After an excellent season on the Epson Tour where she won once and had eight top-10 finishes, including a runner-up at the season ending Epson Tour Championship, China’s Yu Liu has put together a respectable performance at her LPGA Tour debut for 2017.
The Blue Bay LPGA marks Liu’s first event since earning her LPGA Tour card via the Volvik Race for the Card, having finished fifth on the season-long race on the Epson Tour.
She played with major winners I.K. Kim (with whom she shares a swing coach) and Brittany Lang on Friday, where she shot a 3-over-par 75, and said the vibe on the LPGA Tour is different than what she’s used to. However, she said she’s feeling good on the bigger stage, and is eager to get ready for the 2018 season.
“LPGA definitely plays kind of different from the Epson Tour. The competition level is higher, and the difficulty of the course and the condition is a little different, too. Just trying to get used to… playing with someone that you're so used to seeing on TV before,” she said. “I think it's great to know what I need to work on over the next few months. So yeah, definitely set some goals for the off-season.”
Liu said the opportunity to play in more tournaments like the Blue Bay LPGA on a full LPGA Tour schedule next season has her excited for what’s to come, and she’s enjoyed the time playing in front of fans from her home country.
“Really nice to be playing in my home country,” she said. “Been playing in Asia mostly, but I don’t get to see (my friends) so much playing the Epson. Just really enjoyed it out there.”