It's going to come down to the wire over the last 18 holes of the JLPGA's Final Qualifying Tournament to determine membership on tour in 2010. 2nd-round leader Inbee Park was cruising after a bogey-free 34 on the front, but a double and 3 bogeys later, she found herself unable to break 40 on the back. Meanwhile, Young Kim engineered a bogey-free 69 and JLPGA veteran Kaori Higo a 6-birdie 67 to move right into contention. But generally, scoring was high, as players tightened up on "moving day" of this 72-hole tournament and, mostly likely, conditions toughened up.
Here's how the players I'm following did today:
1st/-5 Young Kim (74-68-69)
2nd/-4 Inbee Park (73-65-74)
T3/-3 Kaori Higo (73-73-67), Seon Hwa Lee (70-70-73)
5th/-2 Sun Ju Ahn (71-73-70)
T6/-1 Candie Kung (70-72-73)
I wouldn't be surprised if any one of these players took medalist honors tomorrow.
T11/+1 Na Ri Kim (72-69-76), Jae Bae (71-70-76), Esther Lee (69-72-76)
T15/+2 Bong Su Tseng (73-74-71)
T18/+3 Chieko Amanuma (70-72-77)
T23/+4 Teresa Lu (73-75-72), Eun Hye Lee (73-75-72)
This group is probably no longer in contention, but one more solid round will give them JLPGA membership next season.
T45/+8 Yuki Sakurai (72-74-78)
T57/+10 Onnarin Sattayabanphot (72-79-75), Michiko Hattori (75-73-78)
T63/+11 Ritsuko Ryu (75-79-73)
T78/+13 Kumiko Kaneda (77-77-75)
T92/+17 Sakurako Mori (76-77-80)
On the other hand, it's do-or-die time for this group of mostly young players (except for Michiko Hattori, who I believe is Mayu Hattori's mom). Even barely breaking 70 isn't going to do much more than make them feel a little better. The lower down the leaderboard they are, the lower they'll have to go tomorrow. But Mori has made 1 birdie all week, Kaneda 2, and Ryu has only made 3 in her last 36 holes after making 4 in her 1st 18.
Me, I'm hopeful that Sattayabanphot will turn it around. It would be a devastating result to come up short in her bid for JLPGA membership, particularly if compatriots Virada Nirapathpongporn, Nontaya Srisawang, and Pornanong Phatlum turn it on in LPGA Q-School this week. On the other hand, anyone who can't get through the JLPGA's has no chance anyway at the LPGA's. I guess there's always the Futures Tour next season if tomorrow doesn't go well for Moo--at #51 on their money list this season, she should have some status there in 2010.
Mostly, though, I'm rooting for Seon Hwa Lee's comeback to start tomorrow. She's too good a player not to break 70 once this week. And while winning JLPGA Q-School wouldn't make up for not winning on the LPGA, it would give her a much-needed boost nevertheless.
[Update 1 (8:55 am): With imoto slowly eating breakfast next to me, I have time to mention that 25-year-old Ikue Asama (55th on the JLPGA money list this season) and 26-year-old Yoshimi Koda are also in the hunt, only 4 shots behind Kim. 5 shots off the pace are JLPGA veteran Mikiyo Nishizuka and 22-year-old Yui Mukaiyama. I wish them luck tomorrow!]
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
LPGA Q-School Wednesday: Garrett and Nocera Tame the Wind
It was quite a windy Wednesday on the Champions and Legends courses at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, but that didn't stand in the way of Nikki Garrett and Gwladys Nocera of the LET during the 1st round of the Final Qualifying Tournament in the LPGA's Q-School. 2006 LET Rookie of the Year Garrett took the lead with a scrambling 6-birdie 67, while 2008 LET money-list leader and this season's Solheim Cup standout for Team Europe Nocera trails her by a single shot.
