Blue Bay LPGA 2025 Tips: Our golf tipster keeps faith with Minjee Lee

The East Asian swing of the LPGA Tour comes to a conclusion this week with the Blue Bay LPGA at the Jian Lake Blue Bay Golf Course on Hainan Island in China. This tournament has a purse of $2.500,000.

Our expert golf tipster Jamie Worsley as always is on hand with his comprehensive preview of the event. He provides several players to consider backing each-way as part of his Blue Bay LPGA 2025 Tips with us at Betfred Insights, with selections from 16/1 out to a 100/1 shot who hasn't missed a cut since her professional debut last year...

After Lydia Ko added yet another trophy to her cabinet in last week's HSBC Women's World Championship, the LPGA now heads to China to close out its East Asian swing, with the Blue Bay LPGA at the Jian Lake Blue Bay course. 

TOURNAMENT HISTORY 

The Blue Bay LPGA debuted on tour in 2014 and was held every year up to 2018. It returned from a six-year absence last year – largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic – and as with each other renewal, was staged here at the Jian Lake Blue Bay course. 

Tournament winners: 

• 2024 – Winner: Bailey Tardy (-19) 

Runner-up: Sarah Schmelzel (-15) 

• 2018 – Winner: Gaby Lopez (-8) 

Runner-up: Ariya Jutanugarn (-7) 

• 2017 – Winner: Shanshan Feng (-9) 

Runner-up: Moriya Jutanugarn (-8) 

• 2016 – Winner: Minjee Lee (-13) 

Runner-up: Jessica Korda (-12) 

• 2015 – Winner: Sei Young Kim (-2) 

Runners-up: Kim Kaufman, Candie Kung, Stacy Lewis (-1) 

• 2014 – Winner: Lee-Anne Pace (-16) 

Runner-up: Caroline Masson (-13) 

Last year's renewal went the way of America's Bailey Tardy, who won her first LPGA title with an emphatic four-shot win over Sarah Schmelzel, breaking the tournament record score in the process. She returns to defend this week. 

THE COURSE 

The Jian Lake Blue Bay course was designed by Mark Hollinger of JMP Golf Design and opened for play in 2012. Hollinger transformed a flat, ordinary piece of land by the coast into one of the most attractive courses in China, with imposing manmade dunes framing many holes. 

This fairly exposed, tropical links course plays as a par 72 and measures 6712yds, possessing 4x par 3s (162-183 yards), 10x par 4s (329-437 yards) and 4x par 5s (525-569 yards). Although it provided a difficult challenge initially, averaging a winning score of -9.6 across the first five renewals, the players found the setup a totally different prospect last year, as shown by Bailey Tardy's -19 final total. 

Those striking dunes are more about aesthetics than impacting how the course plays, with the playing areas around the layout generally flat. 

The fairways are very generous and bordered by sandy waste areas that are dotted with tall palm trees. Most of them dogleg, and although there is a lack of rough, the large, vivid steep-faced bunkers, which are strategically placed, offer ample protection.  

Paspalum covers the course, including on the large and undulating putting surfaces, that will run at a very slow 10 on the stimp this week. Many are open-fronted, which encourages play along the ground and with several shallow greens protected by bunkers and run-offs, misjudging approach distances can be penal. 

Water comes into play on 10 holes in total and plays a part in an exciting risk/reward finish, possessing both a drivable par 4 and par 5 over its last four holes. The 360yd par 4 15th will play as short as 297yds this week and has water guarding the fairway right and the green short; whilst the lengthy 569yd par 5 18th is protected by water up the entire left-hand side. 

Jian Lake Blue Bay's coastal location and exposed feel makes it susceptible to wind, though in benign conditions it can be got at, as we saw last year. The players will be hoping to see some kinder conditions in the forecast again this week. 

THE WEATHER 

Rain is predicted to hit the course on Wednesday/Thursday but fortunately, the rest of the week looks clear, bright and warm. A strong breeze will be a constant feature, blowing at around 10-12mph for the most part and accompanied by gusts of between 29-34mph. 

