For those of you who might have missed it (if you’re a fan of women’s golf I can’t imagine that you did), the LPGA restarted their season two weeks ago. And what a restart it was!
Play got back underway in the state of Ohio for back to back tournaments. Danielle Kang won the inaugural playing of the LPGA Drive On Championship by one stroke over Celine Boutier. Danielle then followed that up by also winning the Marathon Classic by one stroke over both Lydia Ko and Jodi Ewart Shadoff. For Lydia Ko, it was one of the worst collapses in recent memory. Lydia had a five-stroke lead with six holes to play. She went to the par-five final hole with a one-stroke lead and double-bogeyed it. For Danielle Kang, she became the first LPGA player to win back to back tournaments since Shanshan Feng in 2017.
In Other Recent LPGA News
- AIG announced its continued commitment to women’s golf by extending its title partnership of the AIG Women’s Open (Formerly known as the AIG Women’s British Open) by two years to 2025.
- U.S. Solheim Cup Captain Pat Hearst has selected five-time USA member Michelle Wie West as Assistant Captain for the 2021 USA Solheim Cup Team. Wie will work alongside previously announced Co-Captain Angela Stanford. The match will be held at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.
Other LPGA Notes
- Brittany Altomare leads the LPGA with 37 consecutive cuts made.
- Danielle Kang’s back to back victories has vaulted her all the way to No. 2 in the Rolex World Rankings.
- Maria Fassi needed to eagle the par-five 18th hole on Sunday to qualify for the LPGA’s first Major Championship (The AIG Women’s Open) to be held in two weeks. She eagled it!
The LPGA has now completed six tournaments on the 2020 schedule. It is interesting to note the following
- There have been five different winners (Danielle Kang the only 2-time champion).
- Five of the six tournaments have been decided by one stroke, with two of those going to a playoff to decide the outcome.
- We have had winners from four different countries, with the USA and South Korea both having two wins in their column.
In other women’s golf news (not related to the LPGA), Rose Zhang (USA) defeated defending champion Gabriella Ruffles (Australia) on the 38th hole to win the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship. It was the longest U.S. Women’s Amateur match in 54 years.
Feature Photo: Danielle Kang tees off at the 2019 LA Open | Photo by Ben Harpring
