World's top 10 golfers playing at the HSBC Women's Champions 2017

The world’s top 10 golfers playing at the HSBC Women’s Champions 2017

MF editorial team

20 Feb 2017

updated the 21 February 2017 à 10:42

1/10
Lydia Ko (New Zealand)
19-year-old Lydia Ko takes her rightful place as number one in 2017 after a stellar 2016 performance. Racking up four LPGA Tour wins, ten top-10 finishes (including three runner-ups), not to mention shooting a career-low of 62 twice, Lydia is a hot contender in this year's HSBC Women's Champions. After narrowly missing out in the 2015 Champions to Inbee Park, Lydia is hopeful that her strong 2016 will give her the confidence to take this year's title.
2/10
Ariya Jutanugarn (Thailand)
Bangkok-born professional golfer Ariya Jutanugarn first qualified for the 2017 Honda LPGA Thailand tournament at the age of 11, making her the youngest player ever to qualify for an LPGA Tour event. In 2016, she managed five wins and an additional eleven top-10 finishes. With her win at the RICOH Women's British Open, Ariya became the first-ever major champion hailing from Thailand. She makes a strong contender in this year’s HSBC Women's Champions.
3/10
In Gee Chun (South Korea)
2016 was a particularly rewarding year for In Gee Chun - she played 19 events and made 18 cuts. The year also saw her win her second career major championship at the Evian Championship, and saw her setting a new major championship record (male or female) for a 72-hole score in relation to par of (-21). On top of that, the professional golfer shot a career-low of 62 in the third round of the Kingsmill Championship last year.
4/10
Shanshan Feng (China)
Finishing 2016 with seven consecutive top-10 finishes, including two wins on the Ladies European Tour and her fourth Omega Dubai Ladies Masters title, world number 4 and local fan favourite Shanshan Feng is in search of her first win after nine consecutive appearances at the HSBC Women’s Champions. The player from Guangzhou is hoping that the New Tanjong Course will suit her eye after two wins in neighbouring Malaysia last year.
5/10
Lexi Thompson (United States)
One of the most consistent performers at the HSBC Women's Champions, American player Lexi Thompson has never finished outside the top-20 in five consecutive Champions appearances. The 21-year-old is looking for her second major win after becoming the second youngest player to take home a major championship at the age of 19. With this year's course testing each player's long-game, Lexi’s high ranking driving distance (271 average) looks promising.
6/10
Ha Na Jang (South Korea)
After taking home last year's HSBC Women's Champions title (in her first appearance, no less), Korea's Ha Na Jang is back again this year to defend her title. Carding a career-low of 62 in the 2016 Futon LPGA Taiwan Championship's third round, and hitting the first ever albatross on a par 4 in LPGA history last year, Jang is looking forward to continuing her strong streak. As of yet, no one has won the HSBC Women's Champions twice - perhaps the defending champion might be able to swing another win this year.
7/10
Sei Young Kim (South Korea)
In 2015, Kim made her debut on the LPGA Tour playing 27 events, making the cut in 25. That year, Kim claimed the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Award and the Kia Most Compelling Performance Award. In 2016, she continued her strong streak by capturing two wins and seven additional top-10 finishes, including two runner-ups.
8/10
Brooke Henderson (Canada)
19-year-old Brooke Henderson takes her place as world number 8, and comes in third on the 2016 money list behind Ariya Jutanugarn and Lydia Ko. In 2016, she made 30 out of 31 cuts. With her victory at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at 18 years, 9 months, 2 days, Henderson became the second youngest player behind Lydia Ko in LPGA history to win a major championship.
9/10
So Yeon Ryu (South Korea)
The only player in this year's top-10 Korean quintet without a win last year, So Yeon Ryu is keen to prove herself in the 2017 HSBC Women's Champions. She enters 2017 with an impressive 64 consecutive cuts and two top-10 positions in stats for scoring average and rounds under par. After posting a 3-1-0 record as a member of Team Korea at the UL International Crown, 2017 is looking to be a good year for Ryu.
10/10
Sung Hyun Park (South Korea)
23-year-old Sung Hyun Park completed seven LPGA tournaments with four top-10 finishes. As of December 2016, Park ranked 10th in the Rolex Rankings, making her the only non-LPGA member in the top-10 at the time. She earned LPGA membership for the 2017 season via category 10 (non-member Top 40) on the LPGA Priority List.

Everything you need to know about the cream of the crop playing at this year’s coveted HSBC Women’s Champions Tournament.

The names Lydia Ko and Ariya Jutanugarn are surely familiar to sport enthusiasts the world over, with the two currently heading the list of the top female golf players in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings as of 20 February 2017. They, along with a whole host of other high-ranking elite players, will be vying for the winning title at the 10th edition of the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore next month.

With the world’s top 10 making it down to the New Tanjong Course at Sentosa Golf Club, the tournament, with its coveted prize purse of US$1.5 million, is set to be one of the most competitive challenges of the LPGA Tour’s 2017 schedule. And once again, we see a list dominated by Asian stars, with five of the top 10 hailing from Korea, including defending champion Ha Na Jang, who took home the trophy in 2016.

With the all-star cast of players heading to Singapore soon, we’ve rounded up the cream of the crop in the gallery above – learn more about their jaw-dropping achievements and about what it takes to make the cut in the top 10.

Music festival entertainment takes the stage

Yet again, the HSBC Women’s Champions will stage a music festival to entice visitors – and this year’s programme is nothing short of exhilarating. Headlining the festival is South Korean The King and the Clown (2005) star Lee Joon Gi, who made his debut in 2001 and will be performing his high-powered K-Pop numbers for the first time in Singapore at the golf club on Saturday, 4 March.

Other performances include upcoming US band Thirdstory, and local acts Gentle Bones, DJ Bounce Squad, and Jack & Rai.

From SGD148, fans can enjoy the festival, which includes the concert and complimentary access to the golf tournament on 4 March, while single-day tickets to the golf tournament (sans music festival) start at SGD20. For more information about admission rules, pricing, and the festival line-up, click here.