| DATES: April 27-30 | ||
| SITE: Las Colinas Country Club, Irving, TX | ||
| PRIZE MONEY: $1,300,000 | ||
Round 4 - Nomura wins Texas Shootout after 6 hole playoff
April 30, 2017
High winds again made conditions difficult for players in the final round
of the Volunteers of America Shootout leading to only two rounds under par for the day. Haru Nomura started the day with a two shot lead over amateur Eun Jeon Seong and Cristie Kerr and at one point was leading by five. However, she was 5-over par 76 after regulation leaving her tied with Kerr who shot 3-over.
Both players had their chances at winning during the 6 hole playoff but were unable to and parred the 18th five times in a row before a great approach on the sixth try gave Nomura the win.
“I'm so happy to win again. I'm so excited,” said Nomura before reaffirming how much she'd enjoyed the tough conditions all week.
Kerr, with a win and a playoff loss in her last two starts, said she was happy with her game..
“I had a great comeback to even get into the playoff,” said Kerr. “I had her on that second playoff hole when I was behind the green, and I just made an error and you can't do that in playoffs. You have to take advantage of when you have the chance, and I didn't do that, so I lost.”
Only one other player, Jessica Korda, finished under par for the tournament coming in at 1-under.
| Pos. | Player | Scores | Total | To Par | Prize Money |
| 1 | Haru Nomura | 68 - 65 - 72 - 76 | 281 | -3 | $195,000.00 |
| 2 | Cristie Kerr | 68 - 69 - 70 - 74 | 281 | -3 | $118,382.00 |
| 3 | Jessica Korda | 68 - 70 - 72 - 73 | 283 | -1 | $85,878.00 |
Click here for full scores & prize money.
Round 3 - Nomura holds on to lead on windy day
April 29, 2017
The wind on Saturday played havoc with players, only five shot under par. Haru Nomura kept her lead and heads into the final round two shots ahead of amateur Eun Jeong Seon, Cristie Kerr and Inbee Park. Nomura shot a 1-over-par 72 after an unfortunate double-bogey on the 17th but she enjoyed the windy conditions.
“Windy (is) easy,” she said. “I like windy and tough conditions, from fairway to green. I love it.”
Eun Jeong Seon played 2-under par for share of second place. Four amateurs have won on the LPGA Tour so far, the latest was Lydia Ko in 2013.
“I thought just even par is just so good, but I started birdie-birdie, which is why I played very easy today,” said Seong. “Very tough (playing) No's 15, 16, 17 because of the wind, but I made par and then birdie on my last (two holes). I feel good.”
Cristie Kerr is in position to get back-to-back wins this weeks with her 1-under 70 putting her in second place.
“God I played really hard today,” said Kerr. “It would have been nice to make a few more putts but standing on the first tee, anything under par you would have taken it. It was a really difficult day.”
Inbee Park had a tough day on Saturday with the wind but is focussing on winning for the third time in Texas.
“I think the forecast is still pretty bad tomorrow, so I think it just really depends on the weather, whether I should go really aggressive to the pins or try to give myself a putt at it,” she said. “With these windy conditions, I think it's good to have (options). Two or three-under is a good score with these conditions, but when the wind dies down I think you can go pretty low, so the strategy kind of changes.”
Lydia Ko has withdrawn due to an eye infection likely caused by an allergy to pollen that she has been suffering from all week according to her agent Michael Kim.
Paula Creamer also withdrew Friday due to illness.
|
Pos.
|
Player |
To Par
|
R1
|
R2
|
R3
|
Total
|
|
1
|
Haru Nomura |
-8
|
68
|
65
|
72
|
205
|
|
T2
|
Eun Jeong Seong (a) |
-6
|
69
|
69
|
69
|
207
|
|
T2
|
Cristie Kerr |
-6
|
68
|
69
|
70
|
207
|
|
T2
|
Inbee Park |
-6
|
69
|
67
|
71
|
207
|
|
5
|
Stacy Lewis |
-5
|
71
|
71
|
66
|
208
|
|
T6
|
Sung Hyun Park |
-3
|
67
|
72
|
71
|
210
|
|
T6
|
Jessica Korda |
-3
|
68
|
70
|
72
|
210
|
|
T6
|
Angela Stanford |
-3
|
68
|
69
|
73
|
210
|
|
T6
|
Moriya Jutanugarn |
-3
|
70
|
66
|
74
|
210
|
|
T6
|
Ariya Jutanugarn |
-3
|
67
|
67
|
76
|
210
|
Round 2 - Haru Nomura takes the lead in Texas
April 28, 2017
Haru Nomura shot a 6-under 65 to take the lead in Texas, in spite of two bogeys, one shot ahead of Ariya Jutanugarn.
“My mind was very calm today. It was windy, but I like windy and tough conditions,” said Nomura. “I putted well and shot pretty good today.”
Ariya and her sister Moriya were briefly tied but Ariya's 4-under 67 led to her second place while Moriya shot 66 to finish the day tied for fourth.
“Pretty good day today,” said Ariya. “I hit the ball pretty good on my front nine, made some putts today.”
Moriya still had a good day as she notched a hole-in-one on the 13th, her second ace of the year after the Kia Classic.
