Shannon Tan notches best finish by a Singaporean with tied-34th spot at HSBC Women’s World C’ship

SINGAPORE – Playing on the LPGA Tour has been a goal of Shannon Tan’s since she was a junior golfer, when she used to watch the circuit’s events on television and dreamt of being part of the field.

Teeing up at the HSBC Women’s World Championship has only solidified her desire to play in the top women’s series, as the 20-year-old put up a creditable showing to finish tied-34th in the field of 64 at the Sentosa Golf Club’s Tanjong Course.

After rounds of 73-72-69, the sponsor’s invitee carded a two-over 74 in the final round of the US$2.4 million (S$3.2 million) on March 2 to sign for an even-par 288 total, the highest finish by a Singaporean golfer at the LPGA event.

Her compatriot, Chen Xingtong, the only amateur in the field, shot a 79 to place last on 21-over 309.

Previously, the Republic’s best showing at the tournament came in 2016, when Koh Sock Hwee finished tied-59th, while the lowest score by a local golfer was Amanda Tan’s eight-over 296 effort at the 2023 edition, when she was 62nd.

“I’ve played in a few LPGA-sanctioned events, but this one is just way different in terms of my experience,” said Tan, who plays on the Ladies European Tour (LET) and featured at two Majors – the 2024 Women’s British Open and Evian Championship – besides the Paris Olympics.

“I didn’t put a timeline on when I have to be on the LPGA but, overall, looking at my progress from last year to this year, there are some positive things in my game that I’m seeing, so that’s always a good thing.”

While it has been one of Tan’s busiest tournament weeks as she also juggled other commitments such as golf clinics and a corporate social responsibility event, she enjoyed her first experience of playing at the tournament, as opposed to her stint in 2017 when she was a young volunteer.

Apart from the chance to compete against an elite field, one of the standout moments for Tan was seeing the support shown by friends, strangers and volunteers throughout the week.

The world No. 109 added: “When I was a volunteer and when I was a kid watching it, I always wanted to be playing inside the ropes and to finally be able to do it eight years after I volunteered was a dream come true for sure.”

There were times during the week when Tan showed she could be competitive in a field containing nine of the world’s top-10 players, placing tied-17th after the third round. However, a mixed final day saw her slide down the leaderboard.

Tan, who has one win on the LET, was encouraged by her progress in her short game, but noted that there were areas to work on, such as her wedge play.

She said: “There are some things I can improve on, just looking at what I’m sort of lagging (behind) the other players in.

“I’m not sure what I finished, to be honest, but I was in the top 20 yesterday so that sort of shows that my standard is somewhat there, but there are still of course things to improve on.”

She leaves for Australia next week and will next compete at the Australian Women’s Classic, which takes place in Coffs Harbour from March 13 to 16.

As her LET season resumes, the goal is to finish among the top 10 in the Order of Merit so that she can qualify for the final stage of the LPGA Q-school.

She took part in the LPGA Tour final qualifying stage last December, after placing sixth on the LET’s Order of Merit in 2024, but missed the cut because of an injured elbow. Tan was also feeling burnt out, having played 28 events before that.

Commenting on her performance at Sentosa, Tan’s coach Ryan Lumsden said: “The things to improve on are putting and speed control, especially with the greens here. Her short game has improved a lot since last year, but it’s still a work in progress.

“Overall, it’s been a great week for her at ‘Asia’s Major’, it’s a really good learning experience for her to compete in such a strong field and I felt like she has done well this week.”