KUALA LUMPUR: Mirabel Ting will be looking to cap more success at the Maybank Championship at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club (KLGCC) from Oct 24-27.
The 19-year-old Sarawakian has been extended a sponsor's invitation by Maybank, along with the nation's top-ranked lady professional Ashley Lau, and Maybank's ASEAN ambassador Kelly Tan.
The talented trio will be joined by professionals Liyana Durisic and Durriyah Damian, who qualified via the ASEAN Qualifier in August, to make up a diverse five-strong Malaysian challenge in the US$3 million event at KLGCC.
Mirabel said: "I'm super excited to be playing my first LPGA Tour event at the Maybank Championship. It has been a dream since I was a kid, and to have it come true so soon is simply amazing. I would just want to get out there and be able to compete with the world's best players, learn from them that week and see where it takes me.
"I've played KLGCC's West Course before; the course is long with lots of fairway bunkers that can be in play. The layout requires good course management to be able to perform well."
Based in the United States where she plays for the Florida State University women's team, Mirabel has enjoyed a superb season on the competitive collegiate circuit.
She recently chalked up her second consecutive individual victory at the Schooner Fall Classic, becoming just the third golfer in Florida State history to win in consecutive starts.
The two wins catapulted Mirabel into eighth spot on the World Amateur Golf Ranking on Sept 25, which is the highest by a Malaysian since Natasha Oon reached seventh position in 2022.
Earlier this year, Mirabel made history by becoming the first Malaysian to make the cut at the prestigious Augusta National Women's Amateur to finish an impressive joint eighth position.
Also hailing from Sarawak, Ashley currently plays on the LPGA's developmental circuit, the Epson Tour and is ranked 64th on the tour's Race For The Card rankings.
Earlier this year, she broke through for her maiden professional title at the Victorian Open on the Women's PGA Tour of Australasia. Ashley was the sole Malaysian player in the women's golf event of this year's Paris Olympics.
Kelly needs no introduction as she is Malaysia's most successful golfer, having been an LPGA Tour Member since 2014 with 176 tournament starts to her name. The 30-year-old is a two-time Olympian and has set numerous benchmarks for Malaysian golf, including best performance in a Major with her tied for 13th place finish at the 2020 KPMG Women's PGA Championship
This year's championship features a star-studded field including World No 1 Nelly Korda of the United States, defending champion Celine Boutier of France, and 2023 runner-up Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand who lost a riveting nine-hole playoff to Boutier.
The 78-player line-up also includes World No. 2 Lilia Vu of the United States, 2024 Amundi Evian Championship winner Ayaka Furue of Japan, former World No. 1 Ruoning Yin of China, Korean Amy Yang who won this year's KPMG Women's PGA Championship, and two-time US Women's Open champion Yuka Saso of Japan.