February 2012
4 posts
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Top 30 Predictions
1. Na Yeon Choi
2. Yani Tseng
3. Suzann Pettersen
4. Critie Kerr
5. Jiyai Shin
6. Paula Creamer
7. I.K Kim
8. Michelle Wie
9. Hee Kyung Seo
10. Karrie Webb
11. Brittany Lincicome
12. Mika Miyazato
13. Amy Yang
14. Sun Young Yoo
15. Catriona Matthew
16. Azahara Munoz
17. Se Ri Park
18. Maria Hjorth
19. So Yeon Ryu
20. Anna Nordqvist
21.Meena Lee
22. Jee Young Lee
23. Jimin Kang
24. Lexi...
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Boeljon Outduels Ryu for Australian Ladies Masters...
In the fickle world of tournament golf, it’s all about what have you done for me lately. Christel Boeljon who hovered behind the lead for the majority of the Australian Ladies Masters wound up on top after birding the 72nd hole to avoid a playoff with U.S. Open Champion So Yeon Ryu, Diana Luna, and Ha-Neul Kim. Ryu, the 54 hole leader couldn’t find any of the form that saw her shoot...
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So Yeon Ryu Shoots 61, leads by 4
Incoming rookie & 2011 U.S. Women’s Open So Yeon Ryu lit up the course on the Gold Coast shooting a 61 to take a 4 shot lead over Christel Boeljon. As Ryu finishes her preparations here for the first LPGA event as a tour member next week my thoughts are immediately turned to the potentially epic Rookie of the Year showdown between So Yeon & Alexis Thompson.
Both are joining the LPGA...
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Bo-Mee Lee Leads at Australian Ladies Masters
In what could be a mini-preview of next week’s co-sanctioned ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open, 2010 KLPGA player of the year Bo-Me Lee leads by a stroke after the opening round of the ALPG’s Australian Ladies Masters. Lee, who is not currently in the field for next week’s LPGA event, shot a 7-under 65 and leads two of her more well known contemporaries by a stroke: 2011...
July 2010
9 posts
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Lang Leads By 1
In 2005, Brittany Lang was a 20 year old rising junior at Duke playing in her first U.S. Women’s Open Championship. There Lang (along with fellow amateur Morgran Pressel) took the LPGA by storm nearly winning the event, before finishing T2 two strokes behind Birdie Kim. After the finish Lang quickly turned pro.
5 years later Lang returns to the top of the U.S. Women’s Open after being...
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Meg Mallon Retires →
Golfweek’s Beth Ann Baldry reports that Meg Mallon played her last event last week at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic.
Mallon won 18 times on the LPGA, and four of those were majors. She won the U.S. Open in 1991 and 2004. Her last win came at the 2004 edition of the Jamie Farr.
Mallon was great champion and will surely be missed, but I’m sure we’ll be seeing her around...
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is there a cliff's notes version? ...
The tough test of Oakmont Country Club awaits the best and brightest of the LPGA this week as the ladies compete for the 65th U.S. Women’s Open Championship. Expect to see some tough scoring this week, as the course features the longest par-3 in U.S. Open history, the 8th could play 252-yards throughout the week.
Don’t expect the course this week to only be about the length. The USGA...
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hate being an outtie
Last year, fans and media alike were reeling when two of the LPGA’s most popular ladies Michelle Wie & Natalie Gulbis failed to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open Championship. This year there is no public outrage, but there are a few notable names who won’t be teeing it up at Oakmont.
Laura Davies
Davies will be missing the U.S. Open for the first time in 24 years. Yes, I...
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Three's Company
Before you could finish saying the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic presented by Kroger, the pairings for the 65th U.S. Women’s Open Championship have been released. You can check them out over here. Below are some of the most intriguing pairings in my mind:
Thursday Hole 1 7:33 a.m./Friday Hole 10 1:03 p.m.
Morgan Pressel Maria Hjorth Candie Kung
All three of these ladies have...
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Take a Big Bite
In a dramatic finish, Na Yeon Choi captured her first wire-to-wire victory outlasting Christina Kim, In-Kyung Kim, & Song-Hee Kim in a 2 hole playoff to capture the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic presented by Kroger. Choi was the only player to get a birdie during the playoff doing so on the par-5 17th hole. “The Big Apple” gets her first victory of 2010, but it certainly...
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Can Christina Do It?
When Cristie Kerr became the new #1 ranked golfer in the world last week, the common theme amongst the media was the potential resurgence of American Ladies Golf. Kerr has been a consistent top 5/10 player, and it was no real shock that the she is leading the charge of Americans this year.
