With her fourth place finish at the Evian Championship, Shanshan Feng leapfrogged Beth Allen of the United States into pole position on the 2016 LET Order of Merit and the Chinese star now has the opportunity to win the LET’s official ranking for the second consecutive year.
So far in 2016, in addition to winning an Olympic Bronze medal, which she calls ‘rose gold’, Feng has won the Buick Championship, tied for 17th at the Ricoh Women’s British Open and finished fourth in the Evian Championship to earn €252,274.88 from three starts on the Ladies European Tour.
Allen has earned €162,303.89 from 11 tournaments, with her best result third at the Buick Championship and is €89,970.99 behind Feng, but she still has a strong chance to regain pole position with eight counting tournaments to be played on Tour.
The first prize at this week’s Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España Femenino is €45,000, which would help to close the gap significantly, but if she won all eight events between now and Christmas, then Allen could mathematically earn approximately another €400,000.
After Spain, the LET moves to the Lacoste Ladies Open de France, followed by the Xiamen International Ladies Open and Sanya Ladies Open in China. There is also significant prize money to be earned throughout November and December, with the inaugural Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Open in Abu Dhabi and Qatar Ladies Open, as well as the Hero Women’s Indian Open and Omega Dubai Ladies Masters, which will be an exciting climax to the year.
Speaking at Aloha Golf Club on Monday, Allen said that she loves Spain as she speaks Spanish and the grass reminds her of the courses where she grew up in California. She also has a strong record in this event and from her six past appearances, recorded a best finish of second to Melissa Reid at nearby La Quinta Country Club in 2011.
