Spring Aia Swing Continues In Singapore
The LPGA Tour heads to Singapore this week for the 10th consecutive HSBC Women’s Champions. A field of 63 players (with no cut) will tee it up, including players 1-20 in the Rolex Rankings and all of the tournament winners from the 2016 official LPGA tournaments with the exception of In-Kyung Kim. The 2017 edition will be held at the Sentosa Golf Course, but on a new course - the Tanjong Course, the previous four years it was held on the Serapong Course.
Ha Na Jang returns to the event as the defending champion, and fresh off of her 2017 ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open title. At the 2016 HSBC Women’s Champions, Jang eagled the final hole to shoot a tournament-low 7-under 65 on Sunday and claim her second career LPGA title. Jang now has four LPGA victories under her belt.
What You Need to Know About the HSBC Women's Champions
- 10 – This is the 10th year of the HSBC Women’s Champions
- 9 – 9 players have competed in every HSBC Women’s Champions (Brittany Lang, Eun Hi Ji, Cristie Kerr, Suzann Pettersen, Morgan Pressel, Na Yeon Choi, Inbee Park, Angela Stanford and Karrie Webb)
- 0 – No player has ever won multiple HSBC Women’s Champions
- 2 – South Koreans have won the last two HSBC Women’s Champions: Ha Na Jang (2016), Inbee Park (2015)
- 3 – Americans have won the event: Paula Creamer (2014), Stacy Lewis (2013), Angela Stanford (2012)
- 65 – Tournament-low score, most recently shot by Ha Na Jang in the final round in 2016
- $584,823 – Paula Creamer has earned the most money in HSBC Women’s Champions history at $584,823
25 – Karrie Webb has never finished outside of the top-25 at this event with a win and four top-10 finishes
What You Need to Know About Defending Champion Ha Na Jang
Four-time LPGA winner
- Known for her exuberant celebrations which included a Beyonce inspired dance after last year’s win in Singapore
- Nicknames include “Clover Girl” and “Lucky”
- Watched Disney movies in order to improve her English
- Competed for five seasons on the KLPGA (2010-2014) and recorded six career victories
Who's in the Field
Past HSBC Women’s Champions Winners (6):
Ha Na Jang (2016), Inbee Park (2015), Paula Creamer (2014), Stacy Lewis (2013), Angela Stanford (2012), Karrie Webb (2011)
2017 Winners (3):
Brittany Lincicome (Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic), Ha Na Jang (ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open), Amy Yang (Honda LPGA Thailand)
Sponsor Spotlight
HSBC has been the title sponsor of the HSBC Women’s Champions since the inaugural event in 2008, which was won by LPGA legend Lorena Ochoa. They sponsor this event in an effort to reinforce HSBC’s global commitment to golf. The 10th edition of the tournament will again feature a focus on entertainment, including a six-hour concert on March 4th headlined by popular South Korean actor-singer Lee Joon Gi.
Now on the Tee Sung Hyun Park
Sung Hyun Park is set to make her highly anticipated LPGA debut in Singapore.
23-year-old Park is an early season favorite to win the 2017 Rolex Rookie of the Year Award. In 2016, she won seven KLPGA events, made seven starts on the LPGA Tour and finished in the top-13 in six of those seven events. She also finished in the top-3 in two of the season’s five majors.
Singapore is Week Four of Race to CME Globe
This week’s HSBC Women’s Champions will mark the fourth event in the season-long Race to CME Globe. Through three events Brittany Lincicome leads with 560 points.
In 2017, the reset points for the Race to the CME Globe will be modified slightly. As a result of these modifications:
- The Top Five (5) Finishers entering Naples will control their own destiny at the CME Group Tour Championship - - meaning if they win in Naples, they will also win the $1M CME Globe.
- The top twelve (12) finishers entering Naples will have a mathematical chance to win the $1M CME Globe.
- Please note that previously, the Top 3 controlled their destiny and Top 9 had a mathematical chance
2016 Numbers to Know
- 22.30 - The average age of winners was 22.30
- 24 - 24-of-33 events won by players 23 years old or younger
- 16 - 16-of-33 won by players 21-or-younger
- 18 - 18 different winners from 12 different countries
- 5 - 5 players finished with a scoring average under 70 for the first time in LPGA history
2016 LPGA Leaders
Below are the list of the players who led the LPGA in six of the key statistical categories during the 2016 season. Jutanugarn and Henderson are each in the field this week at the Ocean Club.
Wins - 5 (Ariya Jutanugarn)
Top-10s - 15 (Brooke Henderson)
Money List - $2,550,947 (Ariya Jutanugarn)
Race to CME Globe - 6,800 (Ariya Jutanugarn)
Scoring Average - 69.583 (In Gee Chun)
Rolex Player of the Year - 260 (Ariya Jutanugarn)
2017 LPGA Tour Season by the Numbers
2017 | 2014 | 2011 | |
# of Events | 35 | 33 | 25 |
# of Official Events | 34 | 32 | 23 |
Official Money Purses | $67.35M | $57.55M | $41.5M |
Official Events at $2 million | 16 | 13 | 8 |
Events in N. America | 22 | 22 | 15 |
Events outside N. America | 13 | 11 | 10 |