After sharing the overnight lead and emerging victorious from a one-hole playoff on Sunday, Angel Yin became the Tour's 12th Rolex First-Time winner in Shanghai. The American recorded rounds of 70-69-65-70 to earn her maiden win at the Buick LPGA Shanghai and, with it, made the move of the week. The California native jumped 10 spots from No. 35 to No. 25 in the Rolex Women's World Golf Rankings, the highest ranking of her seven-year career.
With last week's victory, the 25-year-old became the eighth different American to win on the LPGA Tour this season, joining Lilia Vu, who won the Honda LPGA Thailand in February, The Chevron Championship in April and AIG Women's Open in August; Rose Zhang, who won the Mizuho America's Open in June; Allisen Corpuz, who won the U.S. Women's Open in July; Cheyenne Knight and Elizabeth Szokol, who won the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational in July; Alexa Pano, who won the ISPS Handa World Invitational in August; and Megan Khang, who won the CPKC Women's Open in August.
Karis Davidson Moves Up 17 Spots
Australian Karis Davidson made the second most impactful move up the Rolex Rankings, jumping 31 spots to No. 214 in the world with a tie for eighth at Qizhong Garden Golf Club, her second career top-10 on the LPGA Tour. The finish ties her best result on Tour, which came at the 2022 Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational alongside playing partner Daniela Darquea.
Davidson's move in the Rolex Rankings may have been impressive, but her move in the Race to the CME Globe standings got her well within the top 100, as the 25-year-old climbed from No. 97 to No. 88 in the standings after Shanghai. The BMW Ladies Championship is yet another opportunity to earn quality points for those looking to secure 2024 Tour status through the Race to the CME Globe.
The Aussie was asked last week how she felt about making a run on Sunday, admitting that while she was nervous in the morning, she tried to keep her composure, which has been difficult this season.
"I hit the ball so good on the front nine (there) could have been three more birdies, but the back nine, I had a few awkward numbers. Hit a couple slack shots, like cost me a bogey, but had a couple lip-outs for birdies as well,” said Davidson, who was a 2022 LPGA Tour rookie. “It was really close. This year has been so difficult mentally, so it's awesome. I don't know, but I might not need to go back to Q-School now, which is huge."
Lilia Vu Takes Slim Lead in the Race to CME Globe
The Race to CME Globe Race continues at the BMW Ladies Championship, and with 500 points on the line, players look to move up the standings as the CME Group Tour Championship approaches. Last week in Shanghai, the two-time major winner Lilia Vu jumped from fourth to first in the season-long Race to the CME Globe competition following her runner-up performance at the Buick LPGA Shanghai.
Vu has earned three wins this season, capturing her first and second major victories at The Chevron Championship and AIG Women's Open after becoming a Rolex First-Time Winner at the Honda LPGA Thailand, and now leads the Race by a narrow 4.735-point margin over Rolex Rankings No. 5 Celine Boutier, who has 2,469.983 points with three wins and three additional top-10 finishes this season.
People’s Republic of China native Ruoning Yin is in solo third and less than 75 points from the top with 2,401.084 points. The 21-year-old has two wins this year, including a major victory at KPMG Women's PGA Championship.
In fourth place is Hyo Joo Kim, with 2,303.029 points, who has one win at The Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America, along with eight additional top-10 finishes. Rounding out the top five is Jin Young Ko, with 1,904.640 points, who has two victories at the HSBC Women's World Championship and Cognizant Founders Cup, along with four additional top-10 finishes.
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