The third leg of the LPGA’s five-tournament Asian Swing takes the women golfers to Kuala Lumpur and the eighth-annual Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia.
World No. 1 So Yeon Ryu, and World No. 2 Sung Hyun Park, will headline a 78-player field at TPC Kuala Lumpur which includes 43 of the top 50 players on the 2017 LPGA Tour’s Money List.
HISTORY
The Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia was first played in October 2010, and been contested at TPC Kuala Lumpur since its inception.
The tournament’s title sponsor is Sime Darby, Malaysia’s leading multinational conglomerate involved in five core sectors: plantations, property, industrial, motors, and energy and utilities, with a growing presence in healthcare.
The inaugural tournament was contested over 54-holes with no cut, and limited to 60-players. The purse was $1.8 million with the winner receiving $270k.
THE SKINNY
NAME: Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia
COURSE: TPC Kuala Lumpur (East)
WHERE: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
DISTANCE: 6,246 Yards, Par 71
FIELD: 78 players
FORMAT: 72-hole stroke play/no cut
TOTAL PURSE: $1,800,000
WINNING SHARE: $270,000
2016 WINNER: Shanshan Feng (China)
2016 RUNNER-UP: Suzann Pettersen (Norway)
GOLF CHANNEL COVERAGE
EST. Tape Delay
ROUND 1: THU 6:00 – 9:30 PM
ROUND 2: FRI 8:00 – 10:30 PM
ROUND 3: SAT 8:00 – 10:30 PM
ROUND 4: SUN 9:00 – 12:00 AM
WINNERS AT SIME DARBY
In 2016, Shanshan Feng captured her second Sime Darby title, edging Suzann Pettersen by three shots. It was the first of the Chinese star’s back-to-back LPGA Tour victories in 2016.
Both Feng and Pettersen are in the field this week in Malaysia, as is 2015 Sime Darby champion Jessica Korda and previous runners-up Lydia Ko (2015), Stacy Lewis (2015), Pornanong Phatlum (2014) and Yani Tseng (2011).
SIME DARBY CHAMPIONS
2016: Shanshan Feng (-17)
2015: Jessica Korda (-18)
2014: Shanshan Feng (-18)
2013: Lexi Thompson (-19)
2012: Inbee Park (-15)
2011: Na Yeon Choi (-15)
2010: Jimin Kang (-9)
THE FIELD: BY THE NUMBERS
2017 LPGA WINNERS (16)
Shanshan Feng (LPGA Volvik Championship)
Brooke Henderson (Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give, McKayson New Zealand Women’s Open)
Ariya Jutanugarn (Manulife LPGA Classic)
Eun-Hee Ji (Swinging Skirts LPGA Taiwan Championship)
Danielle Kang (KPMG Women’s PGA Championship)
Cristie Kerr (LOTTE Championship presented by Hershey)
Sei Young Kim (Citibanamex Lorena Ochoa Match Play)
Mi Hyang Lee (Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies Scottish Open)
Mirim Lee (Kia Classic)
Stacy Lewis (Cambia Portland Classic)
Brittany Lincicome (Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic)
Anna Nordqvist (Bank of Hope Founders Cup, The Evian Championship)
Haru Nomura (Volunteers of America Texas Shootout)
Sung Hyun Park (U.S. Women’s Open Championship, CP Women’s Open)
So Yeon Ryu (ANA Inspiration, Walmart NW Arkansas Championship)
Amy Yang (Honda LPGA Thailand)
2017 LPGA ROOKIES (9)
Aditi Ashok, Nicole Broch Larsen, Peiyun Chien, Laura Gonzalez Escallon, Nelly Korda, Olafia Kristinsdottir, Sung Hyun Park, Madelene Sagstrom, Angel Yin
2017 SOLHEIM CUP MEMBERS – USA (10)
Austin Ernst, Danielle Kang, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Brittany Lang, Brittany Lincicome, Gerina Piller,
Lizette Salas, Michelle Wie, Angel Yin
2017 SOLHEIM CUP MEMBERS – EUROPE (7)
Carlota Ciganda, Charley Hull, Karine Icher, Caroline Masson, Anna Nordqvist, Madelene Sagstrom, Jodi Ewart Shadof
Credit: LPGA Communications, Getty Images