“I can hit it pretty straight, so it should usually be pretty close,” she said of her approaches. “It was lucky, but it was also a good shot.”
Jessica Korda and her sister Nelly are both tied at 4-under (12th) and were almost paired together for Saturday.
“We raise each other's game,” said Nelly of playing on the same tour as Jessica. “It's great to have her out here and I'm really excited, and looking forward to the rest of the season.”
Nelly is playing well in her rookie year with six cuts so far this year.
“I am very comfortable out here. Having my sister out here too helps a lot, and knowing a couple of the girls,” said Korda. “Just being comfortable out here is definitely a huge part of why I'm playing so well.”
|
Pos.
|
Player |
To Par
|
R1
|
R2
|
Total
|
|
1
|
Haru Nomura |
-9
|
68
|
65
|
133
|
|
2
|
Ariya Jutanugarn |
-8
|
67
|
67
|
134
|
|
3
|
Suzann Pettersen |
-7
|
70
|
65
|
135
|
|
T4
|
Moriya Jutanugarn |
-6
|
70
|
66
|
136
|
|
T4
|
Inbee Park |
-6
|
69
|
67
|
136
|
|
T4
|
Marina Alex |
-6
|
67
|
69
|
136
|
|
T7
|
Charley Hull |
-5
|
71
|
66
|
137
|
|
T7
|
Cristie Kerr |
-5
|
68
|
69
|
137
|
|
T7
|
Angela Stanford |
-5
|
68
|
69
|
137
|
|
T7
|
Mi Jung Hur |
-5
|
65
|
72
|
137
|
Round 1 - Mi Jung Hur tops packed leaderboard
April 27, 2017
Mi Jung Hur fired an opening 6-under 65 on a windy Thursday to take the lead ahead of eight players tied for second place.
Hur says the unpredictable winds made it very hard for players.
“The winds are swirling every hole, so it (gave) me a little bit of a headache.”
Ariya Jutanugarn is one of the players tied for second place.
“I hit the ball pretty good today. I just didn't make a putt on the front nine, but I started making putts on the back nine.”
Jutanugarn could take Lydia Ko's place in the Rolex Rankings this week if she wins and Ko finishes outside the top seven.
“I didn't try to think about that,” she admitted. “I just feel like it's more important for me to have fun and be happy on the course.”
Ko finished round 1 tied in 32nd place at 1-under 70. She addressed questions about her swing changes and changing caddies.
“I mean obviously the number of caddies I've had is not a small number. With every person I felt like I've learned a lot. My first year I technically didn't fire a caddie. Being your rookie year, you don't -- I don't even know exactly what I want and what I need in a caddie,” said Ko. “Obviously I'm trying to figure out exactly what I want, and I've realized how big a personality is kind of big for me, especially because I'm not really loud and I never get so high or low when I don't play well. I kind of felt like I needed somebody that would say, hey, it's okay, we can make birdie on the next hole, or we can bring it back the next round. I kind of need somebody with a little bit more positive kind of thing and more of that kind of nice confident energy. That's what I was looking for and hopefully that will happen.”
She has been working on her rhythm with new coach Gary Gilchrist.
"I try and do it as simple as possible. Gary's been giving me a lot of drills that I'm doing, without thinking about which position to put, you know, my arms or whatever in. That way it becomes less technical. And when I'm on the road, if something doesn't feel right, I know what to go back to and what drill to do. I think that's a really good thing going forward because I can't, you know, have my coach with me every single time,” she explained. “When I come off the golf course, take a swing and send it to Gary. So I think the drills have been really good.”
| Pos. | Player |
To Par
|
R1
|
| 1 | Mi Jung Hur |
-6
|
65
|
| T2 | Katherine Kirk |
-4
|
67
|
| T2 | Michelle Wie |
-4
|
67
|
| T2 | Sung Hyun Park |
-4
|
67
|
| T2 | Sandra Changkija |
-4
|
67
|
| T2 | Ariya Jutanugarn |
-4
|
67
|
| T2 | Marina Alex |
-4
|
67
|
| T2 | Jennifer Song |
-4
|
67
