Yi Cao

JOINED TOUR

• PGA TOUR China: 2014

PGA Tour China Series Victories (1)

2018 Season

• Chongqing Championship

International Victories (1)

• 2008 Sofitel Golf Championship [China]

Additional Victories (1)

• 2020 Canada Life Series at Bear Mountain: Valley Course

PLAYOFF RECORD

(1-0)

• 2018 Defeated William Harrold, Chongqing Championship

Personal

• Moved to Canada from China at age 15 to prepare for a professional golf career.

Special Interests

CURRENT YEAR HIGHLIGHTS

• PGA TOUR Canada Q-School CANADA: Fired a pair of 67s over his final 36 holes at Crowne Isle Resort in Courtenay, British Columbia, in late-April. His 70-69 start made him one of three players to play all four rounds under-par. Closed at 15-under and alone in second, five shots behind runaway winner Riley Wheeldon. Will have exempt PGA TOUR Canada status for the first half of the season.

Career Highlights

2022 Season

• PGA TOUR Canada Q-School CANADA: Fired a pair of 67s over his final 36 holes at Crowne Isle Resort in Courtenay, British Columbia, in late-April. His 70-69 start made him one of three players to play all four rounds under-par. Closed at 15-under and alone in second, five shots behind runaway winner Riley Wheeldon. Will have exempt PGA TOUR Canada status for the first half of the season.

2021 Season

Had a pair of top-10s on the Mackenzie Tour, eventually leading to a No. 9 position on the final Points List. Will receive one sponsor’s exemption into a 2022 Mackenzie Tour tournament.

• Reliance Properties DCBank Open (MT): Opened with an even-par 70 at the season finale in Victoria. Followed with rounds of 69-64-68 over his final 54 holes to finish T2 with Andrew Harrison, Jonnie Motomochi and amateur Jeevan Sihota, a stroke behind winner Blair Bursey.
• GolfBC Championship (MT): Shot three 68s and used a second-round 66 at Gallagher’s Canyon GC in late-September to hold off China’s Yi Cao for a two-stroke victory in Kelowna. Began the final round with a two-shot advantage over Cao and made two birdies and seven pars over his opening nine holes. Made his lone bogey of the day at No. 10 but rebounded with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 11 and 12. Parred in from there for his second title of the season.

2020 Season

In four Canada Life Series tournaments, enjoyed four top-10s and ultimately took the points title by a little more than 17 points over Albert Pistorius. His No. 1 finish earned him a playing spot in the 2021 RBC Canadian Open on the PGA TOUR.

• Canada Life Series Championship at TPC Toronto (Canada Life Series): Made it four for four in Canada Life Series top-10s with his 67-69-67 showing at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley’s Heathlands Course. The T8 performance, with Albert Pistorius, JJ Regan and Josh Whalen, allowed him to win the overall points title over Pistorius.
• Canada Life Series at TPC Toronto: Heathlands Course (Canada Life Series): Held a share of the lead through 36 holes after a 64-71 start in the Canada Life Series’ third tournament. Could only muster an even-par 71 on the final day, with a late bogey at No. 16 that proved costly. Couldn’t birdie either of his final two holes and fell a stroke shy of winner Albert Pistorius. Settled for a T2 with Callum Davison and Andrew Funk.
• Canada Life Series at Bear Mountain: Valley Course (Canada Life Series): Was dominant all week, opening with a 4-under 67 to take a share of the lead with Scott Kerr. Dominated from there, turning in a second consecutive 67 at Bear Mountain’s Valley Course to take a five-shot lead into the final round. On the strength of a final-round 66, pulled away for a whopping, eight-shot triumph over Albert Pistorius and Joey Savoie. Was the only player in the field with three under-par rounds, all of them in the 60s.
• Canada Life Series at Bear Mountain: Mountain Course (Canada Life Series): Opened 69-69 and was five strokes behind 36-hole leader Evan Holmes at Bear Mountain’s Mountain Course in mid-August. Although he shot an even-par 71 on the final day, moved up the leaderboard into a T3 with Derek Gillespie, four shots behind Holmes’ winning total.

2018 Season

Won in the second week of the PGA TOUR Series-China season but couldn’t manage another top-10. Finished the year 12th on the Order of Merit. Also played in five China Tour tournaments, picking up one top-10.

• Bo'ao Open (China): Shot four under-par rounds in Hainan in late-March, early April to finish T9, six shots behind winner Charlie Saxon.
• Chongqing Championship: Came from eight strokes off the pace with a final-round, bogey-free, 9-under 63, matching his career-low round, to win his first PGA TOUR Series-China title. His 63 at the Poly GC set a new record for the low finish by a winner, bettering the 64 by Chinese Taipei’s Shih Chang Chan in winning the 2015 Eternal Courtyard Open. The victory came in his 30th career start. on Tour. Had started his final round tied for ninth place but made the turn at 5-under 31 and then ran off consecutive birdies on Nos. 12-15, which eventually led to a playoff with William Harrold. He quickly ended the playoff, sinking a 4-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole.

