KEY POINTS:
New Zealand hope a mix of youth and experience can win them the Queen Sirikit Cup, which tees off in the Philippines today.
New Zealand put in an impressive effort last year in Adelaide to finish runners-up in the Asia-Pacific amateur teams event after narrowly losing a sudden death play-off with Chinese Taipei.
This year's team will be spearheaded by Natasha Krishna, who is the only returning team member from last year.
Krishna, based in Las Vegas on a golf scholarship, was second best individual at Adelaide. She will team up with Rotorua's Penny Smith and Auckland's Dasom Lee.
Smith and Lee finished tied for runner-up at the New Zealand women's strokeplay in Wellington this month.
Smith makes a return to the team for the Queen Sirikit after last appearing in 2005, and 18-year-old Lee makes her debut, promoted after the departure of Sharon Ahn back to Korea.
Krishna said this year's team had prepared well but the hot conditions in the Philippines, with temperatures predicted to top 30C, could prove challenging.
"The three of us have some amazing history and experience, not necessarily as a team together, but we have been in this environment before and know how to put numbers on the board," she said.
The Queen Sirikit Cup involves teams from 14 Asia-Pacific countries including Australia, China, Korea, Japan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and New Zealand in a 54-hole team strokeplay format at The Country Club in Canlubang.
New Zealand have won the event three times since it was first held in 1979. That was in 1984, 1990 and 1999, with Lynnette Brooky the last New Zealander to claim the individual title, in 1993.