Pattaya, Thailand, Nov 2: Avani Prashanth, the highest world ranked Indian amateur, will tee off in the very first group from the 10th tee at the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific championship at the lovely Siam Country Club. Avani, ranked 115th in the world is also the most experienced having played no less than 10 international events outside India in the past 12 months.
A total of six Indians, four of whom are returning to the WAAP for the second time, are here in Pattaya, Thailand for an event which has some very rich rewards in terms of berths of two women’s Majors besides the world famous Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Hana Financial Services Championship in Korea.
The tournament features 86 top players from 21 countries.
About her 2021 experience and now, she said, “I think playing with the best last year, I definitely had a couple of areas to work on. They have gotten much better this year. So I think I definitely have a better chance to win it this year than I did last year.
Avani, who turned 16 last month, said her practice rounds went off well, adding, “The 8th and 9th are super difficult because you’re hitting directly into the wind, and then a couple holes on the back nine. I think, if I take care of those maybe four or five holes, I’m really going to end up playing well this week.
“So we’re getting a lot of long clubs in because of the amount of wind that’s there. Mainly to hit those long irons well and not drop any unnecessary shots would be my main target. I also need to take advantage of the holes that are short, which are few of them. It would be great if I don’t drop any shots and take advantage of those.”
She will also draw on the experience of playing at the Augusta National, the Carnoustie and the Le Golf National in France over the past year.
“It has given me a lot of confidence,” said Avani, who turned 16 last month.
Sifat Sagoo, who studies and plays golf at Purdue University, arrived late on Tuesday after flying for 23 hours from the United States. Despite tiredness, she smiled and said, “I have not been hit by jet lag so far. I hope I can stay fresh enough after a good sleep tonight.”
Mannat Brar, Ceerat Kang and Nishna Patel, who are accompanied by their family members have also had good sessions over the past two days and are looking forward to the tournament, where success could open many doors for them.
The tournament comes just when Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul, the first WAAP champion in 2018 and a runner-up in 2019, became the World No. 1 this week. Atthaya, now 19, in her first pro season on the Ladies European Tour won the Race to the Costa del Sol (Order of Merit), Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year Awards. In 2022, she won two titles in her first season on the LPGA Tour and went on to become only the second player to reach World No. 1, while still being under 20.
Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “We had great hopes when we played the first Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific championship in 2018 because we knew how many talented elite women amateurs there are in this region. We thought there were players who could progress to the highest levels of the sport in time but the speed at which some of the top players have succeeded has been incredible.”
Japan’s Saki Baba, winner of the US Amateur Championship winner and the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) No. 4, is the highest-ranked player in the field this week.
Tee times for Indians:
Avani Prashanth (7:05 am; 10th tee); Mannat Brar (7:49 am; 10th tee); Nishna Patel (8.06 am; 1st tee)
Kriti Chowhan (11:05 am; 10th tee); Sifat Sagoo (11:33 am; 1st tee); Ceerat Kang (11:55 am; 1st tee);