The only other players to break 70 were Yuko Mitsuka, Azahara Munoz, Il Hee Lee, and Leah Wigger. 28 players stand at par or better heading into the 2nd round. Here's how the top 10 and notables started this 5-round marathon:
1st/-5 Nikki Garrett (67C)
2nd/-4 Gwladys Nocera (68C)
T3/-3 Yuko Mitsuka, Azahara Munoz, Il Hee Lee, Leah Wigger (69C)
T7/-2 Katie Kempter (70L)
T7/-2 Iben Tinning, Nicole Jeray (70C)
T10/-1 Esther Choe (71L)
T10/-1 Sung Ah Yim, Lisa Strom, Emma Cabrera-Bello, Christine Song, Dewi Claire Schreefel, Lisa Meldrum (71C)
T17/E Amanda Blumenherst, Carolina Llano, Paola Moreno, Nontaya Srisawang, Stephanie Na (72L)
T17/E Julieta Granada, Erica Blasberg, Meredith Duncan (72C)
T29/+1 Diana D'Alessio, Maria Hernandez, Jane Chin, Kitty Hwang (73L)
T29/+1 Sarah-Jane Smith, Stephanie Connelly, Pernilla Lindberg, Nanette Hill (73C)
T44/+2 Virada Nirapathpongporn, Jeehae Lee, Alison Walshe, Mallory Blackwelder, Liz Janangelo (74L)
T44/+2 Lisa Ferrero (74C)
T59/+3 Young-A Yang, Tamie Durdin, Pornanong Phatlum (75L)
T59/+3 Ashleigh Simon, Mariajo Uribe (75C)
T70/+4 Marianne Skarpnord, Mollie Fankhauser (76L)
T70/+4 Tania Elosegui (76C)
T77/+5 Charlotte Mayorkas, Kris Tschetter, Cindy LaCrosse, Gerina Mendoza (77L)
T77/+5 Sophia Sheridan, Miriam Nagl, Lauren Doughtie, Ayaka Kaneko, Sofie Andersson (77C)
T90/+6 Tiffany Joh (78L)
T95/+7 Beatriz Recari, Angela Oh (79L)
T95/+7 Maru Martinez (79C)
T99/+8 Aree Song, Briana Vega (80L)
103rd/+10 Hannah Jun (82L)
It'll be interesting to see who among Kempter, Choe, Blumenherst, Llano, Moreno, Srisawang, and Na--among those at par or better heading onto the slightly easier Champions course tomorrow--can make up ground on the other leaders who will be tackling the Legends Course for the very 1st time Thursday. Ditto for those who stumbled out of the gates today: given that it's likely to be easier to mount a comeback charge on the Champions course, what can we expect out of Futures Tour Q-School medalist Joh, LET star Skarpnord, the JLPGA's Durdin, and recent NCAA standouts like Walshe and Blackwelder, not to mention the LPGA's Mayorkas, Nirapathpongporn, and Lee, as they fight to break into the top 40 and put themselves in position to contend for the top 20 over the last 54 holes of the tournament?
Two things the players can look forward to, provided tonight's thunderstorms move through quickly and the tornado watch remains just a watch, are calmer conditions and softer greens. Look for the scoring to be a lot lower tomorrow, if so. You can follow it at LPGA.com.
