tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post5833421458959269080..comments2023-11-22T03:32:31.513-05:00Comments on Mostly Harmless: On Wie, Bivens, and LPGA Membership CriteriaThe Constructivisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-31399383061006643872008-08-21T12:25:00.000-04:002008-08-21T12:25:00.000-04:00sekar, thanks for digging up the info. The LPGA m...sekar, thanks for digging up the info. The LPGA made some of this more easily accessible yesterday (finally), but I didn't know about--and am psyched that--they put in a battlefield promotion rule! Wonder when they'll announce that one....<BR/><BR/>I still think they're wrong to exclude any winnings for non-members that would count for members.<BR/><BR/>CG, my proposed changes actually have little to do with Wie and more to do with how the LPGA handles membership for everyone. (My second and third proposals would have benefitted Stacy Lewis if they had been implemented at the start of this season, not MW. My 4th has nothing to do with Wie unless she decides to attempt qualifying abroad rather than here. And my 1st only applies as incentive for her to at least try out the Futures Tour.)<BR/><BR/>I totally disagree on the CWO--Wie came back from a bad 1st round and played solid golf the rest of the way. She's still not the most accurate of drivers (and probably never will be), so handling the rough and getting a top 15 is not bad for someone who blew up in the U.S. Women's Open with a similar set-up not too long ago. She's been making incremental improvements this summer and is poised for a good 2009.<BR/><BR/>I'd be shocked if she didn't go for the 2-stage qualifying process--sectionals and final 90-hole tournament--and finish outside the top 5. Unlike someone like, say, Cheyenne Woods, who definitely needs all 4 years of college golf to improve her game, Wie already has the game to compete at the top level of the LPGA, as her 3 rounds at the State Farm show, and she's only going to get better between now and next February.<BR/><BR/>And, no, I'm not advocating that the LPGA Championship once again make an exception for Wie. You oughtta be a member to play in that 1--it was a dumb decision to let her in before.<BR/><BR/>Read my post again, CG--I was pointing out the inconsistencies in Johnson's piece and criticizing his incoherent advice to the LPGA in the 1st half, then trying to offer some more constructive and coherent advice in the 2nd half.The Constructivisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-81484062647747878582008-08-21T11:55:00.000-04:002008-08-21T11:55:00.000-04:00Couple of corrections (my reference is Priority Li...Couple of corrections (my reference is Priority List for entering standard eligibility LPGA tournaments in 2009 dt 7/3/2008):<BR/><BR/>"1. Institute a "battlefield promotion" rule on the Futures Tour: ....."<BR/><BR/>This has been implemented for the 2009 season. This is category 13. The requirement is 3 wins<BR/><BR/>2.Category 11 - Alternate order of Q School top 20 & money List #81 - 100 (Not 90)<BR/><BR/>3. "Evidently Category 11 will equate to full-exempt status (20 qualifiers from Q-School is a lot!), Category 16 equates to non-exempt and 20 replaces conditional status. I'm not sure changing these labels to numbers is going to make any of it clearer to us lay-people!"<BR/><BR/>Actually these are not for lay people, these are for LPGA members. As an aside, I think this is a very positive step and is very much in line with PGA tour.<BR/><BR/>These are the explanations for some of the categories you were confused about:<BR/>11 - Top 20 Q-School/Nos 81 -100<BR/>16 - Q School 21 - 30<BR/>20 - Q School 31 - 40<BR/><BR/>Also there are a total of 21 categories. <BR/><BR/>All of the above info is available on the LPGA site, but not easily accessible.Shakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15037010890964253736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-70376989369954554612008-08-20T21:44:00.000-04:002008-08-20T21:44:00.000-04:00I'd have to call the WCO a big OOPS on Wie's part....I'd have to call the WCO a big OOPS on Wie's part. She didn't play particularly poorly, but nothing she had out there looked like she has what it takes to put up a low round on an LPGA course - much less survive three stages of Q-school. (which, personally, I think she'll skip)<BR/><BR/>What you're saying is that the LPGA and The Biv should take a knee, go back to kissing Michelle Wie's backside, give her everything on a silver platter, and change the rules of major qualifying JUST for the girl who has been spitting in their collective face the last four years?<BR/><BR/>Not a chance. At this point, SOMEone in her life has to act like an adult around this girl and draw a line in the sand,<BR/><BR/>I think Hollywood got it right in "Hoosiers" when Coach Norman Dale confronted Jimmy Chitwood. Coach told Jimmy that his gift is his and his alone - and because of that, "I don't care if you play on the team or not."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-85023636790533624072008-08-14T23:50:00.000-04:002008-08-14T23:50:00.000-04:00It's interesting, isn't it, that Category 11 seems...It's interesting, isn't it, that Category 11 seems to relegate the Q-School qualifiers to the bottom of the exempt pile? I wonder if that's a new policy or something that's already been done.... And if #s 81-90 on this year's money list are only "kind of" exempt, I also wonder if there will be other levels set up within the top 80. It's more than a little annoying how much in the dark the LPGA is keeping us (I hope they're keeping their players better informed). If I were #100 on the money list right now, I'd sure want to know if I was exempt into the final qualifying tournament or if I needed to be sending in my application for sectional qualifying. The deadline for entry into the last phase of Q-School is 10/28/08 (if I remember right)--so basically anyone not headed to China and not in the top 80 or 90 after the Kapalua event should be seriously considering sending in that application.The Constructivisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07242149985581771922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1198629951037494295.post-27718720480645029692008-08-14T13:05:00.000-04:002008-08-14T13:05:00.000-04:00Good catch on the Q-school status info. Those mys...Good catch on the Q-school status info. Those mysterious category numbers offer more proof that the LPGA's status page will look a little different in 2009. And that excerpt you highlighted is the first official statement I've seen on the subject of Top 90 changing to Top 80.<BR/><BR/>Evidently Category 11 will equate to full-exempt status (20 qualifiers from Q-School is a lot!), Category 16 equates to non-exempt and 20 replaces conditional status. I'm not sure changing these labels to numbers is going to make any of it clearer to us lay-people!<BR/><BR/>Which brings up another point. Say Michelle Wie earns enough money to finish only 85th on the money list. Does she get Category 16 status? I guess you'll find out that answer the same time I do.Hound Doghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14551723761253381230noreply@blogger.com