Fresh off a victory from last week’s Tainan Professional Ladies Open, Babe Liu (劉依貞) is at a new peak in her career. She made fifteen birdies, zero bogeys in the last 36 holes of the tournament, writing the new Tour 18-hole scoring record in the second-round with a 10-under 62, which broke the previous mark set by multiple LPGA major champion Yani Tseng (曾雅妮). Liu will look to bring this kind of magic into this week’s Taiwan Mobile Ladies Open.

Liu admitted she was still feeling the fatigue and illness she caught earlier this month in the middle of a three-week stretch in Japan and Taiwan. “It’s pretty tiring, indeed. But I’ve always given myself a lot of time in the gym. I can get through this,” said Liu, who will be playing her fourth week in a row this week at Tong Hwa Golf Club, followed by a Japan LPGA event next week. “My father constantly reminds me of the importance of my fitness, so I work a lot in the gym to keep myself in the best shape. I believe if you’re fit, you can play with better consistency and you’ll definitely have longer career as a player.”

“Yes, I would love to make it again this week,” said Liu when asked about her expectation this week. “I’ve played at Tong Hwa a few years back. I hope I’ll be able to hold myself on a steady beat, play one shot at a time, and play it well. I believe the result will follow.”

Liu was one of the TLPGA Tour wildcards into the Swinging Skirts LPGA Taiwan Championship which just recently concluded at the Ta Shee Golf Club. “Watching all the super star players playing next to me, I see there is still a long way to go in order to compete with those girls. They’re the best of the best. It’s truly amazing,” said Liu. She finished in a tie for 48th. “I learned a lot from them, how they approached the game, their driver techniques, their touch…I’ll need to practice extra hard to improve myself to that kind of level.”

Another promising player to watch at the Taiwan Mobile Ladies Open is 17-year-old Hou Yu-Chiang (侯羽薔), who won the low-amateur honor last week (solo fourth on the final leaderboard) in Tainan. Hou emerged triumphed, for the first time, this year at the TLPGA Ladies Open – Nan Pao in May, showing a maturity beyond her age. On the biggest stage of her career last month at the LPGA Taiwan Championship, Hou also wrapped up the adventure in equal 48th place. “Their strong mentality was something I observed and admired. Even when things were not going well, they’re still super cool and calm. And this is the quality I hope I have,” Hou said.

Hou was a familiar face to the Tong Hwa course, the backdrop this week, when she was a kid. “Our Coach Lu used to take me and my sister to Tong Hwa club quite often. I remember the staff always greeted us so nicely,” Hou recalled. “I played here as well in August at the CTBC Ladies Open. With that experience, I hope I’ll be able to do better this time.” Hou will be one of the twelve amateur players competing this week.