- Congratulations to Inbee Park, who is set to marry her fiance Gi Hyub Nam on Monday. She released a few pre-wedding photos on Twitter, most notably this one which features Park and two of her bridesmaids, So Yeon Ryu and Na Yeon Choi. Park took this week off in order to plan for her wedding, but is expected to play in the Hana Bank Championship, along with Ryu and Choi. Congratulations, Inbee!
- Congratulations Carlos Ortiz for winning the Web.com Tour Player Of The Year Award. Ortiz became the 10th player in Tour history to win three times in a season and earn a battlefield promotion to the PGA Tour. Since his last victory came late in the season, Ortiz decided to push back membership to this year, and will be exempt from the reshuffle all season. Ortiz began his rookie season this week by making the cut at the Frys.com Open.
- We are two weeks from the Ryder Cup, and yet the fallout continues from the US's blow out loss to Europe. First, Lee Westwood came out this week and said he was disappointed in how the United States handled their loss. Westwood said that, despite some of the issues players had with Captain Nick Faldo following their loss in 2008, everyone remained silent and did not air their dirty laundry to the public. Westwood said that the fallout will only help the European side, because they will remember how the United States handles these losses going forward. Secondly, the PGA of America announced that it will create a task force to overhaul the entire Ryder Cup system, from how they select captains to how the captain's picks and qualifiers are made. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are among the names on that task force. Unless those two are going to start making putts in a Ryder Cup competition, however, I don't see how much difference this makes. Finally, Hunter Mahan spoke prior to the Frys.com Open and said that the fallout from the Ryder Cup will lead to a positive change for Team USA going forward. I understand that Mahan has to look at this with rose colored glasses, but I have heard this before from several losses in the past. I will believe it when I see it.
- Jarrod Lyle's comeback is off to a great start, as he not only Monday qualified for the Frys.com Open, but then turned around and made the cut. Lyle will be one of the biggest stories of the season, and I'm ok with writing good things about him all year.
- Happy 25th birthday to Michelle Wie, who is set to return from her thumb injury next week in South Korea. Wie still has a slim chance to win the Player Of The Year Award, but she would need a massive five week stretch for that to happen.
- Hall Of Famer Se Ri Pak was on the cover of Golf Digest Korea this week. Pak revealed that she has no desire to retire, and that fellow Hall of Famer Karrie Webb's two victories and near miss at the Evian this season gave her extra motivation to compete. Pak has been hampered with injuries the last couple of seasons, and it appears as if she's going to take it easy for the rest of the year, playing primarily in Korea. Pak did finish in third place at the Kraft Nabisco Championship earlier this year.
Saturday, October 11, 2014
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Wednesday Preview - Frys.com Open
Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the 2014-2015 PGA Tour Season! I know it was a long off season for everyone, but we can finally, after all this time, return to golf with the Frys.com Open!
...yes, I know it's ridiculous.
Course: Silverado Resort & Spa, 7,200 yards. This course played host to a PGA Tour event back in the 70's, but it hasn't been seen at that level since, so every player will be seeing it for the first time. The course is supposed to play well to bombers and ball strikers. Wayward shots will not be penalized that much, and there won't be a huge premium on putting. Expect scores in the upper teens.
Strength Of Field: D. Go ahead and take a nap until we get to WGC event in China. Matt Kuchar and Hideki Matsuyama are the big hitters. Patrick Reed withdrew early in the week.
Extra Tidbits: Johnny Miller joins the likes of Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer as host of a PGA Tour event. One of his invites was his son, former PGA Tour pro Andy Miller...38 out of possible 50 graduates of the Web.com Tour are playing this week, including 16 rookies who begin their season...Jarrod Lyle's comeback from leukemia begins this week as he Monday qualified for the event. Lyle hasn't played on the PGA Tour since his diagnosis in 2012, but did play well in his rehab stints in Australia at the end of 2012 and on the Web.com Tour last year. Also Monday qualifying were Matthew Goggin, T.J. Vogel, and recent Web.com Tour graduate Eric Axley...Last year, Jimmy Walker won the Frys.com Open for his first PGA Tour title. He parlayed that into two more victories that season, the lead in the FedEx Cup for a majority of the season, and a spot on the US Ryder Cup team.
...yes, I know it's ridiculous.