The only other players to break 70 were Yuko Mitsuka, Azahara Munoz, Il Hee Lee, and Leah Wigger. 28 players stand at par or better heading into the 2nd round. Here's how the top 10 and notables started this 5-round marathon:
1st/-5 Nikki Garrett (67C)
2nd/-4 Gwladys Nocera (68C)
T3/-3 Yuko Mitsuka, Azahara Munoz, Il Hee Lee, Leah Wigger (69C)
T7/-2 Katie Kempter (70L)
T7/-2 Iben Tinning, Nicole Jeray (70C)
T10/-1 Esther Choe (71L)
T10/-1 Sung Ah Yim, Lisa Strom, Emma Cabrera-Bello, Christine Song, Dewi Claire Schreefel, Lisa Meldrum (71C)
T17/E Amanda Blumenherst, Carolina Llano, Paola Moreno, Nontaya Srisawang, Stephanie Na (72L)
T17/E Julieta Granada, Erica Blasberg, Meredith Duncan (72C)
T29/+1 Diana D'Alessio, Maria Hernandez, Jane Chin, Kitty Hwang (73L)
T29/+1 Sarah-Jane Smith, Stephanie Connelly, Pernilla Lindberg, Nanette Hill (73C)
T44/+2 Virada Nirapathpongporn, Jeehae Lee, Alison Walshe, Mallory Blackwelder, Liz Janangelo (74L)
T44/+2 Lisa Ferrero (74C)
T59/+3 Young-A Yang, Tamie Durdin, Pornanong Phatlum (75L)
T59/+3 Ashleigh Simon, Mariajo Uribe (75C)
T70/+4 Marianne Skarpnord, Mollie Fankhauser (76L)
T70/+4 Tania Elosegui (76C)
T77/+5 Charlotte Mayorkas, Kris Tschetter, Cindy LaCrosse, Gerina Mendoza (77L)
T77/+5 Sophia Sheridan, Miriam Nagl, Lauren Doughtie, Ayaka Kaneko, Sofie Andersson (77C)
T90/+6 Tiffany Joh (78L)
T95/+7 Beatriz Recari, Angela Oh (79L)
T95/+7 Maru Martinez (79C)
T99/+8 Aree Song, Briana Vega (80L)
103rd/+10 Hannah Jun (82L)
It'll be interesting to see who among Kempter, Choe, Blumenherst, Llano, Moreno, Srisawang, and Na--among those at par or better heading onto the slightly easier Champions course tomorrow--can make up ground on the other leaders who will be tackling the Legends Course for the very 1st time Thursday. Ditto for those who stumbled out of the gates today: given that it's likely to be easier to mount a comeback charge on the Champions course, what can we expect out of Futures Tour Q-School medalist Joh, LET star Skarpnord, the JLPGA's Durdin, and recent NCAA standouts like Walshe and Blackwelder, not to mention the LPGA's Mayorkas, Nirapathpongporn, and Lee, as they fight to break into the top 40 and put themselves in position to contend for the top 20 over the last 54 holes of the tournament?
Two things the players can look forward to, provided tonight's thunderstorms move through quickly and the tornado watch remains just a watch, are calmer conditions and softer greens. Look for the scoring to be a lot lower tomorrow, if so. You can follow it at LPGA.com.
JLPGA Q-School Final Qualifying Tournament Wednesday: Inbee Park Goes Low
Here's a quick overview of the 2nd-round results from the Final Qualifying Tournament for 2010 membership on the JLPGA:
1st/-6 Inbee Park (73-65)
T2/-4 Seon Hwa Lee (70-70)
T4/-3 Na Ri Kim (72-69), Jae Bae (71-70), Esther Lee (69-72)
T7/-2 Young Kim (74-68), Candie Kung (70-72), Chieko Amanuma (70-72)
T12/E Sun Ju Ahn (71-73)
T20/+2 Kaori Higo (73-73), Yuki Sakurai (72-74)
T28/+3 Bong Su Tseng (73-74)
T35/+4 Michiko Hattori (75-73), Teresa Lu (73-75), Eun Hye Lee (73-75)
T59/+7 Onnarin Sattayabanphot (72-79)
T75/+9 Sakurako Mori (76-77)
T84/+10 Kumiko Kaneda (77-77), Ritsuko Ryu (75-79)
It appears there will be no cut, but those over par had better get a move on over the final 36 holes.
