Webb will let her game do the talking

BY Bruce Young | ALPG Tour | 2007 Women's Australian Open | Preview | 31 Jan 2007

Nearly three years after the event was last played, the MFS Women’s Australian Open returns to the Australian golfing calendar this week at the Royal Sydney Golf Club in Rose Bay in Sydney’s ritzy eastern suburbs.

The tournament is the first of two back to back events in Australia with the ANZ Ladies Masters, offering an even stronger field, to be played next week at Royal Pines on the Gold Coast. What this week’s event can boast however is a much stronger golf course than that on which they will play next week’s event. Royal Sydney Golf Club has undergone a major redevelopment in recent years and during the recent men’s version of the Australian Open held in November, it highlighted that it is not only a fine tournament course but a fine venue.

Royal Sydney, with its stunning harbourside setting, is very much a self contained and intimate tournament venue perhaps the only downside for an event of this type the lack of returning nines. That aside however the field of international and local players will know they have been in a golf tournament by week’s end especially if the strong breezes, which prevailed during the Australian Men’s Open, return. While only one player from the world top twenty (Karrie Webb) is in action this week, it is a very intriguing match up between several established, highly successful players and many emerging world talents.

Co-sanctioned between the Ladies European Tour and Australian Ladies Professional golf, the tournament brings together an eclectic mix of professionals and amateurs from around the world highlighted by the appearance of seven time major winner and world number three and two time Australian Open Champion, Karrie Webb.

Much of the pre tournament publicity has not so much been about the appearance of Webb but rather of the bitter feud that has developed between the tournament and its organisers and the existence of a glamour charity golfing calendar promoting the female game. Well known Australian golfing commentator Jack Newton accused the amateur game’s controlling body in Australia, Golf Australia, of double standards in its handling of the affair. Newton suggested they were more than happy to utilise the calendar to promote the tournament in the lead up to the event but to then not allow the calendar to be sold during the event was pretty ordinary by Golf Australia. Golf Australia supposedly had an issue due to the involvement of another charity.

Webb said she supported the promotion of glamour in the game provided it was tasteful while England’s Laura Davies, a straight shooter at the best of times, said she saw nothing wrong with it as the men’s tours often promoted their events through the good looks of some of their members.

What the calendar and the publicity surrounding it have done however is to generate unprecedented interest in the female game in this country and the tournament and to that extent it has been a case of ’mission accomplished’ for both the tournament and ladies professional golf in Australia.

Back to the golf itself and although Webb has had quite a break from tournament golf she deserves to be the favourite to win as she is the class act in the field. She has returned to her winning ways in 2006 after two years where she struggled to maintain enthusiasm for the cause. Twelve months ago Webb was number 18 in the world, but after five wins on the LPGA Tour in 2006 including a stunning victory at the Kraft Nabisco where she holed her third from 116 yards at the 72nd hole for eagle to eventually force a playoff with Lorena Ochoa and then beat her, she is back with renewed enthusiasm.

Now Webb is behind only Annika Sorenstam and Lorena Ochoa in the Rolex World Rankings and although it has been nearly three months since she last played competitively, she has often returned to tournament golf after a lengthy break and won or contended. Many of those who are her likely challengers this week are in the same predicament in terms of a lack of recent tournament play.

Laura Davies is one who has played in recent weeks when she and Trish Johnson finished in 9th place for England at the Women’s World Cup of Golf two weeks ago. Essentially Davies is the defending champion having won the tournament when it was last played at Sydney’s Concord Golf Club in 2004. Davies arrives from a fine year in Europe having led their Order of Merit in 2006 winning once and being five times runner up. Although she was not quite as successful in the USA in 2006 she is still a force to be reckoned with this week. Her current world ranking of 37 belies her potential to do well on such a demanding layout.

Brittany Lincicome has already established herself as one of the emerging players in the game. One of the female game’s longest hitters, Lincicome had a brilliant second season on the LPGA Tour including a win at the World Match Play and producing four other top tens.

Natalie Gulbis arrives here with much fanfare and, despite not winning in her professional career to date, she has shown she is a player of class. At number 21 in the world she is the second highest ranked player on the Rolex Rankings in the event and comes off a reasonable year on the USLPGA Tour where she recorded six top tens, one of those when third behind Webb at the Kraft Nabisco. She was also runner up at the Jamie Owens Corning Classic where she lost a three hole playoff to Mi Hyun Kim.

Shin Ji-Yai led the Korean LPGA Tour money list in 2006 suggesting she is a very good player. As we have seen over many years, the Korean LPGA Tour produces a regular supply of high quality players ready to step to the next level immediately and that she was capable of leading their money list is an indication of Shin’s class. Shin played well at the recent Women’s World Cup.

17 year old Amy Yang has already displayed what an amazing talent she is, not only by winning the ANZ Ladies Masters against a similar field twelve months ago, but by finishing fourth on her professional debut in Dubai in October behind Annika Sorenstam, Helen Alfredsson and Karrie Webb. She also finished third in a restricted field event in Mauritius in December. This is a young lady destined for the elite of the game and if she was to win this week it would hardly be the surprise it was at Royal Pines.

Taiwan’s Yun-Jye Wei finished 8th on the Japan ladies Golf Tour in 2006 during a season in which she won twice. Clearly the 27 year old is a class player and has some sort of chance this week.

The Europeans are strong both in terms of numbers and capabilities. Laura Davies aside the likes of Gwladys Nocera, Stephanie Arricau, Veronica Zorzi, Linda Wessburg and Cecelia Ekelundh have all had fine seasons in Europe in 2006 and could start 2007 off well also.

Rachel Hetherington has been a great performer for Australian golf in her LPGA career but the last eighteen months have been somewhat of a struggle. At her best she is capable of winning an event like this but she would need to have made a big improvement on her recent form.

Many other Australians are likely to generate a lot of interest. Nikki Campbell is the second highest ranked Australian after a year which saw her win for the first time in Japan. She won the Australian Amateur Championship at this venue in 2002 just prior to turning professional so has some familiarity with Royal Sydney. The last time she played a significant Australian event, she was the leading Australian when 5th at the 2006 ANZ Ladies Masters.

Lindsey Wright is a player good enough to have been challenging for a top five finish at the Women’s British Open in 2006 before a brain snap over the closing holes. The Albury golfer is now well and truly established on the LPGA Tour and is slowly but surely improving.

Nikki Garret and Sarah Kemp have had brilliant first seasons in professional golf and, as New South Welshwomen, both will be keen to perform well in what is effectively a home crowd for them.

This is tournament and golf course which should see the cream rise to the top but many emerging young stars could shine at various stages and showcase the fact Australian golf has several golfers ready to follow in the footsteps of Karrie Webb.

Photo – Anthony Powter