When journalists and bloggers alike delved deeper into the American talent they began to throw out names of...
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NYC bouncing back.
Last week I scanned the leadearboard of the LPGA Championship presented by Wegmans and did a double take when I didn’t see Na Yeon Choi’s name among the top 20. Using my trusty command + f, tool I typed her name to find her below the cut line for the first time in her career.
I have a lot of faith in Na Yeon Choi’s game, so much so that I picked her to finish #1 on this...
jamie in the rough is back.
Dear Everyone,
For the 10 of you who read my blog, and specifically to the great staff over at SB Nation (especially Ryan Ballangee) I have to apologize for complacent laziness that have overcome my golf blog the past few months. I began working a lot of hours at a restaurant and completely neglected my online life.
Thankfully the bulk of it began during one of the many gaps in the LPGA...
November 2009
4 posts
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Nordqvist Notches 2nd Win, Lorena Player of the...
When Anna Nordqvist calmly shot a 68 during the final round of the McDonald’s LPGA Championship to capture her first title (and obviously first major), they were a slew of questions that opened up. The biggest of all being, who is this unknown Swede, is she the next Annika, or is this a fluke?
On another important final round Nordqvist shined brightest shooting a 7-under par round of 65 to...
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2009 LPGA Tour Championship Update, NYC Making a...
In 2008 Na Yeon Choi went winless, but still put up a valiant fight in the Rookie of the Year eventually won by LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng. Yani, would go on to struggle to win her second event not doing so until earlier this year when Soo Yun Kang choked on the 18th hole at the LPGA Corning Classic. In a sharp contrast Na Yeon Choi finally broke through at the star studded Samsung World...
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Jiyai Shin Answers Ochoa's Call
@Kstupples, 2-time LPGA Winner Karen Stupples, tweeted on Wednesday: “i tee off at 12:50 and its dark here at 5:30, my chances of finishing? slim at best.” Little did she or any of us know the type of foreshadowing it would spell for the LPGA Tour Championship presented by Rolex.
Instead of finding an outcome of the Rolex Player of the Year or Vare Trophy races, or seeing if Michelle...
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Lorena Ochoa is Making Moves for the Player of the...
World #1 Lorena Ochoa has put herself in prime position after the opening round of the inaugural ADT-less LPGA Tour Championship after a 6-under 66. Ochoa who can clinch her 4th Rolex Player of the Year with a win this week. Ochoa’s current 3-win season is mediocre for her standards (she hasn’t won less then 6 times since 2005), but despite this she along with Jiyai Shin have had...
October 2009
7 posts
5 tags
LPGA Timing, Not so Great
Some argued that having the player revolt/ousting of Carolyn Bivens occur during one of the LPGA’s major championship was a bad thing, in my eyes it always seemed like the right time to have controversy. Have it during your tour’s biggest events, so, even if they are tuning it because of the Commissioner drama, they will be able to witness your tour’s best and brightest playing...
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Early Reports: Michael Whan new LPGA Commissioner
Golfweek Magazine and Golf Digest are reporting that Michael Whan will be announced as the new LPGA commissioner at a special meeting in NYC on Wednesday morning.
See Golfweek’s report here.
Whan is a former executive at Taylor Made Adidas, and was recently a CEO of Mission-ITECH hockey.
More reports are coming out, but hopefully we’ll get a bigger look of it tomorrow morning.
Whan...
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Ugh! Apologies!
Hi everyone!
As you may have noticed I haven’t updated in a while, but I have good reasons!
If you haven’t already heard, I have accepted a position to blog about the LPGA at SB Nation. Hopefully I’ll be able to reach out to a wider audience, then my dog and pony show here!
I just finished signing all the paperwork, and I hope the new site will be up very, very shortly.
All...
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Ochoa Finally Closes
World #1 Lorena Ochoa made sure to shut my mouth after my sharp critiques of her weekend play at her last two events by gutting out a four shot win over Michelle Wie at the 2009 Navistar LPGA Classic.
Ochoa steadied herself after a double bogey at the par 5, 5th with four birdies coming in. Although Wie’s 6-under effort was able to snag her another runner-up finish Ochoa was never really in...
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Navistar LPGA Classic Preview
With many of the world’s top players sitting the last full field domestic event out, this week’s event could be a big breakthrough for one of the many talented ladies on tour. Some notable names not in the field include #1 on the money list Jiyai Shin, the owner of the longest top 10 streak on tour Ai Miyazato, and Suzann Pettersen who has decided to rest her foot after withdrawing...
