Rise in international golf events in Singapore a boon for local players

SINGAPORE – The start of Koh Sock Hwee’s professional career in 2016 was challenging as the Singapore golfer struggled to figure out the best pathway for herself.

Back then, there was just one main women’s professional event staged in Singapore regularly – the LPGA’s HSBC Women’s World Championship.

With only one slot in the field reserved for a local golfer, there were limited opportunities at home for Singaporeans to test themselves against the best from the region.

That is beginning to change, with the Republic hosting a slew of new events in recent years.

Since 2022, the Korean Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour’s Hana Financial Group Singapore Women’s Open, China Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour’s Singapore Ladies Masters and LIV Singapore have become recurring events on the local golf calendar.

In 2023, the Republic also staged one stop of the Ladies European Tour’s Aramco Team Series, while the DP World Tour, formerly known as the European Tour, made a return with the Singapore Classic.

Koh, 34, believes that the increase in the number of competitions will only benefit golfers here.

She said: “Being in a competitive environment will make the step up to the next level much easier. At least for the younger golfers, it’s always something for them to look forward to or at least a goal in mind whether they end up turning professional or not. Being one of the first few, when I first turned pro, there was never anybody I could talk to as to where to play. I had to find out, do everything on my own.

“With all these events now, at least it gives them some insight as to where they can possibly go play when they turn professional and with that, a lot more parents will be supportive.”

National golfer Chen Xingtong shared Koh’s sentiments, noting that the exposure she got from these tournaments has helped her development.

In her maiden outing at the 2024 HSBC event, Xingtong, who was Singapore’s sole representative in the field of 66, played alongside the first-round leader, American Sarah Schmelzel, and New Zealand’s former world No. 1 Lydia Ko. A week later, the 15-year-old amateur was the only Singaporean who made the Singapore Women’s Open cut.

She said she learnt a lot from playing alongside these professionals, adding: “The thing I take away most from them is, they just keep on going. Even if they don’t have a good hole, they’re able to keep the momentum going and not immediately feel crushed upon having a bad hole.”

Lyn Yeo, the founder of LLD Sports, a company that organises golf and corporate events such as the recently concluded Singapore Ladies Masters, feels that these events have helped to raise the interest in golf here. But like Koh, she stressed the importance of having different types of competitions to cater to golfers of different levels.

LLD Sports is also organising four China Ladies Professional Golfers Q-Series stops in 2024, which are part of the developmental circuit that acts as a qualifying pathway to China’s top CLPGA Tour. The company is also an organising partner of a new series of professional tournaments with Singapore Professional Golfers’ Association, with each event offering $30,000 in prize money.

She said: “When you play in something where you’re not fighting for anything, there’s no pressure... The only way to overcome nerves is if you play a lot more competition, you are in this position a lot.

“We need events where more Singaporeans can compete and win and get that confidence to compete at a higher level... so you need to go through the process and they need all these competitions.”

Singapore Golf Association president Tan Chong Huat added: “Our counterparts in many countries around the world, including leading golfing nations like Japan and South Korea are often surprised that Singapore holds so many international golf events annually. These international events generate significant interest for the sport locally and in the region, as well as puts Singapore and Asian golf on the world map.”