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TSN Senior Reporter

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With full respect to Tiger Woods and his next comeback, the most impactful golfer in the world right now very well might be Shanshan Feng.

The 28-year-old from Guangzhou, China, won her second consecutive LPGA title over the weekend, grabbing a one-shot victory at the Blue Bay LPGA. That moved her to No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings making her the first Chinese golfer to reach top spot in the world.

“I'm really happy about that, and I hope all the Chinese are going to be watching me and the Chinese can play golf,” Feng told LPGA.com after her win. “Hopefully there will be more Chinese getting on the tours and more world No. 1s coming up from China.”

China has had a confusing relationship with the sport of golf since Mao Tse-tung outlawed the game when he came to power in 1949. He called it a “sport for millionaires.” Yet in more recent times, the game has grown in spite of public stances by the government forbidding Communist Party officials from teeing it up.

While the government banned he construction of new courses in 2004, the number of layouts has more than tripled since. But earlier this year, the government ordered more than 100 closed, saying they took up too much land and used too much water.

Despite the confusing position, Chinese golfers have had success on an international level. Guan Tianlang made headlines when he qualified to play in the Masters as a 14-year-old in 2013.

This year, Xinjun Zhang and Marty Dou became the first golfers from China to qualify for the PGA Tour, advancing via the Web.com Tour, while Li Haotong, who plays the European Tour, is ranked 58th in the world.

But Feng, who speaks fluent English and is known for her bold clothes that include pants with a black-and-white cow motif, could become the player that opens the floodgates to a generation of young Chinese golfers. She is already a major sports figure in her home country, especially after winning a bronze medal in last year’s Olympics. Being No. 1 in the world could have even more influence.

“I really enjoy the moment and hopefully this could encourage a younger generation in China to go for this sport,” said Feng on LPGA.com.

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A lot of folks are scratching their heads this morning trying to figure out how Kevin Sutherland won the Charles Schwab Cup, the season-ending playoff on the Champions Tour.

Or more precisely, they’re trying to figure out how Bernard Langer didn’t win it.

Sutherland captured the final event of the season, the Charles Schwab Cup Championship and that moved him to top spot on the season-long ranking, giving him the overall title.

Langer won seven times, had 16 top-10 finishes and was inside the top 25 in 21 of 22 starts. That’s a pretty dominant year by anyone’s measuring stick.

Sutherland? His only win came in Sunday’s finale although he did manage 15 top-10 finishes.

"It was never meant to be fair," Langer said to reporters after the tournament. "It was meant to be playoffs. Everybody in the field was given a chance to win. Is it fair? No, it's not, but that's how it is right now."

The playoff format reset the points prior to the final event, which meant any player in the top five could win the Charles Schwab Cup by winning the last event. Sutherland, 53, was in fifth spot.

Langer, who as looking for a fourth consecutive Charles Schwab Cup crown, had a significant lead in points entering the final tournament but was pulled back into the pack by the points reset. The 60-year-old ended up tied for 12th in the tournament and dropped to second spot in the Charles Schwab Cup standings.

Despite Sutherland’s win, there’s little doubt who the best player on the 50-and-over circuit was in 2018.

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Four Canadians have made it to the final stage of Web.com Tour qualifying over the past two weeks, ensuring they’ll have at least some sort of limited status on the circuit for 2018.

Last week, Toronto’s Albin Choi and Stuart Macdonald of Vancouver advanced from second stage. They join Ryan Yip of Calgary and Seann Harlingten of Vancouver who got a passing grade a week earlier.

Among the notables who missed out are veterans Brad Fritsch of Manotick, Ont., and Derek Gillespie of Oshawa Ont. A couple of young stars Hugo Bernard of Montreal and Kimberley, B.C.’s Jared du Toit also failed to advance.

The final tournament goes Dec. 7-10 in Chandler, Ariz.

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It’s been a good year for the more experienced amateur women golfers in Canada. At the United States Golf Association Senior championship, four Canadian golfers made it to the quarter finals and two – Judith Kyrinis and Terrill Samuel, both of Toronto, met in the final with Kyrinis claiming the title.

The good play is continuing. Four Canadians, including Kyrinis and Samuel, advanced to the match-play portion of the USGA’s Mid-Amateur tournament. The other two Canadians to move on through the 36-hole stroke play qualifying were Patti Hogeboom of Kingston, Ont., and Unionville, Ont.’s Julia Hodgson.

The Mid-Am, which wraps up on Thursday, is for golfers 25 and older.

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Five Canadians are in the field at this week’s RSM Classic, the last official stop on the PGA Tour for the calendar year. Cory Conners, David Hearn, Ben Silverman, Nick Taylor and defending champion Mackenzie Hughes. A year ago Hughes won a five-player playoff by sinking a par putt from the fringe on the third extra hole, played on a chilly Monday morning after the group was unable to decide matters before darkness fell on Sunday.