TIANJIN, April 27 (Xinhua) -- China's 19-year-old golfer Ji Yuai captured her first pro title here on Saturday, carding a final-round 72 for a five stroke, wire-to-wire victory at the Tianjin Women's Open.
Over 54 holes at Tianjin Panshan Golf Club, the Dalian native finished on eight-under 208. The victory at the first full China LPGA Tour event of the year was worth 60,000 yuan (8,300 U.S. dollars).
"I had a wire-to-wire victory, therefore I am not excited or emotional now. Everything seems to be as expected," said Ji, a second-year pro. "It's a stress-free round. I made a couple of mistakes late in the round but it wasn't related to my mental game. I just tried to be aggressive with a big lead. I thought that it was a good opportunity to test myself under the gun."
Wang Zixuan (69) was the runner-up as the Beijing teenager finished the low amateur, one stroke ahead of pro Liu Wenbo (73) who was six strokes back. Amateur Ren Yijia (70) was fourth at seven strokes off the pace, a stroke ahead of Cai Danlin (71) who finished on even par.
Veteran Huang Ching from Chinese Taipei closed with a 71 to sit sixth, nine strokes back.
Ji, who started the day with a five-stroke lead, made birdie on the first hole to get to nine-under and then cruised to her first title in a round that included two more birdies and three bogeys, all coming from three-putts.
"The win was my first goal of the year. I made it. Next, I need to move my world ranking into the top 400 and be exempt from the first stage of LPGA Q-School," she said. "I want one more win before I go to USA. Hopefully I can be one better in Beijing [next month]. I learned a lot from the Beijing Women's Challenge last year where I lost in a playoff."
Wang held steady to grab her second runner-up finish against pro fields with a round that included five birdies, including three over the first four holes, and two bogeys.
"I am not happy with today. My driver was not good for the whole round. My tee shot went into the rough on the first hole, but I made a birdie there. The real problem was my iron play. I hit longer than before with an iron, but I don't know the accurate number. With a short iron in hand I couldn't hit to the spot that I wanted," said the 16-year-old who was also runner-up at the Orient Women's China Open in December.
"I was watching the leaderboard at the 16th hole and found out that some amateurs were tied. I was hungry for that award, and happy to make a birdie from 25 feet. I made it finally. But I need a stronger mental game. I will work on my tee shots at home. Hopefully I can come out next time and be in the mix again."
Liu, who has been struggling with her game over the past year, was upbeat about her third-place finish after closing with a round featuring four birdies, three bogeys and a double-bogey six at the 384-yard 13th hole.
"It's a good start even without the win. I saw my progress in this event. All in all, everything was a lot better than last year," said the Beijing pro, a three-time winner on the CLPGA Tour.
The Tianjin Women's Open is being played at Tianjin Panshan Golf Club, a 6,411-yard, par-72 layout designed by C.J. Tan. ■
