As several world class stars ascend on Riyadh Golf Club for the fifth and final Aramco Team Series presented by PIF event of 2023, a string of Ladies European Tour (LET) rookies are also looking to make their mark as we approach the crunch end of the season.
Still leading the way in this year’s rookie race is Thailand’s Trichat Cheenglab, winner of the Big Green Egg Open, with the 28-year-old eyeing another huge week to help cement the title.
“I think this week is going to be very fun playing in the Team and Individual events,” Cheenglab said, who will captain a side in Saudi Arabia. “I like the formats a lot and will try to make a lot of birdies for my team. It’s quite strange being a captain and I know we have to share the birdies around. It’s going to be a lot fun!”
Cheenglab currently leads Sweden’s Sara Kjellker by 352.12 points in the Rookie of the Year race and arrives in Riyadh off the back of a T24 finish at the Hero Women’s Indian Open.
“There are three tournaments left and my target this year is to get inside the top three [of the Race to Costa del Sol],” Cheenglab said, who currently sits fifth in the overall standings. “I have to do something this week as well as in in Spain. Last week I lost [some ground] a little bit so I will focus on every shot I play.”
If she can complete the quest for Rookie of the Year, Cheenglab would follow in the footsteps of her hero Atthaya Thitikul to become the second Thai winner of the accolade.
She said: “It would mean a lot to win. Many Thai fans keep posting my rookie score – they want me to win that award! It would mean a lot to me and to the Thai fans.
“Many rookies this year have been champions. Four already (Cheenglab, Patricia Isabel Schmidt, Alexandra Försterling, Aline Krauter). Many people are close to the top but I don’t want to focus on the points, just on my own game. I will try to finish inside the top 10 in the next three events.”
Gaining ground on Cheenglab after an incredible run of results is the aforementioned Kjellker, who played her way into this week’s Aramco Team Series event after finishing solo second in India.
“I’m really excited for this week,” Kjellker said, who is arguably the most in-form LET player in the field with four top-five finishes in her last six starts. “These are the events you want to play well in.”
The Swede needs a victory this week to move into top spot, but with two events left in the schedule another excellent result would help pile the pressure on Cheenglab heading into next month’s Spanish doubleheader.
On the Rookie of the Year race, Kjellker said: “It wasn’t on my mind until last week when I saw the standings. Now it’s a big goal of mine. Linn [Grant] did it in her rookie year and I would love to do the same.
“I’ve worked really hard this season and it would be proof of how if you stick to the process and trust what you are doing, the results will come.”
Two more rookies arriving in Riyadh hot in form are Germany’s Alexandra Försterling, third in the rookie rankings, and Austria’s Emma Spitz, 11th in the standings, who finished second and sixth respectively at Stage II of LPGA Q-Series five days ago.
“It was a fun week and I played really good,” Försterling said, who won her maiden LET title at the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open last month. “My putter was extremely hot and my confidence has definitely grown since winning [in Switzerland].
“It would be nice to win Rookie of the Year but I know Trichat [Cheenglab] has been playing amazing every single week. It will be hard to pass her but I am still going to try my best.”
Currently 231st in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Försterling is also a captain this week and was afforded the first pick in the Draft opting for none of other than close friend Spitz.
“I like being a captain,” the 23-year-old said. “It’s nice when you get to pick a player and I really enjoy the team vibe that you can have. The Aramco events are always some of my favourites.”
In terms of this week, Kjellker would need to win the event and hope Cheenglab finishes lower than fifth. Försterling would need to do the same with the Thai rookie finishing 30th.
Elsewhere, first year graduate Sara Kouskova has been given a comfort blanket heading into this week after all but cementing her 2024 card at the Hero Women’s Indian Open.
Other rookies competing in Riyadh and hoping to make a mark are Thailand’s April Angurasaranee, Germany’s Patricia Isabel Schmidt, Australia’s Kirsten Rudgeley, Italy’s Alessandra Fanali, France’s Nastasia Nadaud, Germany’s Polly Mack and Scotland’s Louise Duncan.
The final edition of this year’s Aramco Team Series gets under way on Friday 27 October. Follow the tournament @LETgolf on Instagram and X and Ladies European Tour on Facebook and YouTube – #RaiseOurGame #SeeTheImpact.
