The LPGA's Top Rivalries: Generation Gaps, July 2012 Edition

Now that we've reached the halfway point of the 2012 LPGA season, it's time to reexamine how the LPGA's last 6 generations stack up. Check out the career money list and wins/majors totals for the top players in the generations that span the Sorenstam Era (1994-2008), the overlapping Ochoa Era (2003-2009), and the overlapping Tseng Dynasty (2008-present).

[Note: [square brackets] indicate the player has retired from professional golf; {squiggle brackets} indicate the player is no longer an LPGA member but still playing on another tour; *=includes non-member win; **=includes 3 non-member wins.]

1994-1996: The Sorenstam Generation

[1. Annika Sorenstam (1994) $22.57M (#1), 72/10]
2. Karrie Webb (1996) $16.81M (#2), 38*/7
3. Catriona Matthew (1995) $7.08M (#16), 4/1
4. Pat Hurst (1995) $6.92M (#17), 6/1
5. Lorie Kane (1996) $6.90M (#18), 4/0
6. Wendy Ward (1996) $4.93M (#39), 4/0
{7. Carin Koch (1995) $4.43M (#46), 2/0}

Ever since Matthew and Hurst both passed Kane in the 2nd half of last season, Kane had been playing much better golf than she has in years, so we now have a real fight for the #4 and possibly the #3 spot.  Koch is living in Sweden and playing exclusively on the LET, so unless she does well in future Women's British Opens and Evian Masters--or moves back to the States--she will fall further behind her peers from here on out. A more interesting question is whether Webb will be able to catch Sorenstam (in winnings, not wins)!

1997-1999: The Pak Generation

1. Cristie Kerr (1997) $13.86M (#4), 14/2
2. Se Ri Pak (1998) $11.63M (#6), 25/5
3. Mi Hyun Kim (1999) $8.62M (#12), 8/0
4. Sophie Gustafson (1998) $6.13M (#25), 5/0
5. Maria Hjorth (1998) $6.00M (#27), 5/0
[6. Rachel Hetherington (1997) $5.73M (#31), 8/0]
7. Laura Diaz (1999) $5.12M (#38), 2/0
8. Karen Stupples (1999) $3.91M (#50), 2/1
9. Janice Moodie (1998) $3.66M (#54), 2/0

Even though Kerr's passed Pak on the career money list, she'll have to join her in the Hall of Fame to have her name on the generation, too.   Even though Kim is recovering from an injury, it's unlikely Gustafson or Hjorth can catch her.  With Hetherington retired, the Gustafson-Hjorth-Diaz race takes on added urgency, although given the way Diaz has been playing lately, she'll need a real turnaround to reach even Hetherington in winnings.

2000-2002: Angela and the Seoul Sisters


1. Angela Stanford (2001) $6.89M (#19), 5/0
2. Hee-Won Han (2001) $6.73M (#22), 6/0
3. Jeong Jang (2000) $6.52M (#24), 2/1
[4. Grace Park (2000) $5.44M (#35), 6/1]
5. Candie Kung (2002) $5.37M (#36), 4/0
6. Natalie Gulbis (2002) $4.44M (#45), 1/0
{7. Gloria Park (2000) $3.28M (#67), 2/0}
8. Heather Bowie Young (2000) $3.09M (#72), 1/0
9. Dorothy Delasin (2000) $2.65M (#84), 4/0
10. Jennifer Rosales (2000) $2.59M (#), 2/0
11. Nicole Castrale (2002) $2.24M (#101), 1/0
12. Guilia Sergas (2002) $1.73M (#124), 0/0

Stanford is now the top player of this generation in terms of winnings (hence the change to the generation's name), although it's hard to argue that her overall career tops the now-retired (and much missed) Grace Park's. With Han, Jang, and Kung playing pretty darn good golf this season, though, Stanford's lead is by no means safe.  The "other Park" is on the KLPGA, so I've expanded this list to include those who I think have a chance of catching her.