KEY STATS 

• SG: Approach 

Quality iron players with an ability to attack these slow paspalum greens always fared well at Jian Lake Blue Bay, and that was again the case upon the event's return last year. 

Winner, Bailey Tardy excelled with her approach play, ranking 5th; 4th-place finishers, Minjee Lee and Lydia Ko ranked 3rd and 6th respectively, and all of the top six ranked inside the top 30. 

Other past winners, such as Minjee Lee, Shanshan Feng and Sei Young Kim are/were all strong in approach. 

• SG: Off-the-Tee/Driving Distance 

The driver is another key asset, and due to the generous fairways and length of the course, it's no surprise to see longer hitters enjoy success. 

1st and 2nd-place finishers, Bailey Tardy and Sarah Schmelzel each ranked inside the top 25 off-the-tee last year.  

Tardy is a player that certainly doesn't lack for length, ranking 24th on tour in driving distance in 2024. Former champions, Minjee Lee, Sei Young Kim and Gaby Lopez all tick the same box. 

• SG: Putting (paspalum) 

• Par 4 Scoring 

Alternative stats to look out for this week include SG: Putting – especially on paspalum – as each of the top three in 2024 ranked inside the top 10 on the greens.  

In addition, it's also important to play the par 4s well, as evidenced by winner, Bailey Tardy ranking 1st on these holes last year and runner-up, Sarah Schmelzel ranking 3rd. 

CORRELATING EVENTS (COURSE) 

LOTTE Championship  

The LOTTE Championship always takes place in Hawaii on courses that use paspalum grass. When you also consider the typically exposed layouts and windy, coastal locations, the event looks an ideal comp for the Blue Bay course. 

Notable correlating form: 

Sei Young Kim: 

Blue Bay (1st, 4th) / LOTTE (1st, 2nd) 

Minjee Lee: 

Blue Bay (1st, 4th) / LOTTE (1st, 3rd) 

Shanshan Feng: 

Blue Bay (1st) / LOTTE (3rd) 

Gaby Lopez: 

Blue Bay (1st) / LOTTE (5th) 

Ariya Jutanugarn: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 3rd) / LOTTE (3rd, 3rd) 

Moriya Jutanugarn: 

Blue Bay (2nd) / LOTTE (4th, 9th) 

Sarah Schmelzel: 

Blue Bay (2nd) / LOTTE (6th) 

Ashleigh Buhai: 

Blue Bay (3rd) / LOTTE (4th) 

Chella Choi: 

Blue Bay (5th, 10th) / LOTTE (4th, 5th) 

Alena Sharp: 

Blue Bay (5th) / LOTTE (5th) 

Sandra Gal: 

Blue Bay (5th, 7th) / LOTTE (6th) 

HSBC Women's World Championship (Sentosa Golf Club – Tanjong Course) 

Sentosa Golf Club's Tanjong Course plays to a similar length to this week's venue, and has generous fairways, large greens and an abundance of water in play.  

Notable correlating form: 

Minjee Lee: 

Blue Bay (1st) / HSBC (2nd, 2nd) 

Shanshan Feng: 

Blue Bay (1st) / HSBC (4th) 

Gaby Lopez: 

Blue Bay (1st) / HSBC (4th, 7th) 

Stacy Lewis: 

Blue Bay (2nd) / HSBC (1st, 3rd) 

Sung Hyun Park: 

Blue Bay (3rd) / HSBC (1st, 3rd) 

Ayaka Furue: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 3rd) / HSBC (3rd) 

Danielle Kang: 

Blue Bay (4th, 5th) / HSBC (2nd, 3rd) 

Pornanong Phatlum: 

Blue Bay (4th) / HSBC (2nd) 

Ariya Jutanugarn: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 3rd) / HSBC (2nd, 4th) 

Celine Boutier: 

Blue Bay (3rd) / HSBC (2nd) 

Honda LPGA Thailand (Siam Country Club – Old Course) 

Staying in Asia and the Honda LPGA Thailand is played at a similarly generous driving course and has been a good spot for big hitters. It also uses paspalum over most of the course, except on the putting surfaces. 

