The first round of the US$3 million (approximately B93mn) tournament begins today (Feb 26), with the winner receiving $450,000, reports the Bangkok Post.
Apart from Jeeno and sixth-ranked Ko, seven other top-10 players will compete in the world-class field of 72 participants. Three other Thais vying for the top honours at the tournament include Ariya Jutanugarn, Pajaree Anannarukarn, and Chanettee Wannasaen.
Jeeno claimed her first title of the year - her eighth on the top women’s tour - at the LPGA Thailand in Pattaya on Sunday. The 23-year-old finished tied for second at the Singapore tournament last year.
“I have to put the victory from last Sunday aside and focus on my own performance. It’s a new week, and everyone has an equal chance to win. I’m very happy with what I’m doing right now but I won’t be in this position forever. There will be other top players coming up. I just want to perform well and enjoy the moment as best as I can,” said Jeeno, who previously won at Sentosa as an amateur in the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific in 2018.
Meanwhile, three-time major champion and LPGA Hall of Famer Ko, who missed the tournament only once since its inception in 2008, said, “Last year’s victory was very special. I feel like I’ve built a lot of great friendships playing golf in Singapore over the years. The result is secondary, I just want to play my best golf in front of my friends and fans here.”
In addition to Jeeno and Ko, other top-10 competitors include world No.3 Charley Hull from England, No.4 Minjee Lee from Australia, No.5 Miyu Yamashita from Japan, No.7 Kim Hyo-Joo from South Korea, No.8 Yin Ruoning from China, No.9 Lottie Wood from England and No.10 Kim Sei-Young from South Korea.
Jeeno, who is paired with Ko and Hull in the penultimate group, was set to tee off at 9:21am (Thai time). Ariya will start alongside Koreans Ko Jin-Young and Ryu Hae-Ran, Pajaree is paired with China’s Liu Yan and Singapore’s Shannon Tan, while Chanettee will play with South Korea’s Choi Hye-Jin and Taiwan’s Hsu Wei-ling.