Course: Silverado Resort & Spa, 7,200 yards. This course played host to a PGA Tour event back in the 70's, but it hasn't been seen at that level since, so every player will be seeing it for the first time. The course is supposed to play well to bombers and ball strikers. Wayward shots will not be penalized that much, and there won't be a huge premium on putting. Expect scores in the upper teens.
Strength Of Field: D. Go ahead and take a nap until we get to WGC event in China. Matt Kuchar and Hideki Matsuyama are the big hitters. Patrick Reed withdrew early in the week.
Extra Tidbits: Johnny Miller joins the likes of Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer as host of a PGA Tour event. One of his invites was his son, former PGA Tour pro Andy Miller...38 out of possible 50 graduates of the Web.com Tour are playing this week, including 16 rookies who begin their season...Jarrod Lyle's comeback from leukemia begins this week as he Monday qualified for the event. Lyle hasn't played on the PGA Tour since his diagnosis in 2012, but did play well in his rehab stints in Australia at the end of 2012 and on the Web.com Tour last year. Also Monday qualifying were Matthew Goggin, T.J. Vogel, and recent Web.com Tour graduate Eric Axley...Last year, Jimmy Walker won the Frys.com Open for his first PGA Tour title. He parlayed that into two more victories that season, the lead in the FedEx Cup for a majority of the season, and a spot on the US Ryder Cup team.
Fantasy Four:
Hideki Matsuyama - One of the top ranked pros in the field, made it all the way to the Tour Championship last year, and should be well rested as all the American and European pros played the Ryder Cup. He finished T3 here last year, albeit on a different course, but he showed last year that he has the skills to perform anywhere at during any week.
Brooks Koepka - Full fledged PGA Tour pro will be looking to get off to a great start, such as he did last year when he finished T3. Finished in the top 10 last week on the European Tour. He is playing in end-of-season mode, since he is still competing on the European Tour, so he should be able to bring that intensity over. All eyes will be on him this season.
Adam Hadwin - Sleeper pick. Finished in first place in the combined regular and post season money lists for the Web.com Tour. Has some experience playing in PGA Tour events, so he's not coming in completely blind, but he is still classified as a rookie. This could be the first of many big weeks for the future superstar.
Jimmy Walker - I'm getting sucked into this one, as all the experts are predicting Walker to be a part of the conversation at the end. While I think Walker is a great player, very rarely do things go as expected. Still, Walker is coming off a strong Ryder Cup performance and will be feeling comfortable returning to a tournament where he won his first tournament. I don't have him as my winner, but he will have a strong defense.
Note: I'm not going to be doing full fledged 2015 PGA Tour predictions until January, since I don't think these early events really effect much at the end of the season. So, prior to the Tournament of Champions, I will give my predictions for FedEx Cup Champion, as well as for all four majors and the Players Championship; however, a common point of conversation is who will lead the FedEx Cup at the end of 2014. Players will have six tournaments to rack up as many points as possible. Seeing as he's playing well and will likely play in at least three of the six, I suspect Hideki Matsuyama to be leading the race by year's end.
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Tuesday Preview - Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia
Personal Note: I will be busy tomorrow until later in the afternoon, and the first group will likely have tee'd off by then, so that is why I decided to push this back to Tuesday. In my defense, it IS Wednesday in Malaysia.
After a wacky and wild tournament in China, the LPGA heads to Malaysia for the Sime Darby LPGA. I don't believe there are no rocks surrounding the green at this golf course, so don't expect that to be a storyline this week.
Course: Kaula Lumpur Golf & Country Club, a par 71 that measures 6,200 yards. Last year, Lexi Thompson went nuts on this course and walked away with almost every scoring record. Generally, this course plays a little more difficult than that, but the winning score should still be in the mid teens.
Strength Of Field: B. Inbee Park is sitting this tournament out because she's getting married, and Michelle Wie is still out with her injury, but the rest of the top 10 is playing this week. It is, however, another limited field event, so there isn't a lot of depth.
Extra Tidbits: With Park getting married, Stacy Lewis has another opportunity to slam the door on the Player Of The Year race. Lewis has two top 10's in four appearances at this tournament...Kaula Lumpur is no stranger to hosting professional tournaments. Other than the four LPGA events, they have also hosted two European Tour events, as well as last years CIMB Classic on the PGA Tour...Last year, Lexi Thompson shot a second round 63 on her way to a four shot victory and the tournament scoring record for her second LPGA title. Prior to Thompson's victory, every edition of this tournament was won by Koreans.