September 2009
42 posts
3 tags
Player to Watch: Kai-Chen Chang
18 year old Taiwan native Kai-Chen Chang is ascending the WTA ranks quickly as she continues her first season out of juniors. Chang overshadowed by other juniors like Junior Wimbledon champion Noppwan Lertcheewakarn, KCC has begun to find her form, culminating in a 2R upset of World #1 Dinara Safina this week at the Toray Pan Pacific Open. After her 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-5 victory Chang has become the...
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You Better Shape Up... LPGA Website
There is no doubt that web media and web content is a very important thing, and when it comes to the LPGA, there’s skills are a bit lacking. Although their website design and layout are simple, and it’s relatively easy to navigate, there are so many things wrong and inconsistent, that it’s really an embarrassment. 5-6 years ago when they had the atrocious purple website I may...
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Ochoa's Mediocre Closing is Puzzling
This time last year, if you were in a final group paired with world #1 Lorena Ochoa you would be shaking in your boots. The media, fans, and perhaps even yourself would’ve pegged you as a severe underdog, no matter who you were. Ochoa’s rather tepid response to being in the hunt the past two weekends is certainly puzzling, and if the streak continues this week as she defends the...
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Date Krumm Secures 1st Victory in Comeback,...
Wow! Kimiko Date Krumm made the final step in her comeback by securing her first WTA title in 13 years when she defeated 2nd seed Anabel Medina-Garrigues 6-3, 6-3 in the final of the Hansol Korea Open. Date Krumm, who had been unsuccessful in playing in a main draw of WTA events all year, capped off a successful week where she secured her first main draw win since her comeback against Korean...
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Gustafson Coasts to Victory, Ochoa Tepid
Lorena Ochoa’s tepid play allowed Sophie Gustafson to coast to victory at the CVS/pharmacy Challenge. Gustafson shot a final round 68 or 69, to best her 3rd round co-leader Ochoa by three or four strokes. A duo of South Koreans Sun Young Yoo & rookie Amy Yang finished solidly for third place.
The shootout between Sophie & Lorena never came to fruition on Sunday. Gustafson started...
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Dorothy Delasin Misses 16th Straight Cut →
2000 Rookie of the Year Dorothy Delasin missed her 16th straight cut on tour (all 14 in 2009 and her last two in 2008) after posting a birdie free 81 in the second round of the CVS/pharmacy LPGA Challenge.
It’s been a crashing fall for the four time winner on tour who claimed impressive victories at the 2001 Samsung World Championship, and her last win, the 2003 Tournament of Champions.
...
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Kimiko Date-Krumm in 1st WTA Final in 13 years
Soon to be 39 year old Kimiko Date-Krumm has continued her impressive run at the Hansol Korean Open by getting all the way to the final round after defeating defending champion Maria Kirilenko in the semifinals on Saturday. Date-Krumm coming off a rough opening set came through with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, her third straight three setter in this event.
Yesterday she outdid her win over Kleybanova by...
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Feng Shanshan & Chinese Golf
By July 2008 no one expected anything from an unknown player from mainland China (the first exempt player from China following in the footsteps of Li Ying Le). In her first 15 events on the LPGA tour Feng Shanshan had only managed to make 4 cuts, with T39 being her shining result in a season full of disappointment. Then seemingly out of nowhere she exploded.
It was certainly a tale of two...
Can someone tell the Golf Channel that Solheim is...
I recently moved to a house near my university campus, and we had not had the luxury of cable or internet for three weeks. While I was able to access the internet via campus, and the center of town, I was unable to catch any of the action of the Samsung last week, nor the opening round of the CVS/pharmacy Classic this week. So, when I decided to come home to my parent’s house for the weekend...
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CVS/pharmacy LPGA Challenge Rd. 2
Sophie Gustafson continued to lead by one at the CVS/pharmacy LPGA Challenge after shooting a second round 69 to be the sole player in double digits under par at -10, holding a bare one shot lead over Maria Hjorth, Lorena Ochoa, and Shanshan Feng.
Sophie struggled with her putter on Friday, but played well enough to keep going in the right direction. She must not miss her opportunities this...
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Ayaka Kaneko to Turn Pro →
After an injury plagued season at Pepperdine University last year, where she was only able to start in one tournament, Ayaka Kaneko will turn pro just before the start of the final round of Q-School in December. Although this article mainly focuses on Lehua Wise, another qualifier from sectionals, that little tidbit on Kaneko is very interesting to me.
Ayaka made the finals of 2007 U.S. Girls...
