World N0 1 Yani Tseng confirms her participation at Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia 2011
Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia 2011 is proud to announce that world number one Yani Tseng will be returning to this year's tournament. The current best player in the world will be facing off against some of the world's top female golfers at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club (KLGCC) from 13 -16 October 2011.
Yani will be looking to consolidate her world number one position and put in a strong performance at this year's Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia 2011. The tournament attracts a world class field and Yani can be assured of a stiff competition in this year's tournament, which will be of the highest calibre.
Yani showed her incredible skill to win the Women's British Open earlier in the year, making her the youngest ever golfer (male or female) to win five majors. The current world number one, who has had a meteoric rise to the top, has won 17 tournaments since turning professional in 2007. She became the first person to win an LPGA Major Championship in their first year on tour when she won The LPGA Championship in 2008. Yani is also the fastest player in tour history to reach US$2 million in career earnings, doing it in just over one year.
"I am very happy to confirm that I will be playing in this year's Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia 2011. I am having a great year and have been playing very well, and I want to carry this form to Malaysia. The support from the fans in Asia is amazing and I hope to give them something that they can cheer for," said Yani.
Dato' Wahab Maskan, Group Chief Operating Officer of Sime Darby Berhad and Managing Director of Sime Darby Property, said: "Yani is the world number one player and there can be no better recognition of the standing of our tournament than by having the best player in the world to be a part the competition. We are looking to attract as competitive a field as possible and put on the best show for all the fans locally and in the region."
Robbie Henchman, Senior Vice President, Global Co-Managing Director of IMG Golf said Yani is a great player and looks to be a major part of women's golf for a long time to come. "Her continued endorsement of the tournament speaks volumes about the quality of the event here in Malaysia. The tournament has quickly established itself as one of Asia's most important tournaments and having the best player in the world only reaffirms that status," he added.
This year's Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia promises to offer an even greater showcase, with an increase in prize purse, field size and number of playing days come October. The 2011 tournament will now feature the top 62 LPGA members from the LPGA Tour Official Money List, along with 10 sponsors' invites. The four-day stroke play event with no cut will ensure that players are in Kuala Lumpur for the tournament duration and the local and regional golf community can catch their favorite golfers in action the entire week.
Sime Darby recently confirmed that Americans - Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr and Michelle Wie - will be competing in this year's tournament, along with two Malaysian golfers, Kelly Tan and Jean Chua, who have received the sponsors' invites for the 2011 Championship.
Creamer, who was unable to attend last year's event due to an injury, is hoping to make her mark in this year's tournament. Rising star Tan ended in a commendable 32nd spot to finish as the leading local player in last year's inaugural Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia. Jean Chua, meanwhile, recently played in the US Open 2011.
Sime Darby will also be running a qualifying session where two girls from Malaysia and two from Asia will be able to qualify for this prestigious tournament. The competition takes place on the 6th and 7th of September and will be played over 36 holes of scintillating golf. The tournament is open to all female professional or amateur golfers with a handicap of 2.0 or less. The two Malaysian players and the two Regional players with the lowest score over the two days will get invitations to play in the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia 2011 which runs from 13-16 October. The qualifying tournament attracts players from the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