1st/-6 Inbee Park (73-65)
T2/-4 Seon Hwa Lee (70-70)
T4/-3 Na Ri Kim (72-69), Jae Bae (71-70), Esther Lee (69-72)
T7/-2 Young Kim (74-68), Candie Kung (70-72), Chieko Amanuma (70-72)
T12/E Sun Ju Ahn (71-73)
T20/+2 Kaori Higo (73-73), Yuki Sakurai (72-74)
T28/+3 Bong Su Tseng (73-74)
T35/+4 Michiko Hattori (75-73), Teresa Lu (73-75), Eun Hye Lee (73-75)
T59/+7 Onnarin Sattayabanphot (72-79)
T75/+9 Sakurako Mori (76-77)
T84/+10 Kumiko Kaneda (77-77), Ritsuko Ryu (75-79)
It appears there will be no cut, but those over par had better get a move on over the final 36 holes.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
JLPGA Q-School Final Qualifying Tournament Tuesday: Here We Go!
The results are in from the 1st round of JLPGA Q-School's 72-hole Final Qualifying Tournament! Here's how the notables in the field fared:
T1/-3 Esther Lee (69)
T2/-2 Candie Kung, Seon Hwa Lee, Chieko Amanuma (70)
T6/-1 Sun Ju Ahn, Jae Bae (71)
T14/E Na Ri Kim, Onnarin Sattayabanphot, Yuki Sakurai (72)
T24/+1 Inbee Park, Teresa Lu, Kaori Higo, Eun Hye Lee, Bong Su Tseng (73)
T43/+2 Young Kim (74)
T55/+3 Michiko Hattori, Ritsuko Ryu (75)
T67/+4 Sakurako Mori (76)
T76/+5 Kumiko Kaneda (77)
Can't believe I missed Esther Lee in the field list! I definitely would have put her in the top 20, based on her 2008 JLPGA season alone. Still, it's definitely a surprise to see her ahead of the LPGAers in the field. But that's what a walkoff eagle to offset a double bogey on the 14th will do for you! Kung, who shows up as "Candie Cancun" on google translator, bogeyed 2 of her last 3 holes to fall out of the lead. The KLPGA's Ahn uncharacteristically bogeyed 4 holes in a row on the front, but made 6 birdies on her day and 4 on the back to charge back into contention. Na Ri Kim was -3 after 4 holes, thanks to an eagle on the 509-yard par-5 3rd hole and a birdie on the 153-yard par-3 4th, but limped home with 3 bogeys and no birdies over her final 10 holes. Bong Su Tseng, by contrast, was +4 after 3, thanks to a triple on the 3rd, but came back with 6 birdies in her last 14 holes to salvage her round.
Living legend Woo-Soon Ko shot an 80 and will need to put together 3 good rounds to have a chance to continue her JLPGA career. I'm not sure if there's a 36-hole or 54-hole cut (or both), but some of the JLPGA's young guns who find themselves out of the top 50 right now had better draw on their tournament experience and figure out how to go low or at least shoot a solid round tomorrow.
Wonder if Aiko Kaneda (T6, -1) is Kumiko's little sister. If so, onechan had better get it going tomorrow--no time to be shown up by imoto! Speaking of older sisters, looks like Sakura Yokomine's onechan, Rui, is at T24 after an opening 73. Unless, that is, she's as related to Sakura as Mika Miyazato is to Ai-sama.
