Out of the Rough: Buick LPGA Shanghai (2026)

The LPGA Tour leaves Hawaii for China for the first of four Asian based events for this week’s Buick LPGA Shanghai.

With just five events left before the end-of-the-season CME Group Tour Championship, many of the Tour’s best will make the trip to China for this week’s event.

This season marks the sixth playing of the Buick LPGA Shanghai. Each of the previous five installments have been held at this week’s venue, the Qizhong Garden Golf Club.

This event was first staged in 2018 and was again played in 2019 before being dropped for three years on the schedule. It returned in 2023 and was played again for the past two seasons.

This event is also co-sanctioned between both the LPGA Tour and China LPGA Tour.

The Field

This week will feature a limit field, with just 81 golfers teeing it up.

The field is headlined by World No. 2 and defending champion Jeeno Thitikul who too is coming off a victory last week at the LOTTE Championship.

World No. 5 Miyu Yamashita is the closest competition to Thitikul in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings this week.

As this week’s event will be played in China and is co-sanctioned between the LPGA Tour and China LPGA Tour, a strong Chinese field will take to Qizhong Garden Golf Club in hopes to win on home soil.

The Chinese field will be led by World No. 6 Ruoning Yin who also won this event in 2024.

Other notable golfers playing this week include Sei Young Kim (No. 9,) Gaby Lopez (No. 15,) Minjee Lee (No. 16,) Lauren Coughlin (No. 18,) Auston Kim (No. 19,) Mao Saigo (No. 21,) Esther Henseleit (No. 23) and Jin Hee Im (No. 25.)

Outside of Thitikul and Ruoning Yin, other former winners of this event playing this event include Angel Yin (2023) and Danielle Kang (2018 and 2019.)

The Course

Qizhong Garden Golf Club was designed by Dana Fry in collaboration with local designer Jun Lu and was opened for play in 2013.

It plays as a par-72 at roughly 6,700 yards.

Fry, who also designed Calusa Pines in Florida, carefully crafted the once flat site in Minhang District, Shanghai, China to a golf course that features a multitude of elevation changes, some up to 40-feet.

A multitude of large lakes were created and roughly a million cubic meters of fill were brought in to create the contours of the property.

Up to half of the holes have water in play as a result.

Six-thousand trees were planted when the course was constructed and as the years pass, these trees mature, causing an added challenge to this golf course.

The course features a variety of uphill and downfall shots.

There are many heroic holes plotted around four large lakes with dramatic bunkers spread throughout.

The Weather

As of the time of writing this, Thursday is calling for a near zero-percent chance of precipitation. Friday is calling for a 25-percent chance and Saturday a 35-percent chance of morning showers. Sunday is calling for a 50-percent chance of afternoon showers. Temperatures will begin the week at a high of 74-degrees before jumping to 77-degrees on Friday. Temperatures will continue to climb across the weekend as Saturday calls for a high of 81-degrees and Sunday will be the warmest with a high of 85-degrees. Winds will be the lowest on Thursday at ten miles-per-hour. Winds will jump to 11 miles-per-hour on Friday before peaking at 12 miles-per-hour on Saturday. Winds will return to 11 miles-per-hour on Sunday.

Key Stats

• Strokes Gained: Driving (SG: Driving) 

• Average Driving Distance

• Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: APP)

• Par Five Average Scoring

• Scrambling

• Sand Saves Percentage

• Strokes Gained: Putting (SG: PUTT)

Betting Card

Sei Young Kim (+1250)

Kim is currently fourth on Tour in par-five average scoring, eighth in SG: APP, 14th in SG: Driving, 28th in scrambling, 30th in sand saves percentage, 44th in average driving distance and 92nd in SG: PUTT. She last played the FM Championship where she placed fourth. Prior to that she placed third at the CPKC Women’s Open, 39th at the AIG Women’s Open, 19th at the ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open, 22nd at The Amundi Evian Championship, eighth at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and fifth at the U.S. Women’s Open. She has also been rather good at this event and golf course. Kim placed 15th a season ago, second in 2024, withdrew in 2023, placed sixth in 2019 and second in 2018. 

Auston Kim (+2800)

Across her last six starts, Kim has three top fives and four top tens. She most recently placed fourth at the LOTTE Championship. She also placed fifth at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G, missed the cut at the FM Championship, placed 41st at the AIG Women’s Open, ninth at The Amundi Evian Championship and fifth at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. She’s also been rather good here across the past two seasons. She placed 11th a season ago and 12th in 2024. Kim is currently fourth on Tour in average driving distance, 23rd in par-five average scoring, 38th in SG: Driving, 58th in scrambling, 63rd in SG: PUTT, 67th in SG: APP and 90th in sand saves percentage. 

Allisen Corpuz (+4400)

Corpuz placed 28th in her latest outing at the LOTTE Championship. Prior to that she placed third at the FM Championship and 44th at the CPKC Women’s Open. Looking further back to major season, Corpuz placed fifth at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and eighth at the U.S. Women’s Open. She’s played this event once prior, placing 47th a season ago. Corpuz is currently 26th on Tour in scrambling, 29th in SG: APP, 35th in SG: Driving, 63rd in SG: PUTT, 66th in par-five average scoring, 106th in average driving distance and 127th in sand saves percentage. 

Yan Liu (+9400)

As this event is being played on Chinese soil, I had to include at least one home talent. Liu is currently 19th on Tour in average driving distance, 23rd in par-five average scoring, 29th in SG: APP, 34th in SG: Driving, 98th in SG: PUTT, 105th in scrambling and 114th in sand saves percentage. Liu last played the FM Championship where she placed 27th. Prior to that she placed tenth at the CPKC Women’s Open and 32nd at The Standard Portland Classic. Liu has played this event four times over the past five seasons. She placed 26th a season ago, 41st in 2024, 31st in 2023 and 68th in 2018. 

Karis Davidson (+12500)

Davidson is currently 12th on Tour in scrambling, 18th in SG: Driving, 40th in SG: PUTT, 53rd in average driving distance, 85th in sand saves percentage, 92nd in par-five average scoring and 110th in SG: APP. She last played the FM Championship where she placed 17th. Prior to that she placed 37th at the CPKC Women’s Open. She missed back-to-back cuts at the ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open and AIG Women’s Open but prior to that placed 26th at The Amundi Evian Championship, 12th at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, 12th at the Meijer LPGA Classic by Simply Give and 22nd at the U.S. Women’s Open. Davidson placed 69th at this event a season ago but placed eighth in 2023.

2025 Betting Card

• Hye-Jin Choi (+1600) - T11th

• Jin Hee Im (+3500) - T22nd

• Esther Henseleit (+5000) - T36th

• Stephanie Kyriacou (+8000) - T22nd

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