When Zhong Xiaolong fired a double bogey at the final hole of the 2006 Volvo China Open qualifier and missed the chance of becoming the first woman to qualify for a national open championship, little did she know the opportunity had probably disappeared forever.
'I got very, very close, messed up on the final hole and missed qualifying by a single shot,' Zhong says. It was difficult to judge who was more disappointed - the 31-year-old leading lady or VCO executive director Alistair Polson.
'It would have been awesome had Zhong made it,' the Hong Kong-based Scot laments to this day. 'Two years have passed now and maybe the chance has gone. The girls are certainly moving ahead, but the new generation of Chinese men are overtaking them.'
Of the class of 2008, eight women entered the qualifying process and all failed to make it. The closest was Hu Ling, who finished in 20th place in the southern China qualifier at Harbour Plaza in Guangdong with rounds of 80 and 79. She was 12 shots off the qualifying places.
Having spent time in the US under the tutelage of new coach Jim Flick and now in her 30s, Zhong issued a warning that she would be a force to be reckoned with when she returned to compete in the 2008 Ladies Asian Golf Tour (LAGT).
'Sure! I know I'll certainly be a better player in the near future. You'll see a new Zhong making waves in Asia. By then I'll be a reborn golfer with renewed confidence and highly motivated,' she said.
As the debate over women playing on the men's tours abates, the novelty value of Michelle Wie and Annika Sorenstam having - thankfully - worn off, the LAGT still offers the best chance for the fairer sex, if only as a feeder for the prestigious LPGA Tour.