T1/-3 Esther Lee (69)
T2/-2 Candie Kung, Seon Hwa Lee, Chieko Amanuma (70)
T6/-1 Sun Ju Ahn, Jae Bae (71)
T14/E Na Ri Kim, Onnarin Sattayabanphot, Yuki Sakurai (72)
T24/+1 Inbee Park, Teresa Lu, Kaori Higo, Eun Hye Lee, Bong Su Tseng (73)
T43/+2 Young Kim (74)
T55/+3 Michiko Hattori, Ritsuko Ryu (75)
T67/+4 Sakurako Mori (76)
T76/+5 Kumiko Kaneda (77)
Can't believe I missed Esther Lee in the field list! I definitely would have put her in the top 20, based on her 2008 JLPGA season alone. Still, it's definitely a surprise to see her ahead of the LPGAers in the field. But that's what a walkoff eagle to offset a double bogey on the 14th will do for you! Kung, who shows up as "Candie Cancun" on google translator, bogeyed 2 of her last 3 holes to fall out of the lead. The KLPGA's Ahn uncharacteristically bogeyed 4 holes in a row on the front, but made 6 birdies on her day and 4 on the back to charge back into contention. Na Ri Kim was -3 after 4 holes, thanks to an eagle on the 509-yard par-5 3rd hole and a birdie on the 153-yard par-3 4th, but limped home with 3 bogeys and no birdies over her final 10 holes. Bong Su Tseng, by contrast, was +4 after 3, thanks to a triple on the 3rd, but came back with 6 birdies in her last 14 holes to salvage her round.
Living legend Woo-Soon Ko shot an 80 and will need to put together 3 good rounds to have a chance to continue her JLPGA career. I'm not sure if there's a 36-hole or 54-hole cut (or both), but some of the JLPGA's young guns who find themselves out of the top 50 right now had better draw on their tournament experience and figure out how to go low or at least shoot a solid round tomorrow.
Wonder if Aiko Kaneda (T6, -1) is Kumiko's little sister. If so, onechan had better get it going tomorrow--no time to be shown up by imoto! Speaking of older sisters, looks like Sakura Yokomine's onechan, Rui, is at T24 after an opening 73. Unless, that is, she's as related to Sakura as Mika Miyazato is to Ai-sama.
LPGA Q-School Preview/Predictions
Futures Tour Q-School medalist Tiffany Joh provides the theme song for this year's LPGA Q-School. As usual, the field will be competing on LPGA International's Champions and Legends courses. And as usual I'll be arguing that players have to go in with a mindset to go low rather than play it safe. Even without the KLPGA's Hee Kyung Seo, So Yeon Ryu, Sun Ju Ahn, and Ha Neul Kim, or the JLPGA's Shinobu Moromizato, Sakura Yokomine, Chie Arimura, Mi-Jeong Jeon, Miho Koga, Ji-Hee Lee, or Miki Saiki, the field is still very deep. In fact, even after expanding my predictions list to a top 40--based on the 3 priority status categories players could claw their way into with good performances this week--there are just about as many golfers I'm not happy about leaving off the list as I put on it. But here goes:
1. Amanda Blumenherst
2. Azahara Munoz
3. Pernilla Lindberg
4. Yuko Mitsuka
5. Tiffany Joh
6. Tania Elosegui
7. Mariajo Uribe
8. Marianne Skarpnord
9. Gwladys Nocera
10. Paola Moreno
11. Beatriz Recari
12. Emma Cabrera-Bello
13. Maria Hernandez
14. Charlotte Mayorkas
15. Julieta Granada
16. Alison Walshe
17. Dewi Claire Scheefel
18. Mallory Blackwelder
19. Ashleigh Simon
20. Tamie Durdin
21. Sung Ah Yim
22. Kris Tschetter
23. Sarah-Jane Smith
24. Cindy LaCrosse
25. Iben Tinning
26. Reilley Rankin
27. Erica Blasberg
28. Jane Chin
29. Hannah Jun
30. Nontaya Srisawang
31. Diana D'Alessio
32. Miriam Nagl
33. Sophia Sheridan
34. Kitty Hwang
35. Nannette Hill
36. Pornanong Phatlum
37. Stephanie Connelly
38. Carolina Llano
39. Il Hee Lee
40. Esther Choe
My apologies to Lisa Strom, Virada Nirapathpongporn, Aree Song, Lauren Doughtie, Nikki Garrett, Mollie Fankhauser, Dorothy Delasin, Meredith Duncan, Nicole Hage, Christine Song, Angela Buzminski, Gerina Mendoza, Briana Vega, Leah Wigger, Liz Janangelo, Maru Martinez, Ayaka Kaneko, Stephanie Na, Angela Oh, Kim Welch, Lisa Ferrero, and Jessica Shepley. But I just couldn't justify putting you ahead of my picks. Here's hoping y'all prove me wrong!