2017 Season

Played more than half the season on the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Made the cut in half of his tournaments. In only six China Tour starts, still finished 18th on the Order of Merit. Added three other top-10s in his abbreviated season

• Jiangsu Open (China): Turned in his best finish on the China Tour, a solo-second showing in Jiangsu. Shot a final-round 71 only to fall one shot behind winner Callum Tarren.
• Binhai Forest Tianjin Open (China): inished in eighth at Tianjin Binhai Forest GC for his fourth top-10 of the campaign.
• Pure Pu'Er Tea Classic (China): A second-round 65 was the highlight of his week at Kunming Wind Valley Club, leading to a T5 with Corey Hale and Gunn Charoenkul.

2016 Season

Split his time between the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR Series-China. Played in seven events and earned ¥211,470 in China to finish 21st on the Order of Merit, thanks to four top-10s. In nine Mackenzie Tour starts, made two cuts to finish 131st on the Order of Merit.

• Zhuhai Hengqing Phoenix Tree Open: Picked up another top-10, this time a T4 in Zhuhai in mid-November. Opened with a 1-over 72 at the Orient G&CC then rode three rounds of par or better (71-71-69) to the top-five that matched his fourth-place effort at the Yulongwan Yunnan Open for best of his campaign.
• Chongqing Newtown King Run Open: Added a second consecutive top-10, this time at the Chongqing Jiangnan NewTown KingRun Open. Began the event with a 5-under 67 then stumbled to a 1-over 73 in the second round. Played his final 36 holes in 9-under to T6 with Kook Hyan Kim and Jesse Speirs.
• Putian Open: Continued his solid play. Added his third top-10 of the season to his resume with a T9 . Had three back-nine birdies at the Putian Mazu GC and Resort.
• Yulongwan Yunnan Open: In his PGA TOUR China debut, he made his presence felt with a fourth-place finish. Prior to playing in Kunming, he had spent his entire season on the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Shot rounds of 67-66-69-66 at Yulongwan GC to record his first top-five since finishing T4 at the 2015 Chongqing Jiangnan NewTown KingRun Open.

2015 Season

Finished 11th on the PGA TOUR Series-China Order of Merit, recording four top-10s during the year. Also played in two Mackenzie Tour - PGA TOUR Canada tournaments, making one cut to finish 133rd on the Order of Merit.

• Chongqing Open: Jumped into contention in Chongqing in mid-October after shooting a 5-under 67 in the second round. Trailed Sweden's Thomas Petersson by a stroke through 36 holes. Fell backward Saturday with a 3-over 75 then recovered on the final day with another 67 to T4 with Rory Hie and Justin Shin.
• The Eternal Courtyard Open: Earned his career-best PGA TOUR China Series' finish when he T3. After a disappointing start, where he shot a 76 and had a 9 on the par-5 10th hole, he recovered by shooting rounds of 72-72-67 the rest of the way to T3 with three others, five shots behind winner Shih Chang Chan.
• Buick Open: Had a strong start to his season, finishing T4 for his first career top-10. Opened 68-69 to T4 with Zecheng Dou, Jamie Arnold and John Young Kim, four shots behind winner Josh Geary.
• World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions: Made his PGA TOUR and World Golf Championships' debut in November, in Shanghai. Finished 74th at Sheshan International GC.

2014 Season

Played in nine PGA TOUR Series-China events, making the cut in every one. Enjoyed a pair of top-20 finishes and ended the season 49th on the Order of Merit.

2012 Season

• China Challenge Tour No. 1: At the season-opening event, at Tian Zhu G&CC, and playing in only his third professional event, shot an even-par 288 to finish second, two strokes behind winner Mu Hu. Held the 54-hole lead but stumbled on his final day, shooting an 8-over 80.

2008 Season

Led the China Tour's order of merit.

• Guangzhou Championship (China): Finished alone in fifth in Guangzhou, playing at the Dragon Lake GC's Asian Games Course. Weekend rounds of 72-75 left him eight shots behind winner Lianwei Zhang.
• Luxehills Golf Championship (China): After his runner-up finish in Shanghai, came right back in his next start, at Luxehills GC, and was solo second, three shots behind Chinese Taipei's Chihuang Tsai. Opened with an even-par 72 then played his final 54 holes in 15-under.
• Shanghai Championship (China): Came close to winning in Shanghai in May. Opened 74-70-70 and was three strokes behind Xiaoma Chen entering the final round. Fired a 1-over 73 on the final day to T2 with Chen, two strokes behind Taiwan's Mongnan Hsu.
• Sofitel Golf Championship (China): Captured the title, defeating Lianwei Zhang in a playoff after the pair finished tied at 10-under and a stroke ahead of amateur Dong Su. Held a three-stroke, 54-hole lead over Zhang but faltered on the final day, shooting a 2-over 74 to drop into the playoff.

Q SCHOOL GRADUATE

• PGA TOUR China: 2014
• PGA TOUR Canada: 2022