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“It doesn’t really matter all that much to me,”
– 2009 U.S. Open winner Kim Clijsters on the return of Justin Henin to tennis. To be fair, she did tack, ““I’m sure she will produce great tennis.”
I hope in my heart of hearts, that if Kim has to face Justine in a big tournament next year, Kim will be able to do what she was never able to do...
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Is Ji Young Oh the next Gloria Park?
Gloria Park, who has been out all season on maternity leave, seems to have a lot of similarities to fellow two time LPGA winner Ji Young Oh. I compare their first three years on tour here:
Rookie Year
2000: Gloria Park , after gaining exempt status at Q-School, Gloria struggled throughout her entire rookie campaign. In a rookie class that featured future major champions, and countrywoman Grace...
Shiho Oyama Injured →
Former JLPGA standout, and LPGA rookie Shiho Oyama writes in her rookie blog about her withdrawl from the Konica Minolta Cup, and her uncertainties for the rest of the season.
She is not in the field this week, nor is she in the field for next week’s Navistar, but she may be in the field for the 2009 Japan Women’s Open, where Ai Miyazato will be playing next week.
We’ll get to...
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Speaking of Comebacks.. Date-Krumm UPSETS...
After what felt like countless three set losses to top-30 players, Kimiko Date-Krumm finally came full circle today, upsetting 5th seed and 30th ranked Alisa Kleybanova in the 2nd round of the Hansol Korean Open earlier Thursday. Kimiko had to fight off a match point in the second set to Kleybanova at 5-3, to overcome the big babe Russian, 4-6, 7-6, 6-3 to advance to her first tour quarterfinal in...
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CVS/pharmacy LPGA Challenge
In-Kyung Kim returns to Danville, CA to defend her maiden title at the CVS/pharmacy LPGA Challenge. Although suffering from a disappointing week last week Inky still finds herself in the top 5 on the LPGA Official Money List. Despite that she is still a whopping $500K behind Jiyai Shin who sits atop the money list. Shin has gone W-3rd in her last two events, and if history has proven us anything...
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“I felt like I had just turned professional today,”
– Na Yeon Choi on her victory at the 2009 Samsung World Championship.
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Shin Leads (duh!) Rookie of the Year →
If you added Anna Nordqvist + Michelle Wie’s points together, they would still not have enough to overtake Jiyai Shin for Rookie of the Year. What a season.
Also, do you think the rookies ranked 4-6, Mika Miyazato, Vicky Hurst, or Stacy Lewis might switch seasons with 7th ranked M.J. Hur who earned a victory at the Safeway Classic?
Should a win mean more in this ranking?
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Putt FTW, The Dream Scenario
There’s no better way to win a golf tournament. Standing on the tee at the 18th with a birdie putt for the championship. When Na Yeon Choi nailed hers on Sunday to win her maiden title on the LPGA Tour she became the 4th player this year to avoid a playoff and win by birding (or eagling) the last hole in regulation. Let’s take a look at the other three players who’ve managed to...
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NYC Nearly Chokes Away 1st Victory
It was supposed to be so easy, and about half a round ago it was. Na Yeon Choi was cruising through the Samsung World Championship, eagling the par-5 6th giving her a whopping 7 stroke lead with only 12 holes to play. You knew Miss Choi was nervous, but there was no way she could blow this lead could she?
She was supposed to steal the show. The Japanese star Ai Miyazato, who was seemingly...
Shin Shines at Samsung
Leading money leader Jiyai Shin continues to lead the Samsung World Championship after firing a 3-under 69 on Friday. Shin leads hottest player on the LPGA Ai Miyazato and World #1 Lorena Ochoa by just a shot after the completion of round 2. Shin has lead for the past three rounds on tour (victory at NW Arkansas Classic, and the first two rounds here at Torrey Pines) and it’s likely someone...
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Inkster BACK in Contention, She Never Really Left
Jay Busbee wrote a piece over at Devil Ball Golf, raving about Juli Inkster’s solid start at the Samsung World Championship. Juli has struggled thus far this season, with only one top 10 finish a tie for 10th a couple weeks ago at the CN Canadian Women’s Open.
Juli stated at the Solheim Cup that this year’s edition was to be her last and she would not be pulling any “Brett...
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Samsung Rd. 1 Wrap, Kim & Shin Lead
Eleven players went under par after the first round of the Samsung World Championship at Torrey Pines and two familiar faces from last week are tied atop of the leaderboard. Last week’s winner Jiyai Shin & Song-Hee Kim (right) both fired 6-under 66s which featured 7 birdies and one bogey during Thursday’s play. Just a stroke behind are Sophie Gustafson & World #1 Lorena Ochoa.
...
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