The women's golf scene in Asia is set to receive a tremendous boost when the inaugural R&A Women in Golf Forum takes centre stage in Singapore this week.
Endorsed by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) and the Asia Golf Leaders Forum (AGLF), the high-powered meeting will be held on December 9 at the Tanah Merah Country Club- concurrently with the opening round of the S$1.1 million Hana Financial Group Singapore Women's Open.
With the theme of 'Growing Women’s Golf in Asia', the forum brings together some of the most influential professionals from the golf industry. Headlined by South Korean legend Se-ri Park, they will share ideas on how to inspire more women to pick up the sport and also get involved in the golf industry as a whole.
Park, a World Golf Hall of Fame inductee, will share the story of her highly-successful 20-year professional career that saw her amass 39 titles worldwide including five from major championships.
Other renowned industry leaders such as Yuko Tashiro of Tokyo-based Accordia Golf, the R&A director of golf development Jackie Davidson, Golf New Zealand’s Hana-Rae Seifert and Karen Proctor of Textron Specialised Vehicles will also be part of the panel of speakers.
Said Davidson: "We are delighted to be hosting The R&A Women in Golf Forum in Asia for the first time. The Asia-Pacific region is a powerhouse in women’s professional golf, producing more and more champions at the highest level of the game. But for golf to be thriving 50 years from now we would like to see even more women participating in recreational golf and enjoying successful careers within the golf industry.
“Through the forum, we hope to inspire the future leaders of the sport and demonstrate what is possible within golf.”
Dominic Wall, Director of Asia-Pacific with The R&A, has also hailed the Forum as a 'milestone' for women's golf in Asia.
"The R&A’s Women in Golf Forum is an important milestone for women’s golf in Asia and will highlight a number of initiatives and strategies to help the development of women’s golf in Asia," said Wall.
"We are fortunate to be bringing together a very experienced and prominent group of speakers who will be able to outline their experience in helping grow golf in Asia."
Also at the forum, the Asian Golf Leaders Forum (AGLF) will be speaking to the attendees about their establishment and role in the formation of the Ladies Asian Tour (LAT) series for the development of women’s golf in the Asia-Pacific.
AGLF has been working closely with 13 Golf Associations in 12 countries across the region.
Paul Park, the AGLF Secretary-General said: "It is truly meaningful that we are the first in Asia to work with the R&A to host the R&A Women in Golf Forum for the development of women's golf in the Asia Pacific region.
"On top of the five existing LAT series tournaments, we are continuously putting our best efforts to host new women's golf tournaments in New Zealand, Thailand, Philippines and Hong Kong in 2024.”
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