World No 2 Danielle Kang says 'Scotland has been super-welcoming'

Highest-ranked player in field for ASI Ladies Scottish Open hails safety set up
World No 2 Danielle Kang spearheads a star-studded field for the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open at The Renaissance ClubWorld No 2 Danielle Kang spearheads a star-studded field for the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club
World No 2 Danielle Kang spearheads a star-studded field for the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club

Danielle Kang, the world No 2 and on a roll since the women's game restarted, has praised Scotland for being "super welcoming" to players travelling from around the world for the first time since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

This week's Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open marks the return of international sport in Scotland, with players from all corners of the globe descending on The Renaissance Club in East Lothian.

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The event is being played in a "bio-bubble", with strict safety protocols in place at the course and the players staying in a designated hotel in Edinburgh and only allowed to leave to travel to and from the venue.

"We are in a little bubble, which is great, with safety protocols, and Scotland has been super welcoming," said Kang, one of three players from the world's top 10 in the 144-strong field.

"It's definitely exceeded my expectation. We are really strict in how we are moving about. No one has any intent on breaking any rules, but it's more for the safety for us and safety for people in the country."

A number of players, including world No 1 Jin Young Ko, have decided to sit out both this event and next week's AIG Women's Open, which is being played at Royal Troon for the first time.

"I wasn't really that nervous coming over here," insisted Kang. "I thought it was interesting being able to fly international because there has been so many talks about not being able to fly from countries to country. I felt excited more than anything to come here."

Kang has won both events since the LPGA Tour's return, getting off to the perfect start with victory in the Drive-On Championship before completing a double in Ohio as she added the Marathon Classic following a last-hole collapse by Lydia Ko on Sunday.

If Kang adds another title triumph on Scotland's Golf Coast on Sunday, she would become the first player since Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn in 2016 to win at least three consecutive events.

"I think all the work I've done over the last few months has paid off," said the 27-year-old Californian, who works with Butch Harmon. "If anything, it's motivated me more to work on the things I want to get better at."

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Kang is playing at The Renaissance Club for the first time and admits her biggest challenge this week will be adapting to links golf.

"The golf course is great," she said of the Tom Doak-designed layout, where Korea's MJ Hur won with a 20-under-par total last year. "But it's not something that I'm used to at all, so I'm a little bit uncomfortable but you have always got to learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable.

"I've just got to trust my game. I'm playing well and it's going to bring me a lot of challenges and I'm going to have to make a lot of up-and-downs for pars out here. So I'm excited to see what this golf course hands me."

Hur is not defending her title, but Kang's rivals include world No 5 Nasa Hataoka from Japan and Australia's Minjee Lee, the world No 8. Hataoka's compatriot Hinako Shibuno, the reigning AIG Women's Open champion, is also in the field.

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