2003-2005: The Ochoa Generation

[1. Lorena Ochoa (2003) $14.86M (#3), 27/2]
2. Paula Creamer (2005) $9.08M (#7), 9/1
3. Suzann Pettersen (2003) $8.66M (#11), 8/1
4. Brittany Lincicome (2005) $4.71M (#41), 5/1
5. Christina Kim (2003) $4.08M (#48), 2/0
6. Meena Lee (2005) $3.74M (#52), 2/0
7. Stacy Prammanasudh (2003) $3.33M (#63), 2/0
8. Katherine Hull (2004) $3.26M (#69), 2/0
9. Shi Hyun Ahn (2004) $2.65M (#85), 1*/0
{10. Young Kim (2003) $2.36M (n.r.), 1/0}
11. Lindsey Wright (2004) $2.29M (#98), 0/0
12. Jimin Kang (2003) $2.23M (#103), 2/0
13. Karine Icher (2003) $2.04M (#110), 0/0

With Lorena looking less and less likely to ever come back to the LPGA full-time, the only real question is how close Creamer and Pettersen can come to matching her career. The race between the 3 mid-level Americans, 2 Australians and 3 Koreans below them will be of interest, as well, as Lincicome and Lee are on the verge of breaking out of the pack, but Young Kim will need to rejoin the LPGA to participate in it (don't know why her name no longer appears on the career money list). She's playing in her 3rd season in a row on the JLPGA and seems to be liking it, so I don't expect her to return to the LPGA anytime soon.  Looks like the newly-included Icher has a great chance of passing her, as do Wright and Kang.

2006-2008: The Tseng Dynasty

1. Ya Ni Tseng (2008) $8.56M (#13), 15/5
2. Ai Miyazato (2006) $6.77M (#21), 9/0
3. Na Yeon Choi (2008) $6.64M (#23), 6/1
4. In-Kyung Kim (2007) $4.88M (#40), 3/0
5. Morgan Pressel (2006) $4.64M (#43), 2/1
6. Seon Hwa Lee (2006) $4.04M (#49), 4/0
7. Song-Hee Kim (2007) $3.66M (#53), 0/0
8. Brittany Lang (2006) $3.54M (#58), 1/0
9. Sun Young Yoo (2006) $3.48M (#59), 2/1
10. Inbee Park (2007) $3.42M (#61), 1/1
11. Jee Young Lee (2006) $3.34M (#62), 1*/0
12. Eun-Hee Ji (2007) $2.75M (#79), 2/1
13. Amy Yang (2008) $2.70M (#82), 0/0
14. Julieta Granada (2006) $2.60M (#86), 1/0
15. Hee Young Park (2008) $2.55M (#89), 1/0
16. Angela Park (2007) $2.12M (#106), 0/0
17. Shanshan Feng (2008) $2.09M (#107), 1/1
18. Kristy McPherson (2007) $1.94M (#115), 0/0
19. Sandra Gal (2008) $1.58M (#129), 1/0
20. Ji Young Oh (2007) $1.52M (#133), 2/0
21. Momoko Ueda (2008) $1.48M (#137), 2*/0
22. Kyeong Bae (2006) $1.44M (#144), 0/0
23. Meaghan Francella (2006) $1.19M (#166), 1/0
24. Katie Futcher (2006) $1.16M (#169), 0/0
{25. Teresa Lu (2006) $1.13M (#172), 0/0}
26. Jane Park (2007) $1.02M (#187), 0/0


Time to retire the Young Guns moniker for this generation; not only have they come of age, but Tseng has imprinted her name on it, although Miyazato and Choi are in hot pursuit and Lang, Yoo, Yang, Feng, and Gal are moving up the list fast.  Glad to see that Angela Park's going to try to make a return to competitive golf!