After a wacky and wild tournament in China, the LPGA heads to Malaysia for the Sime Darby LPGA. I don't believe there are no rocks surrounding the green at this golf course, so don't expect that to be a storyline this week.
Course: Kaula Lumpur Golf & Country Club, a par 71 that measures 6,200 yards. Last year, Lexi Thompson went nuts on this course and walked away with almost every scoring record. Generally, this course plays a little more difficult than that, but the winning score should still be in the mid teens.
Strength Of Field: B. Inbee Park is sitting this tournament out because she's getting married, and Michelle Wie is still out with her injury, but the rest of the top 10 is playing this week. It is, however, another limited field event, so there isn't a lot of depth.
Extra Tidbits: With Park getting married, Stacy Lewis has another opportunity to slam the door on the Player Of The Year race. Lewis has two top 10's in four appearances at this tournament...Kaula Lumpur is no stranger to hosting professional tournaments. Other than the four LPGA events, they have also hosted two European Tour events, as well as last years CIMB Classic on the PGA Tour...Last year, Lexi Thompson shot a second round 63 on her way to a four shot victory and the tournament scoring record for her second LPGA title. Prior to Thompson's victory, every edition of this tournament was won by Koreans.
Fantasy Four:
So Yeon Ryu - I don't know why I feel strongly about Ryu's chances this week, but I have this sinking suspicion that she is going to walk away with this tournament. Did not play particularly well last week, but Ryu hadn't played since her disqualification at the Evian, so I will give her a pass.
Stacy Lewis - A win will all but seal the Player of the Year award for Lewis. Of her eleven victories, only one came in Asia, so she isn't really the world beater in Asia as she is in the United States. Still, she will be part of the conversation as she always is.
Na Yeon Choi - Has a win and a second place finish at this event, so if course familiarity translates to success, then expect Choi to contend. NYC hasn't had a great year, but she did finish 5th at the Evian and notched a top 25 last week, so she is at least trending in the right direction.
Lydia Ko - Has won tournaments in New Zealand and Taiwan, so she is likely feeling comfortable this week, especially after spending a few weeks at home. Might have some extra motivation after seeing fellow rookie Mirim Lee win last week. I think Ko will be in for a big Asian swing, and it will start by a big week this week.
(SLEEPER) Azahara Munoz - Won last week on the LET Tour for her first victory since she won the same tournament last year. Munoz's season started great during the first Asian swing. Either Munoz is trending up and will start becoming the competitor we all think she will, or her inconsistency will continue to haunt her. This could be the week we figure it out.
Monday, October 6, 2014
Five Web.com Tour Graduates That Can Excel This Season
We are on the eve of the first tournament of the 2014-2015 season (yeah, seriously), which means we are are about to see the graduates of the Web.com Tour, some for the first time and some who have been on Tour for a few years. There are 50 graduates, so it would be impossible for me to predict how each of them would fare next season. If you are interested in that sort of thing, Rob Bolton did a break down of every full member of the PGA Tour. For me, I would like to highlight five players from the Web.com Tour that I think will make an impact immediately.
1) Adam Hadwin - My pick for Rookie Of The Year next season. Hadwin has played a few times on the PGA Tour, most notably a third place finish at the 2011 Canadian Open. He played a couple of season on the Web.com Tour, but absolutely exploded this season and walked away as the top qualifier from the playoffs. He will have no trouble getting into tournaments as he will be immune from the reshuffle list. He's the rookie that may have the least amount of adjustment to make.
2) Jason Gore - At 40, he may not get another opportunity, so he will need to make the most out of this season. Notched 7 top 10s last season, including a third place finish at the Tour Finals. He will have familiarity with some of the courses he will play this season, which gives him a leg up on some of his fellow graduates. I don't expect him to have a huge, break out season, but could very easily make the playoffs.
3) Richard Sterne - Good pro on the European Tour who made the President's Cup last season, but success on foreign tours don't always translate into success on the PGA Tour. Regardless, his has played in every major and the World Golf Championship events, so he knows how to deal with pressure. The question will be how many events he decides to play in.
4) Steve Wheatcroft - Has been bouncing back and forth between the PGA and Web.com Tours for the better part of 8 years, so most won't have a lot of confidence in him retaining his card this season. He did, however, win in Boise last season. His consistency is a concern, but he should be able to get into quite a few tournaments, especially early in the season, so we should know out the gate if he's going to be able to get anything going.
