Changes in the LPGA
After this Sunday, there have been many changes in the LPGA ranks. The talented LPGA player Cristie Kerr returned to the number one spot in this week’s rankings. This was all thanks to an eighth place finish in Malaysia last weekend. Kerr had held the first
place for four weeks earlier this year but was replaced by Ai Miyazato. Miyazato took this place again on July 19th by a margin of 0.0006 average points. Her place was cemented by her victory over Kerr and Na Yeon Choi in the Safeway Classic.
This is the third time that Cristie has moved to world number one. In the Sime Darby final, Kerr finished in the eighth position. She went into the final round in the 29th position. Kerr performed remarkably on the final day when she carded four
birdies in the first six and hence gave an amazing comeback. At the eighteenth hole, she had a bogey. Things got better when she posted birdies at three and four and finished the tournament with a five-under 66 for a total of 2010.
Cristie said it feels great to be number one again and that it had been very close since the last four tournaments. She said that she had been thinking about this race all year, and every time it always depended on a putt or two.
As Kerr moved to number one, Jiyai Shin came to the number two spot in the rankings. Both Kerr and Shin will be participating in the 54-hole LPGA Hana Bank Championship in South Korea. Since Shin has a home advantage on the course, there are more chances
of her doing well in the event.
The former number one player, Ai, dropped to number three. For the second consecutive week, Yani Tseng and Suzann Pettersen exchanged places with Suzann back up to the fourth position again.
The battle for the number one spot has been ongoing between Kerr, Miyazato and Shin ever since the famous Lorena Ochoa quit the LPGA. This was a very crucial change to the Ladies Golf Association. It has been five months since the star quit, but it was
Lorena who initiated the ‘number one spot battle’ among the ladies. Ochoa quit in order to pay more attention to her personal life and to start a family. The Mexican golf star said that they made the right decision at the right time.
After quitting the circuit, Lorena didn’t give a definite answer to whether she’ll return to the tour or not.
"I don't think I will ever play full-time again, but, for sure I would love to be back, maybe play a (Kraft) Nabisco (Championship) or Evian (Masters) or the British Open. I think I will play some tournaments in the future,” said Ochoa
Ochoa, who has been named LPGA player of the year four times now, said that now that she has left the tour, she can enjoy the game without feeling any pressure. Even thought she had a relatively short career, the Mexican golf star took away 27 career wins.
At the age of 28, that’s quite a feat to accomplish.
The former World number one was in China on Wednesday at the Mission Hills Start Trophy pro-celebrity tournament that is taking place in Haikou. Lorena will be one of the many eminent personalities taking part in the inaugural Mission Hills Star Trophy pro-celebrity
tournament. This event will star world famous celebrities and golf professionals and has a purse of $1.28 Million.
The LPGA player Na Yeon Choi is at a stable No.6 and her consistent performance is making sure she doesn’t drop down from here. Michelle Wie is at number seven, Song-Hee Kim at number eight and In-Kyung Kim at number nine. The winner of the Sime Darby
in Malaysia, Jimin Kang, jumped up 50 spots and is at the 49th position now.
With so much going on before the end of the season, all the players are showing the best in them. Cristie Kerr is number one for now, but there is no saying what the charts will look like next week.
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