KUALA LUMPUR: Two-time Olympic medallist and world number three women’s golfer Lydia Ko is among the top golfers announced for the Maybank Championship 2023 to be held at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club (KLGCC) from Oct 26-29.
The organisers had also named world number four Ruoning Yin, two-time Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour winner and world number five Lilia Vu, and recently-crowned US Open champion Allisen Corpuz for an epic showdown.
Ko, 26, who was the youngest golfer to win a LPGA Tour event at the age of 15, a record that stood firm until 2017, and has 19 LPGA tour victories carved under her name, is only two points shy of being inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame, which she would earn with two more regular season wins or one major championship victory.
The New Zealander, who won silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics and bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, among others has won two Rolex Player of the Year Award, in 2015 and 2022.
American, Vu, 25, a rising star with two wins in 2023 — Honda LPGA Thailand and the Chevron Championship — on top of three professional wins on the Epson Tour, will also be gracing the fairways at the Maybank Championship, as the tournament returns after three-year hiatus due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, at the young age of 20, Yin has established herself as a force in golf after winning the 2023 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and DIO Implant LA Open, to become only the second golfer from China to win in the LPGA Tour after Shanshan Feng, while Corpuz is now ranked sixth in the world.
The four golfers would rub shoulders against 64 other LPGA Tour golfers for the coveted Tiger trophy and a prize pool of USD3 million (about RM13.7 million), with ten more spots reserved for Malaysian and ASEAN players.
Two-time Olympian Kelly Tan, who has been instrumental in paving the road for women’s golf in the country, would lead the Malaysian challenge in the no-cut tournament sanctioned by LPGA.
The 20-year-old Maybank ambassador, is the top Malaysian women’s golfer, who had finished second in the 2022 Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational and first in the Epson Tour’s 2019 Florida’s Natural Charity Classic.
Maybank Group President and Chief Executive Officer Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli said, the inclusion of top female golfers to the championship underscores Maybank’s commitment to inclusivity and celebrating the highest level of excellence in sports.
“We want to celebrate the prestige of this tournament as it is more than just a golfing event, but a values-driven platform which acts as an agent of change that champions a purpose — accelerating women’s golf and inspiring the next generation of golfers,” he said.
The organisers also announced ticketing options, which includes RM38 Day Pass (entry to only both Thursday and Friday), RM68 Weekend Pass (entry to only both Saturday and Sunday), or RM88 Season Pass (entry for all four days). –BERNAMA