And here's hoping the LPGA clears up an ambiguity in its qualifying rules and decides to only count players in the top 20 who have improved on their money-list standing. It seems unfair for anyone who, say, finished #86 on the money list and #20 in Q-School to knock out a player at #21 in Q-School who would get a tour card really worth something if that #20 finish weren't counted. Ditto for someone at #31. If they're going to be exclusive and only count the top 20 in Q-School for premium status, irrespective of their status via the '09 LPGA money list, they ought to rewrite their rules to state that more clearly, as I suggested last December. Q-School pressure is hard enough to take without also having to deal with uncertainty over what it takes to join the LPGA.
[Update 1 (7:37 am): Here are the pairings for Wednesday and Thursday.]
[Update 2 (8:42 am): Here's a little interview with and mix tape from Tiffany Joh.]
[Update 3 (12/2/09, 11:15 pm): Here are previews by Hound Dog, Brent Kelley, and Ryan Ballengee.]
1. Amanda Blumenherst
2. Azahara Munoz
3. Pernilla Lindberg
4. Yuko Mitsuka
5. Tiffany Joh
6. Tania Elosegui
7. Mariajo Uribe
8. Marianne Skarpnord
9. Gwladys Nocera
10. Paola Moreno
11. Beatriz Recari
12. Emma Cabrera-Bello
13. Maria Hernandez
14. Charlotte Mayorkas
15. Julieta Granada
16. Alison Walshe
17. Dewi Claire Scheefel
18. Mallory Blackwelder
19. Ashleigh Simon
20. Tamie Durdin
21. Sung Ah Yim
22. Kris Tschetter
23. Sarah-Jane Smith
24. Cindy LaCrosse
25. Iben Tinning
26. Reilley Rankin
27. Erica Blasberg
28. Jane Chin
29. Hannah Jun
30. Nontaya Srisawang
31. Diana D'Alessio
32. Miriam Nagl
33. Sophia Sheridan
34. Kitty Hwang
35. Nannette Hill
36. Pornanong Phatlum
37. Stephanie Connelly
38. Carolina Llano
39. Il Hee Lee
40. Esther Choe
My apologies to Lisa Strom, Virada Nirapathpongporn, Aree Song, Lauren Doughtie, Nikki Garrett, Mollie Fankhauser, Dorothy Delasin, Meredith Duncan, Nicole Hage, Christine Song, Angela Buzminski, Gerina Mendoza, Briana Vega, Leah Wigger, Liz Janangelo, Maru Martinez, Ayaka Kaneko, Stephanie Na, Angela Oh, Kim Welch, Lisa Ferrero, and Jessica Shepley. But I just couldn't justify putting you ahead of my picks. Here's hoping y'all prove me wrong!
And here's hoping the LPGA clears up an ambiguity in its qualifying rules and decides to only count players in the top 20 who have improved on their money-list standing. It seems unfair for anyone who, say, finished #86 on the money list and #20 in Q-School to knock out a player at #21 in Q-School who would get a tour card really worth something if that #20 finish weren't counted. Ditto for someone at #31. If they're going to be exclusive and only count the top 20 in Q-School for premium status, irrespective of their status via the '09 LPGA money list, they ought to rewrite their rules to state that more clearly, as I suggested last December. Q-School pressure is hard enough to take without also having to deal with uncertainty over what it takes to join the LPGA.
[Update 1 (7:37 am): Here are the pairings for Wednesday and Thursday.]
[Update 2 (8:42 am): Here's a little interview with and mix tape from Tiffany Joh.]
[Update 3 (12/2/09, 11:15 pm): Here are previews by Hound Dog, Brent Kelley, and Ryan Ballengee.]
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