After a 24-foot birdie on the first extra hole, 15-year-old Chongqing player Zhou Yanhan had the last laugh.
On December 24, Zhou Yanhan won the first China Amateur Golf Open championship of his career with a total score of 285 strokes (75-72-67-71, -3) on the first hole of the playoff at the 2023 China Amateur Open Golf Club in the first hole of the playoff with a beautiful 24-foot birdie putt.
Chang Xihuan was the runner-up. Fang finished third with a total score of 291 (75-74-70-72, +3).
In the women's category, 17-year-old Cao Xinyu of Shanghai shot a 72 in the final round for a total of 292 (76-73-71-72, +4) to win the national championship for the first time by two strokes. Ren Yijia shot a 73 and finished second with a total score of 294. Feng Zihan shot a 76 to finish third with a total of 294.
withstood the pressure, Zhou Yanhan won the championship in the first game
Zhou Yanhan and Chang Hee-hwan, the two joint leaders on 54 holes, entered the final round with a three-shot advantage. Chang made two birdies in the front four holes to bring the score to -4, and Zhou Yanhan swallowed a bogey on the third hole. After four holes, Chang Hee-hwan once led by 3 strokes and took the initiative on the court.
The greatest charm of competition is its uncertainty. Two-time China Tour champion Zhou Yanhan didn't give up and birdie on the ninth hole to fight back.
After the turn, Chang Hee-hwan swallowed a bogey on the 10th hole, and Zhou Yanhan made a 60-foot birdie putt on the 11th hole, and Zhou Yanhan took a one-shot lead instead. For the next seven holes, the two went back and forth, constantly vying for the top spot. In the main event, the two battled until the last minute, and Chang Hee-hwan made a 6-foot birdie on the 18th hole to lock the final round score at 71, tying Zhou Yanhan.
Together, the pair finished in a tie for first place with a total of 285 (-3) and needed to return to the 18th hole for a playoff showdown.
On the first hole of the playoff game, Zhou Yanhan hit the ball on the green with 3 shots, and the ball stopped 24 feet away from the hole cup, and won the championship with a push.
Zhou Yanhan said: "I am very happy to win through the playoff, and it is a rare experience to come back from being seven strokes behind in the first round. Today's showdown with Chang Hee-hwan is a great test of my ability to resist pressure.
This is my first time participating in the China Amateur Open in Zhenhu, and the tournament is very historic, and I am very satisfied with the championship to end the 2023 season. Of course, I see a lot of shortcomings, and the skills need to be improved, so I will continue to work hard next year. ”
This is Chang Xihuan's first time participating in the competition, and winning the runner-up makes him feel a little regretful. "Overall this week, I played well on some difficult holes, like the 17th hole where I made a good birdie today from 15 feet outside the green," Chang saidOn the contrary, the relatively simple hole was handled a little sloppily, which is something I need to pay attention to in the future. ”
Fang Zeqian made 2 birdies and 1 eagle in this round and shot 72 to finish third for the second consecutive year with a total score of 291.
With a 2-shot advantage, Cao Xinyu "steadily" won the women's group
Like Zhou Yanhan, Cao Xinyu came from seven strokes down in the first round to achieve a comeback victory.
However, unlike Zhou Yanhan's thrilling way of winning the championship, Cao Xinyu relied on a steady hitting style. In the first 17 holes, all but a 30-foot birdie putt on the 8th hole were handed over to par.
The women's championship was decided on the 17th hole. On the par-4 tees, Cao Xinyu and Feng Zihan, who were at the top of the leaderboard, both scored +3.
Cao Xinyu and Feng Zihan both swallowed bogeys on the 18th hole, and Cao Xinyu finally locked her score at 72 and won the championship by 2 strokes.
Cao Xinyu said: "In the next three rounds, professional player Liu Enhua helped me with my backpack, which was the first time he was a caddie for me. Liu Enhua has played Zhenhu Lake before, is very familiar with the court, and is very accurate in distance calculation and line viewing. We worked well together, his advice was practical and I executed it well. When I went out this morning, I had a hunch that I would win the championship because I believed in Liu Enhua and felt that we worked together well and could play the results we wanted, and I was very happy that we did it.
This year, under the guidance of Mr. Cheng Jun, my golf skills have improved greatly, and my swing is more compact and the accuracy is much higher. Stars such as Li Jiayun and Yin Xiaowen have won the championship in this oldest event in China, and it is an honor to be on the championship list with them. I'm going to turn professional next year and this win gives me a lot of confidence in myself. ”
Ren Yijia made three birdies in the final round and shot a 73 to finish second with a total of 294 strokes.
Although she didn't win the championship, the third place gave Feng Zihan the title of "athlete", which was her biggest gain this week. Feng Zihan said: "I was almost lucky on the 17th hole today, otherwise there might have been a different result. Still, I'm happy to finish in the top three and achieve the goal I set before the race. ”
After the game, the organizing committee held a grand award ceremony at Guangdong Zhenhu Golf Club. Tan Kai, director of the competition department of the China Golf Association, presented the award to the men's champion Zhou Yanhan, Han Chaohua, deputy director of the Guangdong Golf Sports Center, presented the award to the women's champion Cao Xinyu, Luo Xiaobing, a first-level researcher of the Zhaoqing Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports, presented awards to the men's runner-up Chang Xihuan and the women's runner-up Ren Yijia, and Jiang Yongjun, deputy director of the Guangdong Provincial Social Sports and Training Competition Center, presented awards to the men's third runner-up Fang Zeqian and the women's third runner-up Feng Zihan. Tan Kai, director of the competition department of the China Golf Association, presented the plaque of the cooperative club to Liang Guoping, general manager of Guangdong Zhenhu Golf Club.
The 2023 China Amateur Golf Open is hosted by the China Golf Association, Guangdong Golf Sports Center is the organizer, Guangdong Social Sports and Training Competition Center, Zhaoqing Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports, and Zhaoqing Golf Association are the supporting units, Guangdong Zhongao International Sports Promotion is the operating unit, and Guangdong Zhenhu Golf Club is the host courseThe event has also received the attention and support of brands such as Yashiwei, TaylorMade, Shangzu, Golf Wine, Meierpu, Number, Cestbon, Nolis, and Weizhen.