Hong Kong: Isabella Leung Hei-nam will be the player to beat at this week’s Faldo Series Hong Kong Championship.
The sixth leg of the 2015-16 Faldo Series Asia season presents Leung, who attends the University of Hawaii, with an opportunity to add another accolade to her name after a memorable first half to 2015.
During that period she claimed her first college title by winning the season-opening Oregon State Invitational and then posted a top-10 finish in the individual standings when representing Hong Kong in the Asia Pacific Women’s Amateur Team Championship for the Queen Sirikit Cup.
Now her attention is focused on a strong performance over the demanding North Course at the Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Public Course.
Almost 70 players aged between 11 and 18 will be chasing a minimum of four qualifying spots on offer to the 10th Faldo Series Asia Grand Final, to be hosted by Sir Nick Faldo at Mission Hills next March.
Among Leung’s main challengers are fellow national squad member Mimi Ho and Yew Chung International School student Estee Leung, winner of this year’s Hong Kong Junior Close Championship.
Favourite among the boys is Leon D’Souza, runner-up in the Boys’ Under-16 category at last year’s Faldo Series Hong Kong Championship – a performance he will be confident of improving upon this week.
As well as having the distinction of ending as the leading Hong Kong player in the ninth Faldo Series Asia Grand Final in March, D’Souza won the male division at April’s Hong Kong Junior Close Championship.
Thanks to that success, the 16-year-old is currently sitting proudly atop the standings in the Hong Kong Golf Association’s 2015 Junior Order of Merit.
The Faldo Series Hong Kong Championship is being played in conjunction with the 2015 Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Junior Open presented by now TV and includes categories for players aged between six and eight and also nine and 10.
Six-time Major championship winner Faldo, Britain’s most successful golfer, said: “With the Faldo Series having had its Asian launch in Hong Kong, our Hong Kong championship always holds a special place in my heart.
“With a total field of almost 100 players ranging in age from six to 18, I congratulate all those involved in the event’s promotion and staging on their efforts.”
Results from the Faldo Series Hong Kong Championship will count for the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
Supported by The R&A and Mission Hills and endorsed by the Asian Tour and the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation, the 2015-16 Faldo Series Asia campaign stretches over 11 months and will include a minimum of 21 events in 17 countries including, for the first time, Australia.