The inagural Buick Shanshan Feng Girls Invitational is set to begin in Valencia, California, with a first-round shotgun at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, February 10. The event joins the ANNIKA Invitational USA presented by Rolex, ANA Junior Inspiration, Rolex Girls Junior Championship and the Swinging Skirts Invitational as all-girls Invitationals on the AJGA schedule. Seventy-two of the world's top players from 12 states, Canada, China, Taiwan and Mexico will compete.
Irene Kim of La Palma, California, leads the Buick Shanshan Feng Girls Invitational by two strokes after play was suspended due to darkness. The two-time AJGA Champion carded a first-round score of even-par 72. She had five birdies during the second round before play was suspended at 5:37 p.m.
Tournament host Shanshan Feng of Guangzhou, China, was the first Chinese player to join the LPGA Tour in 2008. Since then, she has accumulated nine professional wins, including the 2012 Wegmans LPGA Championship. Feng won the bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She is currently No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings.Buick, an international modern luxury automaker, returns to the AJGA after serving as a 20-plus year title sponsor of an event in Michigan. The event, held from 1985-2006, featured a storied history with champions such as Phil Mickelson, Paula Creamer and Leigh Anne Hardin.
Sadie Englemann of Austin, is the 36-hole leader with the score of 2-under-par 142. Yealimi Noh of Concord, California, Katherine Muzi of Walnut, California, and Irene Kim are one stroke back of Englemann.
The final-round will be a 10 a.m. shotgun on Sunday, February 11.