Notable correlating form: 

Minjee Lee: 

Blue Bay (1st) / Honda LPGA (2nd, 4th) 

Sei Young Kim: 

Blue Bay (1st, 4th) / Honda LPGA (3rd, 3rd, 5th) 

Shanshan Feng: 

Blue Bay (1st) / Honda LPGA (5th) 

Jessica Korda: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 3rd, 3rd) / Honda LPGA (1st, 3rd) 

Ariya Jutanugarn: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 3rd) / Honda LPGA (1st, 5th) 

Moriya Jutanugarn: 

Blue Bay (2nd) / Honda LPGA (2nd) 

Stacy Lewis: 

Blue Bay (2nd) / Honda LPGA (2nd, 5th) 

Celine Boutier: 

Blue Bay (3rd) / Honda LPGA (3rd, 4th) 

Chella Choi: 

Blue Bay (5th, 10th) / Honda LPGA (5th, 7th) 

Dana Open (Highland Meadows Golf Club) 

Host of the Dana Open, Highland Meadows Golf Club favours high-class ball-strikers who don't lack for power and has developed some strong form-ties with this week's venue. 

Notable correlating form: 

Sei Young Kim: 

Blue Bay (1st, 4th) / Dana (1st) 

Gaby Lopez: 

Blue Bay (1st) / Dana (1st) 

Shanshan Feng: 

Blue Bay (1st) / Dana (1st) 

Lee-Anne Pace: 

Blue Bay (1st) / Dana (4th) 

Minjee Lee:  

Blue Bay (1st) / Dana (4th) 

Sarah Schmelzel: 

Blue Bay (2nd) / Dana (4th) 

Danielle Kang: 

Blue Bay (4th, 5th) / Dana (1st) 

Chella Choi: 

Blue Bay (5th, 10th) / Dana (1st) 

Caroline Masson: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 4th) / Dana (3rd, 5th, 5th) 

Ariya Jutanugarn: 

Blue Bay (2nd, 3rd) / Dana (2nd) 

Megan Khang: 

Blue Bay (3rd) / Dana (2nd) 

THE FIELD 

World #2 Jeeno Thitikul is in fine form and is the star attraction this week. She is joined by two further players from the top 10, Ruoning Yin (#4) and Ayaka Furue (#7), whilst there are eight of the top 25 in attendance. 

Bailey Tardy returns as a defending champion on the LPGA for the first time this week, accompanied by other past winners: Gaby Lopez (2018) and Minjee Lee (2016). 

Former #1 amateurs, Ingrid Lindblad and Julia Lopez Ramirez each continue their rookie seasons. Meanwhile, China's top-ranked amateur, 15-year-old phenom, Shiyuan Zhou gets the chance to test herself against some of the world's best 

SELECTIONS 

Market leaders: Jeeno Thitikul 3/1, Ruoning Yin 11/1, Ayake Furue 11/1, A Lim Kim 14/1, Miyu Yamashita 14/1, Celine Boutier 14/1 

Jeeno Thitikul hasn't finished outside the first three across her last five starts and is the one they've all got to beat. However, at a price of 3/1 she holds little appeal, especially at a venue she's yet to experience. 

That is not the case for former winner Minjee Lee and after continuing her good start to 2025 in Singapore, she's taken to get the better of the Thai superstar in China. 

Minjee Lee 

After a disappointing 2024 campaign by her standards, Minjee has begun this year in good form. She finished 4th in the Tournament of Champions on her first start of the year, followed by a 28th-place finish in the Founders Cup on her next start, before finishing 11th last week – an event in which she entered the final round four off the lead in 4th and in contention for the win. 

No doubt the most encouraging aspect of her performances this year has been the gains she's made on the greens, ranking 2nd so far in 2025. As one of the best iron players on tour, ranking 1st last year and a high-class, long driver, she's ideal for this course. 