5) Sung-Joon Park - Going off the board for this one. The 28 year old from Korea has played a few years in Japan to decent success, and played on the Web.com Tour last year, where he got nothing going until the playoffs. He has a lot of talent, but the results haven't really been there yet. I think, however, that he can sneak in a few great finishes to jump start his PGA Tour career. He will also be a rookie next season, and it may be a weaker rookie class this year, so Park might be a part of the conversation.
1) Adam Hadwin - My pick for Rookie Of The Year next season. Hadwin has played a few times on the PGA Tour, most notably a third place finish at the 2011 Canadian Open. He played a couple of season on the Web.com Tour, but absolutely exploded this season and walked away as the top qualifier from the playoffs. He will have no trouble getting into tournaments as he will be immune from the reshuffle list. He's the rookie that may have the least amount of adjustment to make.
2) Jason Gore - At 40, he may not get another opportunity, so he will need to make the most out of this season. Notched 7 top 10s last season, including a third place finish at the Tour Finals. He will have familiarity with some of the courses he will play this season, which gives him a leg up on some of his fellow graduates. I don't expect him to have a huge, break out season, but could very easily make the playoffs.
3) Richard Sterne - Good pro on the European Tour who made the President's Cup last season, but success on foreign tours don't always translate into success on the PGA Tour. Regardless, his has played in every major and the World Golf Championship events, so he knows how to deal with pressure. The question will be how many events he decides to play in.
4) Steve Wheatcroft - Has been bouncing back and forth between the PGA and Web.com Tours for the better part of 8 years, so most won't have a lot of confidence in him retaining his card this season. He did, however, win in Boise last season. His consistency is a concern, but he should be able to get into quite a few tournaments, especially early in the season, so we should know out the gate if he's going to be able to get anything going.
5) Sung-Joon Park - Going off the board for this one. The 28 year old from Korea has played a few years in Japan to decent success, and played on the Web.com Tour last year, where he got nothing going until the playoffs. He has a lot of talent, but the results haven't really been there yet. I think, however, that he can sneak in a few great finishes to jump start his PGA Tour career. He will also be a rookie next season, and it may be a weaker rookie class this year, so Park might be a part of the conversation.
Sunday, October 5, 2014
More Final Round Madness In Beijing
- I wonder if Stacy Lewis will ever play the Reignwood Classic again. A year after being beaten by the most incredibly/lucky shot of the 2013 season, Lewis has a chance entering the final round to lock up the Player Of The Year and the CME Globe races. Instead, she struggles late, and not only does she not win, but she finishes behind her closest competitor Inbee Park to open the door for a late season charge. Beijing has not agreed with Lewis in the last two seasons, and it may be wise for her, moving forward, to spend an extra week in the US before entering the Asian Swing.
- What Mirim Lee managed to do in the toughest conditions of the week was nothing short of superstar quality. As players around her struggled, Lee fired a final round 69, which was the third best round of the day. Since the Women's British Open, Lee has three top 10's with two victories and no missed cuts. Entering this season, you probably didn't think or Mirim Lee as one of the best Koreans on the LPGA Tour, but she is tied with Inbee for the most victories this season, and her Rolex Ranking has skyrocketed up to 29th. One victory could be a fluke. Two is a trend.
- Koreans have now won six of the last seven tournaments on the LPGA Tour. I wonder if golf writers are still going to be discussing how great of a season this was if Koreans continue to dominate.
- Don't look now, but Lydia Ko no longer has the Rookie Of The Year award locked up. While it is highly unlikely, Mirim Lee still has an opportunity to overtake Ko for the award. All Mirim will have to do is win a couple more tournaments and hope Ko doesn't have any top 10's between now and the end of the season. Again, highly unlikely, but it is great to see that there is another rookie playing well after Ko grabbed a stranglehold on the award. We may be looking back on 2014 as one of the best rookie classes in a very long time.
- How has Caroline Hedwall never won an LPGA Tour event? It seems baffling to me that last year's Solheim Cup hero is still looking for her maiden victory on Tour. She played well this week, and looked poised to finally enter the winner's circle, but tough conditions coupled with Mirim's stellar final round prevented that from happening.
- I mentioned that Mirim Lee's 69 was the third best score on Sunday. The best? That would be Mi Hyang Lee's 67 to vault her from 23rd into a tie for sixth. Lee won the LET's New Zealand Open back in February, but has had minimal success on Tour thus far. She's been playing on Tour since 2012, but her only two top 10's have occurred this season. Other than that, I know nothing about Lee other than she's a Symetra Tour product and she's sponsored by Volvik. Apparently you can't Wikipedia your way out of everything.