2009-2011: New Blood

1. Ji-Yai Shin (2009) $4.65M (#42), 8**/1*
2. Stacy Lewis (2009) $3.16M (#70), 3/1
3. Michelle Wie (2009) $2.47M (#91), 2/0
4. Anna Nordqvist (2009) $2.21M (#104), 2/1
5. Mika Miyazato (2009) $2.03M (#111), 0/0
6. Azahara Munoz (2010) $1.86M (#121), 1/0
7. Hee Kyung Seo (2011) $1.55M (#131), 1*/0
8. Vicky Hurst (2009) $1.18M (#167), 0/0
9. Mi Jung Hur (2009) $.99M (#189), 1/0
10. Chella Choi (2009) $.75M (#228), 0/0
11. Beatriz Recari (2010) $.62M (#245), 1/0
12. Haeji Kang (2009) $.51M (#268), 0/0
13. Mindy Kim (2009) $.49M ($274), 0/0
14. Jenny Shin (2011) $.47M (#281), 0/0
15. Gwladys Nocera (2010) $.46M (#283), 0/0
16. Mina Harigae (2010) $.43M (#288), 0/0
17. Amanda Blumenherst (2010) $.42M (#289), 0/0
18. Caroline Hedwall (2011) $.30M (#325), 0/0
19. Pornanong Phatlum (2009) $.29M (#330), 0/0
20. Ilhee Lee (2010), $.28M (#333), 0/0
21. Mariajo Uribe (2010) $.27M (#337), 0/0
22. Jessica Korda (2011) $.27M (#339), 1/0
23. Tiffany Joh (2011) $.27M (#340), 0/0
24. Jennifer Johnson (2011) $.26M (#344), 0/0
25. Christel Boeljon (2011) $.25M (#349), 0/0
26. Ryann O'Toole (2011) $.25M (#353), 0/0
27. Cindy LaCrosse (2010) $.24M (#357), 0/0
28. Alison Walshe (2010) $.23M (#360), 0/0
29. Gerina Piller (2010) $.22M (#363), 0/0
30. Dewi Claire Schreefel (2010) $.19M (#377), 0/0
31. Jennifer Song (2011) $.17M (#385), 0/0
32. Jodi Ewart (2011) $.15M (#394), 0/0
33. Belen Mozo (2011) $.15M (#397), 0/0
34. Maria Hernandez (2010) $.15M (#399), 0/0
{35. Shiho Oyama (2009) $.14M (#403), 0/0}
36. Pernilla Lindberg (2010) $.13M (#409), 0/0

Obviously with this generation, it's really too soon to tell who's going to have a great LPGA career. I'm erring on the side of inclusiveness by putting everuone over $100K in career winnings in this generation on this list. As we get further into their careers, I'll slowly start raising the bar, until by 2014 they'll need to have broken the $1M barrier to stay on the list. I'd be very impressed if as many of them did it as in the previous generation!

2012-2014: Generation Prodigy

1. So Yeon Ryu (2012) $.52M (#264), 1*/1*
2. Lexi Thompson (2012) $.31M (#322), 1*/0
3. Lizette Salas (2012) $.10M (#428), 0/0
4. Veronica Felibert (2012) $.10M (#429), 0/0
5. Danielle Kang (2012) $.09M (#439), 0/0
6. Mo Martin (2012) $.08M (#445), 0/0
7. Numa Gulyanamitta (2012 $.05M (#476), 0/0
8. Maude-Aimee Leblanc (2012) $.04M (#499), 0/0
9. Sydnee Michaels (2012) $.04M (#505), 0/0
10. Sandra Changkija (2012) $.03M (#523), 0/0


Clearly, it's really really to be determined who from the Class of 2012 will even keep their cards for next season, but I'm listing the top 10 for now and will include anyone who makes over $50K by the end of the season.

Recommended Reading: NYC and the Race to 10 LPGA Wins

For great overviews of how Na Yeon Choi held on to win her 1st U.S. Women's Open 14 years after Se Ri Pak made history at Blackwolf Run, check out the very good and very different posts by bangkokbobby, The Florida Masochist, and Stephanie Wei.  For some great context on the significance of the USGA's returning to Blackwolf Run, you can't beat Happy Fan's pre-tournament post (although the USGA's U.S. Women's Open championship site does a great job trying).  It really helps you understand what a big deal it was that two players from South Korea pulled away from the field on the weekend. 

Particularly because there's actually been a South Korean victory drought on the LPGA in 2012.  Happy Fan and the gang at Seoul Sisters.com have been remarking with increasing alarm this season that although Korean golfers have been doing fantastic on the JLPGA, they haven't been doing nearly as well on the LPGA.  (A quick look at my list of major-tour winners in 2012 will confirm this trend.)  Until NYC won on Sunday, the only Korean winner on the biggest stage of women's golf had been Sun Young Yoo at the Kraft Nabisco Championship.  Even now, Stacy Lewis and Ai Miyazato own as many LPGA victories as do all the South Koreans on tour combined and Ya Ni Tseng has one more than they do.  Heck, with Ai and Mika Miyazato both playing great in the late spring and summer, with Momoko Ueda showing signs of life, and with newbies like Harukyo Nomura, Mina Harigae, Ayaka Kaneko, and Mitsuki Katahira progressing on their career paths, you could make an argument that golfers of Japanese descent (Harigae is Japanese-American) are making as big an impact on the LPGA this season as Korean golfers as a group.

