The Taiwan LPGA Tour travels to Taichung for the first time for the inaugural Taiwan Prosperity Ladies Open, which kickstarts on Wednesday and finishes on Friday. 101 of Asia’s elite women from Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, and host Taiwan will be vying for a NT$540,000 top prize in the NT$3,000,000 event.

Thai sensation P.K. Kongkraphan has been one of the hottest players on the TLPGA Tour lately. She is a two-time winner in 2024, bagging her fourth and fifth tour victories at the ICTSI Luisita Ladies International in April and the WPG Ladies Open in May. It was her second consecutive title at the WPG event.

Chen Ling-Jie (陳伶潔), Chen Yu-Ju (陳宇茹), Wang Li-Ning (王莉甯), and An Ho-Yu (安禾佑) are riding some fine form heading into this new tournament as well.

Taiwan Prosperity Development is having two events on the current Taiwan PGA Tour. “I was surprise to realize a city as big as Taichung, which has nurtured so many great golfers, did not have its own tournament on the women’s tour,” said President of the Taiwan Prosperity Development Chen C-S. “I knew Taiwan Mobile’s (president) Daniel very well. He and his team were doing a wonderful job establishing one of the best TLPGA Tour events at the end of every season. He and (TLPGA Tour chairwoman) Ms. Liu Yi-Chen were telling me they were building a real brand for the women here in Taichung, so I thought, I could give myself a new project to work on. And I’m now really proud that we’ve come this far, become part of the TLPGA family, and made history as the curtain was lifted for the first Taiwan Prosperity Ladies Open, in Taichung. I’m really excited for the next few days.”

Backdrop of this week’s event is Wu Fong Golf Course, which returns to the TLPGA Tour after 13 years. The Wu Fong course became the first ecological golf course in Taiwan to obtain the National Audubon Society certification, bidding to restore the ecological balance and provide golfers with a healthy environment. “We are excited to host the 2024 Taiwan Prosperity Ladies Open. We hope the ladies will enjoy a challenging but fun week under the impressive setting of the Jiujiu Peak,” Wu Fong Course representative Lee M-C said.

“It’s been a decade since I last competed at Wu Fong. I’m always amazed how beautiful this course is every time I visit here. It’s just really relaxing to put yourself in nature like this. But well, we’re here to compete, so maybe not so much,” said Wang Li-Ning, who gave a funny look. “The layout is pretty difficult, to say the least. I believe all the players feel the same. We’ll have to get ready.”

The competition layout is set at 6,248 yards long. Hole-in-one prizes from Departure, SAMPO, EAGLE Golf, and BESV E-Bike will be up for grabs on Hole 2, 4, 13, and 17.

First-round action begins tomorrow at 7:00 from the first and tenth tees. The field will be cut to the top-50 and ties after the second round.