- I know everyone thought that the low Chinese player this week was going to be Yanhong Pan. Defending champion Shanshan Feng had a disappointing week, finishing T49, and promising rookie Xi Yu Lin didn't fare much better, finishing T41. To be fair, Pan's good performance doesn't completely come out of thin air. She is the leader of the Chinese LPGA Order Of Merit by a rather large margin, and won twice on that tour this season. Still, for Feng, who has won three times on the biggest tour including a major, it has to be disappointing to at least not be the low Chinese golfer.
- There are comebacks, and then there is what Oliver Wilson pulled off this week. Wilson, who had nine runner-up finishes on the European Tour and was on Europe's Ryder Cup team in 2008, had to rely on a sponsor's exemption to enter this week's Alfred Dunhill Links tournament, one of the biggest events on the schedule (and, personally, my favorite). Wilson had dropped to 792nd in the world, but he held off some ferocious charges by some of the biggest names on the European Tour to win his first ever victory. Good on ya, Mr. Wilson!
- Hangover from the Ryder Cup was the only thing that prevented Rory McIlroy from seizing the Dunhill Links, as he was absolutely on fire for the final three rounds of the tournament. It would have been an amazing story to see Rory, fresh off of helping Europe win the Ryder Cup, charge in and take the Dunhill Links the same week he was named PGA Tour Player Of The Year, but Oliver Wilson's victory made for a much better story. Besides, I'm sure this Rory guy has a win or two left in him.
- Brooks Koepka has his PGA Tour card for the 2014-2015 season, so I wonder if he's going to play at all on the European Tour next year. Regardless, he finished with a top 10 this week, and will now play in the Frys.com Open next week, which is where he finished T3 last season. His confidence has to be through the roof. I'm calling it now - Brooks Koepka will be a winner on the PGA Tour this coming season.
- Congratulations to Teresa Lu who continues to have a great revitalization of her career by winning the Japan Women's Open, one of the most prestigious events on the JLPGA Tour. Lu famously turned down membership to the LPGA after winning the Mizuno Classic last year, and it appears to have been the right move, as this is Lu's second win of the season, though her biggest victory by far. We will see Lu defend her title in a few weeks.
- What Mirim Lee managed to do in the toughest conditions of the week was nothing short of superstar quality. As players around her struggled, Lee fired a final round 69, which was the third best round of the day. Since the Women's British Open, Lee has three top 10's with two victories and no missed cuts. Entering this season, you probably didn't think or Mirim Lee as one of the best Koreans on the LPGA Tour, but she is tied with Inbee for the most victories this season, and her Rolex Ranking has skyrocketed up to 29th. One victory could be a fluke. Two is a trend.
- Koreans have now won six of the last seven tournaments on the LPGA Tour. I wonder if golf writers are still going to be discussing how great of a season this was if Koreans continue to dominate.
- Don't look now, but Lydia Ko no longer has the Rookie Of The Year award locked up. While it is highly unlikely, Mirim Lee still has an opportunity to overtake Ko for the award. All Mirim will have to do is win a couple more tournaments and hope Ko doesn't have any top 10's between now and the end of the season. Again, highly unlikely, but it is great to see that there is another rookie playing well after Ko grabbed a stranglehold on the award. We may be looking back on 2014 as one of the best rookie classes in a very long time.
- How has Caroline Hedwall never won an LPGA Tour event? It seems baffling to me that last year's Solheim Cup hero is still looking for her maiden victory on Tour. She played well this week, and looked poised to finally enter the winner's circle, but tough conditions coupled with Mirim's stellar final round prevented that from happening.
- I mentioned that Mirim Lee's 69 was the third best score on Sunday. The best? That would be Mi Hyang Lee's 67 to vault her from 23rd into a tie for sixth. Lee won the LET's New Zealand Open back in February, but has had minimal success on Tour thus far. She's been playing on Tour since 2012, but her only two top 10's have occurred this season. Other than that, I know nothing about Lee other than she's a Symetra Tour product and she's sponsored by Volvik. Apparently you can't Wikipedia your way out of everything.