The fact is, though, stardom and superstardom are made up of individuals.  NYC, with her 6 LPGA wins and 1 major, has done something that Mi Hyun Kim (8 LPGA wins), Hee-Won Han (6), Seon Hwa Lee (4), and In-Kyung Kim (3) haven't yet been able to accomplish.  And she's moved herself into contention with Ji-Yai Shin (8 LPGA wins, 1 major) among the Koreans most likely to reach double-digit victory totals in their careers.  (The way Amy Yang is playing, I'd put her on that list, as well, even though she's still seeking her 1st LPGA win.)  NYC has 4 more total victories  than other South Korean major winners like Sun Young Yoo, Eun-Hee Ji, and Jeong Jang, and 5 more than Inbee Park (who is on track to win more on the LPGA) and Birdie Kim (who isn't).   The question for me is what sets these 10-win-potential golfers (including So Yeon Ryu, Hee Kyung Seo, and even Song-Hee Kim in it) apart from other Koreans?  For that matter, what sets Cristie Kerr and Paula Creamer apart from even the likes of fellow Americans Angela Stanford, Brittany Lincicome, Stacy Lewis, Morgan Pressel, Michelle Wie, Christina Kim, Stacy Prammanasudh, Brittany Lang, Nicole Castrale, Vicky Hurst, Mina Harigae, Lexi Thompson, and Jessica Korda, who have already approached or surpassed (or have shown promise of approaching or surpassing) the career achievements of a Pat Hurst (6 LPGA wins, 1 major) or Wendy Ward (4)?

The higher you go up the career achievement list, the less nationality seems to matter.  Is anyone I've named so far capable of exploding into Tiger- or Annika-level achievements here.  Not likely.  How about what Karrie Webb and Juli Inkster have been able to accomplish over the decades, with their 30+ wins and 7 majors each?  Maybe 1 or 2 of them.  Heck, it's not even likely more than a handful of them will achieve Se Ri Pak- or Lorena Ochoa-like levels of meteoric success (reaching or exceeding the 25-win mark, with more than 1 major).  Think about it.  Cristie Kerr has been stalled at 14 wins for awhile and Ya Ni Tseng is in a mini-stall of her own at 15 wins, so they're both still well behind Laura Davies, who has 20 on the LPGA alone (4 of them majors).  Nobody else who's active on the LPGA has 10.

Not Ai Miyazato (9 LPGA wins).  Not Paula Creamer (9, with 1 major).  Not Ji-Yai Shin (8/1).  Not Suzann Pettersen (8/1).  Not Na Yeon Choi (6/1).  Not yet.  Who will be first?  My money's on Ai-sama.  How about you?  How many wins do you think each of them will end up with when their careers are done?

U.S. Women's Open Final 9: Na Yeon Opened the Door; Can Amy Catch Her?

I've been watching the U.S. Women's Open with my parents and have been telling them since last night it's not going to be easy for Na Yeon Choi to hold her 6-shot lead.  There are just too many challenging carries with severe penalties for small misses for the final round to be a cakewalk.  Well, after a pulled drive on 10 and a triple and a pulled approach shot on 12 into the hay, I'm wishing I put my thoughts into writing before now!

Now the players chasing her face a new kind of pressure.  How will Amy Yang respond to this open door?  Sometimes it's easier to play well when you seem to have no chance of winning....

[Update 1 (4:23 pm):  What a fantastic up-and-down for par from a seemingly unplayable lie by NYC!  Amy seems tentative with her putts while NYC's been riding the roller coaster.  I think she needs to get more aggressive with her speed if she wants to catch NYC!]

[Update 2 (4:28 pm):  Wow!  How lucky was NYC with that tee/approach shot on the dangerous 13th.  I don't get why so many players have tried to draw their shots in to the back tee--it just brings that lake into play.  Doesn't anyone try to start at at the center of the green?!]

[Update 3 (4:51 pm):   Big swing when NYC just missed a birdie on 14 and Yang bogeyed it.  4-up with 4 to play, Na Yeon again got lucky on her drive, which could easily have ended up in the fairway bunker left but actually bounced back almost all the way to the fairway!]

[Update 4 (5:02 pm):  Awesome approaches and birdies by NYC and Yang on 15.  I don't think Yang hit her driver well enough on 16 or got a good enough kick to go for the par 5 in 2.]

