Ochoa favourite at Women's British Open
BY Bruce Young | Ladies European Tour | 2008 Ricoh Women's British Open | Preview | 30 Jul 2008
The Ricoh Women’s British Open returns to Sunningdale Golf Club in Berkshire in England this week where Lorena Ochoa will defend what was her first major championship victory. The tournament brings to a close the Open season in Britain following the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale and the the Senior British Open last week.
The tournament has travelled far and wide since it was last played at Sunningdale in 2004 with Royal Lytham St Annes, Royal Birkdale and St Andrews, the host venue in each of the last three years.
Sunningdale Golf Club is one of the finest inland layouts in British golf. Originally designed by Willie Park in 1900, the course was redesigned not long after by Harry Colt who was also responsible for the neighbouring Wentworth Golf Club. It is located 15 minutes from Heathrow airport and some 50 kilometres from central London.
Sunningdale Golf Club boasts two layouts but it will again be the Old Course which will play host to the event this week for the fourth occasion. In 1997 Karrie Webb won the second of her three Open Championships, in 2001 Se Ri Pak was the victor and in 2004, Englishwoman Karen Stupples produced a stunning final round to defeat Australian Rachel Hetherington. In perhaps the fastest starts ever in tournament golf, Stupples eagled the first and then holed a five iron at the second for an albatross.
The field is arguably one of the best ever assembled and one of the most evenly matched. The favourite in most people’s eyes to win the event will be the world number one, Lorena Ochoa, who after a break of three weeks returned to tournament golf at last week’s Evian Masters where she finished 5th. With that tournament behind her and back into the swing of tournament golf, she stands a great chance of successfully defending her historic victory at St Andrews last year.
Annika Sorenstam has given every indication in recent months that this may be her last Women’s British Open Championship although she is not closing the door completely. The Swede has won the event only once, that coming in 2003 at Royal Lytham & St Annes. She has won three events in 2008 and although not at her peak is still capable of a fitting finish to her playing days at the Women’s British Open Championship – for now at least.
Suzann Pettersen and Paul Creamer are both multiple winners in 2008, although Pettersen’s victories have been on the Ladies European Tour. The advantage Pettersen has over Creamer however is that she already has a major to her name while Creamer has still to secure her first win at the absolute elite level. Creamer is the only player in the top six of the world rankings without a major to her name but surely it can’t be much longer before she does.
Karrie Webb is a three time winner of this event including one at Sunningdale in 1997 and gave an indication that she is primed for another good tournament at this venue when she overcame a slow start at the Evian Masters to finish with a last round of 66. Webb’s form in 2008 has been a little hard to predict but there is little doubting her class, and her ability on this type of golf course. She could do well.
Other than the leading five world ranked players, other realistic chances are almost too many to list but certainly the Koreans are here in force, both numerically and in terms of chances. Se Ri Pak and Jeong Jang are previous Korean winners of the event but there are many newcomers who have a great chance of adding to that list. Na Yeon Choi and Seon Hwa Lee have regularly been in the hunt this year and Taiwan’s Yani Tseng has already proven herself capable of winning at the highest level.
Of the Australians in the field other than Webb, Lindsey Wright, Rachel Hetherington and Katherine Hull are unlikely to be winning chances but could still have good weeks, while Joanne Mills, Nikki Garrett and Leah Hart, who play their golf in Europe, are also teeing it up.
Dana Lacey was, as this was written, the first alternate and so the likelihood of her getting a start is very real.