- I know everyone thought that the low Chinese player this week was going to be Yanhong Pan. Defending champion Shanshan Feng had a disappointing week, finishing T49, and promising rookie Xi Yu Lin didn't fare much better, finishing T41. To be fair, Pan's good performance doesn't completely come out of thin air. She is the leader of the Chinese LPGA Order Of Merit by a rather large margin, and won twice on that tour this season. Still, for Feng, who has won three times on the biggest tour including a major, it has to be disappointing to at least not be the low Chinese golfer.
- There are comebacks, and then there is what Oliver Wilson pulled off this week. Wilson, who had nine runner-up finishes on the European Tour and was on Europe's Ryder Cup team in 2008, had to rely on a sponsor's exemption to enter this week's Alfred Dunhill Links tournament, one of the biggest events on the schedule (and, personally, my favorite). Wilson had dropped to 792nd in the world, but he held off some ferocious charges by some of the biggest names on the European Tour to win his first ever victory. Good on ya, Mr. Wilson!
- Hangover from the Ryder Cup was the only thing that prevented Rory McIlroy from seizing the Dunhill Links, as he was absolutely on fire for the final three rounds of the tournament. It would have been an amazing story to see Rory, fresh off of helping Europe win the Ryder Cup, charge in and take the Dunhill Links the same week he was named PGA Tour Player Of The Year, but Oliver Wilson's victory made for a much better story. Besides, I'm sure this Rory guy has a win or two left in him.
- Brooks Koepka has his PGA Tour card for the 2014-2015 season, so I wonder if he's going to play at all on the European Tour next year. Regardless, he finished with a top 10 this week, and will now play in the Frys.com Open next week, which is where he finished T3 last season. His confidence has to be through the roof. I'm calling it now - Brooks Koepka will be a winner on the PGA Tour this coming season.
- Congratulations to Teresa Lu who continues to have a great revitalization of her career by winning the Japan Women's Open, one of the most prestigious events on the JLPGA Tour. Lu famously turned down membership to the LPGA after winning the Mizuno Classic last year, and it appears to have been the right move, as this is Lu's second win of the season, though her biggest victory by far. We will see Lu defend her title in a few weeks.
Friday, October 3, 2014
News Grab-Bag: 10/3/2014
- Congratulations to Jack Nicklaus who was awarded Honorary Lifetime Membership on the European Tour this week. Nicklaus was praised by European Tour chief George O'Grady for his work in establishing the Ryder Cup was a prestigious event. It is said that Nicklaus was the one who helped changed the Ryder Cup to the format it is today by suggesting that there should be a Team Europe instead of just the British Isles, so if you want to blame anyone for Team USA's loss last week, blame Nicklaus.
- After being let go by Adam Scott, caddie Stevie Williams said that he was "90% certain" that his caddying days are over...though, he left the door open for a possible reunion with Tiger Woods. Williams has stated that he only wants to work part time, and that he is not really entertaining offers right now as it's only been two weeks since he and Scott parted ways, but when asked about Woods, Williams said that he is someone he would consider. Personally, I highly doubt Woods is picking up the phone and calling Williams anytime soon.
- Count Padraig Harrington out of the running for the next European Ryder Cup captain. Harrington withdrew his name from consideration for the 2016 matches, but has stated that he would like to captain the team in the future. By the end of the year, Team Europe will announce their next captain, which appears to be down to Darren Clarke and Miguel Angel Jimenez.
- To nobody's surprise, Rory McIlroy was named PGA Tour Player Of The Year this week. Chesson Hadley, who was the only rookie to win on Tour last year, walked away with the Rookie Of The Year honors.
- Cadillac has been named the sponsor for next year's WGC Match Play tournament. This gives Cadillac two World Golf Championship sponsorships. The event will be held for the first time at Harding Park in San Francisco, and will be moved from it's traditional spot in February to the last weekend in April.
- Stacy Lewis is launching the "Birdies 4 Founders Film" contest, where every birdie Lewis makes will result in a $100 donation to The Founders, a documentary about the 13 women who founded the LPGA back in 1950. Karrie Webb, Jane Park, Jenny Lidback, and Rosie Jones all made substantial donations towards the film. Lewis' challenge runs through the end of the year, and has already accumulated $1,300. You can track the challenge and donate on your home www.thefoundersfilm.com on the film's web site.
- CNN wrote a piece on Michelle Wie and her...uh...interesting art work. Her art pieces are actually done incredibly well, but also show a deep, dark side to Michelle Wie that do don't see in her normally. Hey, we all have to let our inner anguish out somehow, right? I do so by writing poorly written golf blog posts and crying into an empty wallet.