[Update 5 (5:15 pm):  Wow!  With that awesome birdie putt by NYC, she's gotten back to E on her day after tripling the 10th.  Consider that door she opened closed!]

[Update 6 (5:47 pm):  Congratulations to Na Yeon Choi on her 1st major and 6th career LPGA win!  She's finally beaten fellow '08er Ya Ni Tseng to a big milestone.]

U.S. Women's Open Sunday: Scoring Opportunities Out There Today!

It seems like the USGA has set up Blackwolf Run fairly easy today for the final round of the U.S. Women's Open.  Sophie Gustafson, who shot an 84 yesterday, shot a 71 today.  Sun Young Yoo bounced back from a Saturday 81 with a Sunday 68.  Yeon Ju Jung improved on yesterday's 80 with a 69 today.  Even amateur Emma Talley went from 81 to 72.  Right now, Hee Kyung Seo is -3 through 16,  Brittany Lang is -3 through 13, Il Hee Lee is -3 through 9, rookie Numa Gulyanamitta is -2 through 10, amateur Lydia Ko is -1 through 16, Anna Nordqvist is -1 through 15, Jennie Lee is -1 through 13, Jenny Shin is -1 through 12, and Jimin Kang is -1 through 11.

So if anyone chasing Na Yeon Choi can put together a good round and she struggles, this tournament might just get interesting!  Well, more interesting than a breakthrough USWO win for a really really good golfer who's been overshadowed by fellow '08er Ya Ni Tseng her entire LPGA career.  Now she has a chance to do something Ya Ni's never done:  win a U.S. Women's Open.  Let's see if she can do it!

[Update 1 (1:30 pm): Add Cindy LaCrosse and Jennifer Johnson who are under par well into their rounds.]

[Update 2 (1:36 pm):  Yup, the field's scoring average today is 3 shots lower than it was yesterday.  You can follow the lowest rounds of the day at this link from the USGA!]

[Update 3 (2:14 pm):  Nice bounceback by Hee Kyung Seo:  she ended up going 80-69 on the weekend.  Contrast that with Ya Ni Tseng, who went 78-78, and you'll see how fine a line separates being on top of the world from the middle of the pack!]

U.S. Women's Open Saturday: Movin' On Up!

It's a very tough moving day at the U.S. Women's Open, so if you can shoot anywhere near par today, you're going to pass a lot of people.  Well, Paula Creamer, Shanshan Feng, and Danielle Kang all shot 1-under-par 71s today to move to +1, +3, and +3 for the week, respectively.  Azahara Munoz joined Feng and Kang in T17 (right now) with a solid 73.  With Na Yeon Choi and Amy Yang the only leaders playing really good golf right now, don't count out anyone anywhere near par!

[Update 1 (5:18 pm): With NYC going super-low and Amy Yang posting the only sub-70 round of the day (thus far), it's easy to overlook how good Guilia Sergas's 73 was today.  She's only +2 for the week!]

[Update 2 (5:31 pm):  Forgot to give props to rookie Numa Gulyanamitta, whose early 73 has now moved her all the way up to T29 at +6.  Back to the present, Mika Miyazato is hanging in there and is +1 through 15 today, -1 overall.]

[Update 3 (5:41 pm):  Lexi Thompson and Nicole Castrale have shown a heck of a lot of resilience today.  Things haven't always gone their way, but they're both E on the day and -1 overall heading to their final holes.]

[Update 4 (6:00 pm):  Awesome finish for Lizette Salas; she birdied 3 of her last 4 holes, including both 17 and 18, to fight back to a 73 and get back to -1 for the week.]

[Update 5 (6:02 pm):  Whoops, gave Lizette credit for a birdie on 18 too early--she needs to make a 25-footer to make my last update come true!]

[Update 6 (6:06 pm):   Mikan's got a birdie chance to get to E for the day and -2 for the week!]

[Update 7 (6:08 pm):  They're going over the highlights of NYC's amazing 65 on ESPN right now.  What a great round!]

[Update 8 (6:40 pm):  Man, I jinxed Salas!  She ended up needing to make a pressure putt on 18 just to salvage a 3-putt bogey, so that 73 I called prematurely ended up being a 75.  Mikan couldn't birdie 18, but her 73 was one of the best rounds of the day.  And Sandra Gal hung in there for a 74 that could have been much worse.]

[Update 9 (6:43 pm):  So with Pettersen's bogey, Paula Creamer's 71 has now moved her into T7 heading into Sunday!]