Maybank Championship 2026: five Malaysians join Yamashita and Thitikul at KLGCC from Thursday

The LPGA Tour returns to Kuala Lumpur this week as the fourth edition of the Maybank Championship gets under way at Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club on Thursday, 29 October. Japan's Miyu Yamashita defends the Tiger Trophy against a field that includes world No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul, and five Malaysians will tee it up on the West Course, all chasing the best home finish in the event's short history.

Dates, venue and prize fund

The tournament runs over four rounds from Thursday 29 October to Sunday 1 November on KLGCC's West Course, with a purse of US$3 million. As the event is played in Kuala Lumpur, every round starts on Malaysia time, so local fans can follow the action live from the morning tee times through to the afternoon finishes.

Yamashita bids for a first back-to-back win

No player has won the Maybank Championship twice in a row. Yamashita won the 2025 edition after a three-way playoff against Australia's Hannah Green and South Korea's Hye-Jin Choi, settling it on the first extra hole after a closing 65. She arrives in good form: she won the CPKC Women's Open in Canada by nine shots in August and added a playoff victory at the Sony JLPGA Championship in September.

Thitikul is the other headline name. The Thai star has three LPGA wins in 2026 and ten career titles, but the Tiger Trophy has eluded her in three previous visits, including a nine-hole playoff defeat to France's Céline Boutier in the inaugural 2023 edition. Boutier is back, as is 2024 winner Ruoning Yin of China, who won the FM Championship in August. South Korea's Haeran Ryu, a back-to-back major winner this year, Olympic champion Lydia Ko, England's Lottie Woad and Charley Hull, and Japanese twins Akie and Chisato Iwai complete a strong line-up.

The Malaysian challenge

Malaysia has five players in the field. Mirabel Ting received a sponsor's invitation and has been the best-placed Malaysian in each of the last two editions, finishing tied 12th as an amateur in 2024 and tied 49th last year. She has since won twice on the Epson Tour in 2026 to earn her LPGA card for 2027.

Kelly Tan, a two-time Olympian and Malaysia's most successful LPGA player, also returns on an invitation, as does LPGA rookie Natasha Oon, the 2023 Epson Tour Rookie of the Year, who missed much of 2024 and 2025 through injury. Amateur Jeneath Wong, Malaysia's top-ranked amateur and the 2025 Women's Amateur Asia-Pacific champion, completes the invited group.

Liyana Durisic earned her place the hard way. She took the fifth and final spot at the ASEAN Qualifier at KLGCC in August with a 36-hole total of one under par, behind four Thai players. Durisic has won four PGM Tour titles in 2026.

What a good week would look like

The home record sets a modest benchmark. Ting's tied-12th finish in 2024 remains the highest by a Malaysian, and in 2025 no Malaysian finished inside the top 45. A top-20 finish for any of the five would be a clear step forward, while Ting, with her move to the LPGA Tour confirmed for next season, will see the week as a useful test against the players she will face full-time in 2027.

Key takeaways

• The Maybank Championship runs 29 October to 1 November at KLGCC's West Course, with a US$3 million purse.
• Miyu Yamashita is trying to become the event's first back-to-back champion.
• Jeeno Thitikul, Ruoning Yin, Céline Boutier, Haeran Ryu and Lydia Ko lead the challengers.
• Malaysia's five entrants are Mirabel Ting, Kelly Tan, Natasha Oon, Jeneath Wong and qualifier Liyana Durisic.

FAQ

When does the 2026 Maybank Championship start? The first round is on Thursday, 29 October, and the final round is on Sunday, 1 November, all at Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club.

Who won the Maybank Championship last year? Miyu Yamashita of Japan won in 2025, beating Hannah Green and Hye-Jin Choi in a playoff.

What is the best finish by a Malaysian at the event? Mirabel Ting's tied-12th place as an amateur in 2024 is the best Malaysian result so far.

Sources: The Star, ParGolf, LPGA, MST Golf