Ashley Lau (born 18 March 2000) is a Malaysian professional golfer. An Olympian, she competed in the women's individual event at the 2024 Summer Olympics. She also competed on the Epson Tour and WPGA Tour of Australasia. She was the flag bearer of Malaysia at the 2024 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.
| Ashley Lau Jen Wen | ||||||||||||
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||
| Born | 18 March 2000 Bintulu, Sarawak, Malaysia | |||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (165 cm) | |||||||||||
| Sporting nationality |  Malaysia | |||||||||||
| Career | ||||||||||||
| College | University of Michigan | |||||||||||
| Turned professional | 2022 | |||||||||||
| Current tour(s) | Epson Tour WPGA Tour of Australasia | |||||||||||
| Professional wins | 1 | |||||||||||
| Number of wins by tour | ||||||||||||
| ALPG Tour | 1 | |||||||||||
| Achievements and awards | ||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Amateur career
editLau, born 2000, is from Bintulu in Sarawak, Malaysia. She became the first Sarawakian to top the national women's golf rankings, and later the first Sarawakian woman to turn professional.[1]
In 2015, Lau tied for 4th at the Australian Girls' Amateur. In 2016, she won the 2016 Katherine Kirk Classic and was runner-up at the Hills Australian Junior Championship. Lau tied for third at the 2017 Queensland Girls' Amateur Championship. In 2019, she was runner-up at the Orlando International Amateur Championship, and in 2021, runner-up at the Michigan PGA Women's Open.[2]
Lau represented Malaysia at the 2017 Southeast Asian Games, the 2018 Asian Games and the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, securing a silver medal in the team event at the latter together with Natasha Andrea Oon.[3]
Lau attended the Hills International prep academy in Queensland, Australia. She enrolled at University of Michigan in 2018 and played with the Michigan Wolverines women's golf team until 2022. She earned WGCA First Team All-American Honors and was named Big Ten Golfer of the Year in 2022.[4]
Lau was on the winning international team at the 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup, and finished 3rd at the 2022 Ann Arbor's Road to the LPGA on the Epson Tour.[5]
Professional career
editLau turned professional in December 2022 and joined the 2023 Epson Tour.[5] In her rookie season, she recorded two top-10 finishes including a season-best 3rd place at the Wildhorse Ladies Golf Classic.[6]
In February 2024, playing on the WPGA Tour of Australasia, she was runner-up at the Webex Players Series Victoria a stroke behind Kazuma Kobori, and won the Women's Victorian Open a stroke ahead of Jiyai Shin.[7][8]
A few months ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Lau sat 52nd in the qualification rankings, on course to represent Malaysia in Paris alongside Natasha Andrea Oon.[9][10]
Amateur wins
edit- 2013 Proton TSM Challenge
- 2015 Sarawak Amateur, AmBank SportExcel International Junior Championship
- 2016 Katherine Kirk Classic, AmBank SportExcel International Junior Championship
- 2018 RSGC Junior Amateur Open, Sarawak Amateur, FCG International Junior Championship
- 2021 Indiana Invitational
- 2022 Tulane Classic, Florida Gators Invitational, Indiana Invitational
Source:[2]
Professional wins (1)
editWPGA Tour of Australasia wins (1)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 Feb 2024 | Women's Victorian Open | 68-74-69-66=277 | −12 | 1 stroke |  Jiyai Shin
|
Team appearances
editAmateur
- Queen Sirikit Cup (representing Malaysia): 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
- Arnold Palmer Cup (representing International team): 2022 (winners)
Source:[2]
References
edit- ^ Ting Tieng Hee (28 February 2024). "Golf pro Bintulu lass eyes LPGA card, Olympics". The Borneo Post. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ a b c "Ashley Lau Jen Wen". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ "2019 SEA Games". Philippines 2019 30th SEA Games. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ "Ashley Lau". San José State Spartans. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Ashley Lau Bio". Epson Tour. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ Tan, Ming Wai (21 August 2023). "Ashley finally shows some sparks". New Straits Times. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ Tan, Ming Wai (4 February 2024). "Ashley stuns former world No. 1 Ji Yai to win Victorian Open". New Straits Times. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ Salvado, John (4 February 2024). "Malaysian golfer Ashley Lau salutes at the Vic Open". The Camberra Times. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ "IGF – Paris 2024 Olympic Golf Ranking Women's Competition" (PDF). International Golf Federation. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
- ^ Tan, Ming Wai (7 February 2024). "Golfer Ashley in contention for Olympic ticket after good run". New Straits Times. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
External links
edit- Ashley Lau at the LPGA Tour official site
- Ashley Lau at the Women's World Golf Rankings official site