KUALA LUMPUR: Ashley Lau is relishing the pressure of leading the local challenge and making a strong impression in the second edition of the Maybank Championship, which gets underway on Thursday at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
The 24-year-old Sarawakian believes all eyes will be on her in the absence of Kelly Tan, Malaysia's long-standing household name, especially given her status as the current national No. 1.
Maybank ambassador Kelly had to skip this week's event to play in the second stage of the LPGA Qualifying Series, which was postponed due to Hurricane Milton.
Ashley has just completed her second Epson Tour season with mixed results, finishing 31st in the final rankings of the LPGA development circuit.
The outcome meant she failed to secure an outright promotion to the LPGA Tour, which was awarded to the top 15 finishers.
However, Ashley has reason for optimism after finishing a commendable second in the season-ending Epson Tour Championship three weeks ago.
By finishing in the top 35, she earned herself a second shot at achieving her LPGA Tour dream via the Qualifying Series Final Stage in Florida from Dec 5-9.
But first, Ashley's focus is on performing well at the Maybank Championship and giving home fans a memorable show.
"There is definitely a lot of pressure, with a lot of eyes on us," said Ashley, who competed at the Paris Olympics.
"I'm going to trust my abilities and just try to block that pressure out."
After struggling through most of the Epson Tour season, Ashley believes she's gradually regaining momentum after making some adjustments to her swing techniques.
"I was slowly finding my way on the Epson Tour, and in the last couple of weeks, I made some technical changes to my swing that worked wonders.
"I finished the season strong and I'm looking forward to Q-Series. Hopefully, I can earn my LPGA card there."
Fellow Sarawakian Mirabel Ting, the national top women's amateur, can also expect significant attention from home fans after recently winning two consecutive collegiate titles in the US. Mirabel is now ranked a career-best No. 8 on the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
Mirabel has vowed to challenge the LPGA Tour's elite players, especially with her grandfather in attendance.
"This is my first LPGA event and probably the biggest one in my entire golfing career," said Mirabel.
"It means so much that it's at home and I'm able to play in front of my friends and family, especially since my grandfather is coming from Miri to watch me play this week.
"There's definitely a lot of pressure this week, not just because we're at home, but because we want to perform well on this big stage, especially since it's an LPGA event."