Sorenstam to defend at Samsung Championship
BY Bruce Young | LPGA Tour | 2006 Samsung World Championship | Preview | 11 Oct 2006
The LPGA Tour is in California this week for the Samsung World Championship of Women’s Golf where a field of twenty of the world’s leading players will tee it up at the Canyons Course at the Bighorn Golf Club in Palm Desert.
The event brings together the leading players on the LPGA Tour along with the current number two player on this year’s Ladies European Tour money list, Gwladys Nocera.
This is essentially the cream of women’s golf and the event is being played for the third year at the Arthur Hills designed Bighorn Golf Club which was opened in 1991. It is perhaps a shame that with the grandiose name of World Championship that there is not a better representation from the world golf rankings. Ai Miyazato, Shiho Ohyama and Yuri Fudoh are all currently well inside the top twenty but are not in the field this week.
In both 2004 and last year Annika Sorenstam won with a score of 18 under par, winning by three shots in 2004 but by an incredible eight shots in 2005. Paula Creamer was runner up twelve months ago ahead of third placed Gloria Park.
This year shapes as a titanic battle between the three ladies who have dominated the LPGA Tour in 2006 namely Lorena Ochoa, Karrie Webb and Annika Sorenstam. Collectively they have won eleven titles on this year’s LPGA Tour, with Ochoa and Webb having won four each and Sorenstam three. The Swede has however won a Ladies European Tour event in Sweden where she narrowly defeated Ochoa.
Sorenstam might have the edge however due to her success on the golf course although Ochoa will be buoyed by winning for the first time in front of her home crowd last week in Mexico.
Webb won her last start also, at the Longs Drugs Challenge in California while for Sorenstam has been a runner up at her last two starts following her consecutive wins in Sweden and at the State Farm Classic.
Ochoa finished third in this event the first time she played at this venue in 2004 and was 14th last year while Webb has played just the once when 16th in 2004. She had a poor season in 2005 and did not qualify.
Clearly with each and every player playing at the Big Horn Country Club because of a good season there are many chances. The brilliant rookie Seon Hwa Lee is one of six South Koreans in the field but her form seems to have waned in recent weeks after her stunning start to her LPGA career earlier this season.
Jeong Jang a recent winner in Japan, Se Ri Pak and Hee Won Han are all good enough to ensure a strong Korean challenge however.
Michelle Wie is in the field for the second time although last year she did not feature amongst the final money list despite having turned professional just prior to the event. It was at this event that Wie took an illegal drop and was disqualified. With five top fives in her seven appearances on the LPGA this season including a runner placing at the Evian Masters and third placed finishes at the US Open and Kraft Nabisco she is not far from her first win on the LPGA Tour.
The tournament has prizemoney of US$825,000.