Minjee debuted here in 2015, finishing 14th and has never finished outside the top 25 in three successive efforts, winning in 2016, finishing 25th in 2017 and 4th last year. As a past champion of both the LOTTE Championship and HSBC Women's World Championship, her comp form is as strong as anyone's and strengthens her chances this week. 

Somi Lee 

Somi Lee has started 2025 in positive fashion and with her ball-striking shining, this five-time Korean LPGA winner looks ready for an LPGA breakthrough in China. 

It was all a bit of a struggle for Lee in her rookie season last year, as she missed 11 cuts in 27 starts and recorded just two top 10s. However, she's left that form behind at the beginning of this year, finishing 11th in the Founders Cup on her first start, which she followed with an excellent runner-up finish amongst a strong field in the Saudi Ladies International. 

It was with the putter that she excelled last year, ranking 28th but she also drove the ball reasonably well, ranking 58th. She's maintained that quality off the tee this year, but has combined it with some stronger approach play, ranking 33rd and as a competent par 4 scorer, she has much in her favour around this setup. 

Lee will make her debut at the Blue Bay course this week but her 5th-place finish in the 2022 LOTTE Championship bodes well. As does that runner-up finish in Saudi, which is played on an open links-like layout with paspalum greens. 

Minami Katsu 

Minami Katsu was in consistent form at the end of 2024 and having hit the ground running at the beginning of this year, finishing inside the top 10 in the Founders Cup, she looks primed to finally enter the winner's circle at this level. 

Katsu only missed one cut across her final 13 starts last year and carried that positivity over to 2025, finishing 7th on her season debut in the Founders Cup. She comes into this after a solid 13th-place finish in a strong field on the Taiwan LPGA tour last week. 

She gained strokes throughout the bag in that opening start of the year; also ranking 1st in par 4 scoring. As a player who possesses plenty of power and is solid on the greens, she ticks many boxes.  

Katsu was a prolific winner in her native Japan, claiming eight titles, including two in the prestigious Japan Women's Open. She hasn't quite managed to bring that same energy to the LPGA as yet, but the ability to do so is certainly there and this looks a good spot for her to earn that first win on the tour.   

Chanettee Wannasaen 

Chanettee Wannasaen has been among the selections in the last two events and looks worth chancing again this week. She showed promise here on debut last year and as a former winner of the Dana Open, I believe she has the game to contend. 

Wannasaen failed to get anything going on her first two starts this year, but she's looked much better since the tour headed east, finishing 24th in the Honda LPGA Thailand and 45th in last week's HSBC Women's World Championship. 

She has shown positives across her game in those opening events of 2025. This is representative of the form she showed last year, ranking top 40 off-the-tee and also putting up positive numbers in approach and on the greens. In addition to ranking 30th on the par 4s, she scores well enough in each of the relevant stats. 

Wannasaen made her debut at this course last year and after a disappointing 75 in round one she performed encouragingly well for the rest of the week, eventually finishing 37th. She should be all the better for that experience and showcasing some strong comp form with that victory in the Dana Open, she made plenty of sense in China. 

Lucy Li 

Lucy Li has been playing solid golf since the latter part of 2024 and having performed well on this setup on debut last year, this talented former #3 amateur looks good value for a maiden LPGA title at the Blue Bay course. 

Li hasn't missed a cut across her prior 11 starts, over which time she recorded her best LPGA finish to date when 2nd in Arkansas. She finished down the leaderboard on her seasonal reappearance in the Honda LPGA Thailand two weeks ago, but she improved last week in Singapore, finishing 39th and I'm expecting her to take another step forward here. 

She's hit the ball well across those couple of starts, which doesn't come as a surprise as it's with the long game that she excelled last year. Her approach play was particularly impressive ranking 13th and as the 36th-best par 4 scorer in 2024, she is a good fit for this test. 

Li's quality in approach was on full display here on debut last year, as she ranked 2nd in the field on her way to a 10th-place finish. Her top 5 in the 2022 Dana Open should also serve her well on this layout.  

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