 and trails leader Fang Xinyuan by two strokes. China Daily
Pang, a big-hitting high-school student from Tianjin, calculated she would need to finish in the top-five to win the Order with Ji finishing further behind.
"If I win I will be really happy. If not, I'll keep pushing next year," said the 17-year-old who is in her first full season as a professional. "But I certainly don't want Ji Yuai to play badly. I expect her to perform well, so my goal is to finish in the top three."
Another player doing her homework is defending champion Angelina Ye Lei. The Shanghai native won last year's tournament by two strokes for her first pro win when she beat amateur Wang Zixuan, also at Orient Xiamen. This past year she has played full-time on the Epson Tour, the LPGA Tour development circuit, where she retained her card for the 2025 season.
After an equal-seventh finish last month at the CLPG Tour Championship, the Stanford University graduate has been at home in Shanghai the past week working on her irons game.
"I think it's a little better. I have been hitting them more solidly, something I struggled with two weeks ago. Didn't really hit enough greens. Hopefully that will translate to more greens this week. There are a couple of bunkers out there, some are softer, some are firmer, so figuring those out as well. I feel like I have done a pretty good job doing my prep work."
Ye said the most important thing for her this week as defending champion was to stay focused and treat the championship as "just another tournament". In the opening round she was paired with Xiamen native Liu Yan who is back home after completing her second season on the LPGA Tour, and Zhou Shiyuan, the 14-year-old amateur who has won twice against pro fields on the CLPGA Tour this season.
"I'm 23, I'm not old, but they (the Chinese amateurs) are all 16, 17, playing great. Lots of potential, love to see that," said Ye. "And then playing with Liu Yan. She's come back from the LPGA Tour, she hits the ball really, really long. I need to make sure I am not trying to catch up with her because that's just going to ruin my own game."
Liu, who made 11 of 22 cuts to earn $313,000 this year and successfully retained her playing card for the 2025 LPGA Tour season, comes into the tournament battling an injury in her upper chest that occurred while she was sleeping.
"This injury came out of nowhere, and I still don't really understand how it happened. But it's most likely related to my sleeping posture. So right now I'm working on adjusting my sleep position," said the 26-year-old Liu, runner-up at the national championship in 2019 and 2018.
"I plan to return to the US right after the new year for some adjustments to my clubs, and then get into my winter training. The season starts in February. My ultimate goal is to win and win more, but aside from that I also want to enjoy the atmosphere and life on tour even more. That's just as important."
