One of the world’s most promising young players, Chinese star Wenyi Ding, has turned professional after finishing top of the inaugural Global Amateur Pathway Ranking.
The initiative was launched by the DP World Tour, The R&A and the PGA Tour in June to help the world’s best male non-collegiate amateur golfers join the professional ranks.
Ding had been at Arizona State University, but as of August, he was no longer on the men's golf roster.
Despite that, the 19-year-old reached top of the rankings helped by victory in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Japan earlier this month and, as a result, he has now earned an exemption to the 2025 DP World Tour.
Ding’s victory in Japan was one of many achievements in a glittering amateur career that included two other wins this year among several other top-five finishes.
His first victory of 2024 came in the Amer Ari Intercollegiate, where he eased home by nine after finishing on 27-under - an Arizona State record. He followed that up with victory in July's Southern Amateur.
Ding has also had a taste of the professional game last year. He played in the China Tour's Hainan Open and finished third, before a T7 in the Volvo China Open. In September, he played in the Procore Championship on the PGA Tour, where he missed the cut.
Following his decision to turn professional, Ding, who is third in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, said: “I’m excited to start my journey as a professional and look forward to teeing it up on the DP World Tour next season.
“The Global Amateur Pathway has given me an incredible opportunity, and my thanks go to the DP World Tour, The R&A and the PGA Tour for supporting me and my fellow amateur players to reach their goals.”
Ding’s Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship win had earned him exemptions into next year’s Masters and the US Open, but they will no longer apply, and he admitted waiving his right to play in the Majors had been a tough decision.
He added: “It was a hard choice. I was struggling to make that decision after winning the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship. But after consulting my family, I believe this will be the right decision.”
Ding is wasting no time getting his professional career underway, as he will compete in this week’s Hangzhou Open in his homeland on the Challenge Tour.
Others who have benefited from the pathway include Amateur champion Jacob Skov Olesen, who stands second in the ranking and can now accept a Challenge Tour exemption, along with Luis Masaveu Roncal of Spain and Frenchman Bastian Amat.
For Olesen, it is not his only option as he also has an exemption to the Asian Tour's 2025 International Series and has admitted he is "very open-minded" about the chance to pursue a LIV Golf contract via that route.
Further down the ranking, Americans Nathan Petronzio, Peter Fountain, Ben Warian and Jake Hall have earned PGA Tour Americas membership for the Latin America Swing of the 2025 season, while South African Tyran Snyders has earned an exemption on the Sunshine Tour and will make his professional debut this week’s Fortress Invitational.