- After being let go by Adam Scott, caddie Stevie Williams said that he was "90% certain" that his caddying days are over...though, he left the door open for a possible reunion with Tiger Woods. Williams has stated that he only wants to work part time, and that he is not really entertaining offers right now as it's only been two weeks since he and Scott parted ways, but when asked about Woods, Williams said that he is someone he would consider. Personally, I highly doubt Woods is picking up the phone and calling Williams anytime soon.
- Count Padraig Harrington out of the running for the next European Ryder Cup captain. Harrington withdrew his name from consideration for the 2016 matches, but has stated that he would like to captain the team in the future. By the end of the year, Team Europe will announce their next captain, which appears to be down to Darren Clarke and Miguel Angel Jimenez.
- To nobody's surprise, Rory McIlroy was named PGA Tour Player Of The Year this week. Chesson Hadley, who was the only rookie to win on Tour last year, walked away with the Rookie Of The Year honors.
- Cadillac has been named the sponsor for next year's WGC Match Play tournament. This gives Cadillac two World Golf Championship sponsorships. The event will be held for the first time at Harding Park in San Francisco, and will be moved from it's traditional spot in February to the last weekend in April.
- Stacy Lewis is launching the "Birdies 4 Founders Film" contest, where every birdie Lewis makes will result in a $100 donation to The Founders, a documentary about the 13 women who founded the LPGA back in 1950. Karrie Webb, Jane Park, Jenny Lidback, and Rosie Jones all made substantial donations towards the film. Lewis' challenge runs through the end of the year, and has already accumulated $1,300. You can track the challenge and donate on your home www.thefoundersfilm.com on the film's web site.
- CNN wrote a piece on Michelle Wie and her...uh...interesting art work. Her art pieces are actually done incredibly well, but also show a deep, dark side to Michelle Wie that do don't see in her normally. Hey, we all have to let our inner anguish out somehow, right? I do so by writing poorly written golf blog posts and crying into an empty wallet.
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
Wednesday Preview - Reignwood LPGA Classic
The LPGA enters the final stretch of the 2014 season as the players head to China for the first of six events in Asia. This is the second year for the Reignwood LPGA Classic, and if it's anything like last year, it should be filled with drama.
Course: Reignwood Pine Valley Golf Club, measuring at a little over 6,500 yards. Expect low scored. Like, insanely low. 18 players finished at ten under or better last year.
Strength Of Field: C-. The field is headlined by Stacy Lewis and Inbee Park, but there are quite a few notable players missing, such as Lydia Ko, Michelle Wie, and Lexi Thompson. It's also a limited field event that is filled with players from the China LPGA Tour.
Extra Tidbits: Last year, this event was won by hometown hero Shanshan Feng who took the lead on the final hole from Stacy Lewis after hitting her second shot off the rocks and within a few feet for an eagle...This event will be the first of six events by majors golf tours that take place in China. The LPGA will return later this month for the Blue Bay LPGA Classic.
Fantasy Four:
Shanshan Feng - Why not? Won last year and is having a really good year, so I have no reason to think she can't repeat. The crowd is going to be very loud and very biased, and whoever gets paired with her will be in for a long afternoon.
Inbee Park - If she is to catch Lewis for the Player Of The Year crown, she will have to start making her move here. Lewis will likely not be helped by the bad memories of what she experienced here last year, so Park needs a big week in order to put added pressure on her. Whenever Park needs to make a statement, she tends to deliver.
So Yeon Ryu - Was disqualified in her last start at the Evian, so she's likely to be a little hot under the collar. Still only two tournaments removed from her first victory in two years. All the Asian players should be playing with extra motivation throughout the course of this stretch, and as long as Ryu plays well on Sunday, which has been her bugaboo, then she will be part of the conversation.
Suzann Pettersen - Six top ten finishes in her last seven starts, and is entering the time of year where she is historically at her best. She has won six times in Asia in her career, and has won ten times with a score of ten under or better. Pettersen will likely make this feature throughout the course of the Asian swing.
(SLEEPER) Xi Yu Lin - Chinese golfer that should have a legion of fans this week. Missed the cut at the Evian, but finished T9 in Portland the tournament before. That came at the end of a five week stretch of made cuts. Lin has improved as the season has gone alone, so her homecoming this week could make for a great week for the teenager.
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