|
Scores
| Pos. | Player | Scores | Total | To Par | Prize Money |
| 1 | Haru Nomura | 68 - 65 - 72 - 76 | 281 | -3 | $195,000.00 |
| 2 | Cristie Kerr | 68 - 69 - 70 - 74 | 281 | -3 | $118,382.00 |
| 3 | Jessica Korda | 68 - 70 - 72 - 73 | 283 | -1 | $85,878.00 |
| 4 | Sung Hyun Park | 67 - 72 - 71 - 74 | 284 | E | $66,433.00 |
| 5T | Eun-Hee Ji | 68 - 73 - 74 - 70 | 285 | 1 | $41,481.00 |
| 5T | Angel Yin | 74 - 67 - 72 - 72 | 285 | 1 | $41,481.00 |
| 5T | Minjee Lee | 68 - 70 - 74 - 73 | 285 | 1 | $41,481.00 |
| 5T | Mi Jung Hur | 65 - 72 - 74 - 74 | 285 | 1 | $41,481.00 |
| 9T | Amy Yang | 68 - 71 - 78 - 69 | 286 | 2 | $25,520.00 |
| 9T | Charley Hull | 71 - 66 - 77 - 72 | 286 | 2 | $25,520.00 |
| 9T | So Yeon Ryu | 74 - 69 - 68 - 75 | 286 | 2 | $25,520.00 |
| 9T | Ariya Jutanugarn | 67 - 67 - 76 - 76 | 286 | 2 | $25,520.00 |
| 13T | Brittany Lang | 73 - 68 - 73 - 73 | 287 | 3 | $19,444.00 |
| 13T | Jane Park | 72 - 71 - 70 - 74 | 287 | 3 | $19,444.00 |
| 13T | Michelle Wie | 67 - 73 - 71 - 76 | 287 | 3 | $19,444.00 |
| 13T | Inbee Park | 69 - 67 - 71 - 80 | 287 | 3 | $19,444.00 |
| 17T | Mel Reid | 73 - 66 - 77 - 72 | 288 | 4 | $15,815.00 |
| 17T | Lexi Thompson | 69 - 72 - 73 - 74 | 288 | 4 | $15,815.00 |
| 17T | Jacqui Concolino | 69 - 69 - 75 - 75 | 288 | 4 | $15,815.00 |
| 17T | Stacy Lewis | 71 - 71 - 66 - 80 | 288 | 4 | $15,815.00 |
| 21T | Brooke M. Henderson | 74 - 71 - 71 - 73 | 289 | 5 | $13,365.00 |
| 21T | Amelia Lewis | 68 - 72 - 75 - 74 | 289 | 5 | $13,365.00 |
| 21T | Joanna Klatten | 72 - 69 - 73 - 75 | 289 | 5 | $13,365.00 |
| 21T | Katherine Kirk | 67 - 73 - 74 - 75 | 289 | 5 | $13,365.00 |
| 21T | Moriya Jutanugarn | 70 - 66 - 74 - 79 | 289 | 5 | $13,365.00 |
| 26T | Alena Sharp | 70 - 74 - 70 - 76 | 290 | 6 | $11,472.00 |
| 26T | Suzann Pettersen | 70 - 65 - 78 - 77 | 290 | 6 | $11,472.00 |
| 26T | Annie Park | 72 - 68 - 72 - 78 | 290 | 6 | $11,472.00 |
| 29T | Marina Alex | 67 - 69 - 81 - 74 | 291 | 7 | $10,176.00 |
| 29T | Danielle Kang | 73 - 68 - 74 - 76 | 291 | 7 | $10,176.00 |
| 29T | Gerina Piller | 69 - 71 - 75 - 76 | 291 | 7 | $10,176.00 |
| 32T | Thidapa Suwannapura | 72 - 73 - 72 - 75 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Brittany Lincicome | 75 - 69 - 73 - 75 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Morgan Pressel | 75 - 69 - 73 - 75 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Christina Kim | 72 - 72 - 73 - 75 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Lindy Duncan | 70 - 70 - 76 - 76 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Dori Carter | 76 - 63 - 77 - 76 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Jodi Ewart Shadoff | 71 - 72 - 71 - 78 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 32T | Jenny Shin | 71 - 72 - 71 - 78 | 292 | 8 | $8,158.00 |
| 40T | Karine Icher | 71 - 69 - 76 - 77 | 293 | 9 | $6,482.00 |
| 40T | Nelly Korda | 70 - 68 - 77 - 78 | 293 | 9 | $6,482.00 |
| 40T | Chella Choi | 68 - 71 - 73 - 81 | 293 | 9 | $6,482.00 |
| 40T | Eun Jeong Seong | 69 - 69 - 69 - 86 | 293 | 9 | $0.00 |
| 44T | Sun Young Yoo | 69 - 74 - 74 - 77 | 294 | 10 | $5,725.00 |
| 44T | Sarah Jane Smith | 69 - 71 - 76 - 78 | 294 | 10 | $5,725.00 |
| 44T | Pornanong Phatlum | 69 - 71 - 75 - 79 | 294 | 10 | $5,725.00 |
| 47T | Cydney Clanton | 73 - 70 - 74 - 79 | 296 | 12 | $5,217.00 |
| 47T | Gaby Lopez | 69 - 74 - 74 - 79 | 296 | 12 | $5,217.00 |
| 49T | Jennifer Song | 67 - 76 - 74 - 80 | 297 | 13 | $4,731.00 |
| 49T | Pannarat Thanapolboonyaras | 69 - 71 - 76 - 81 | 297 | 13 | $4,731.00 |
| 49T | Marissa Steen | 69 - 71 - 73 - 84 | 297 | 13 | $4,731.00 |
| 52 | Brooke Pancake | 73 - 68 - 75 - 82 | 298 | 14 | $4,408.00 |
| 53 | Angela Stanford | 68 - 69 - 73 - 89 | 299 | 15 | $4,278.00 |
| CUT | Shanshan Feng | 72 - 73 - 73 | 218 | 5 | $3,953.00 |
| CUT | Giulia Molinaro | 73 - 70 - 75 | 218 | 5 | $3,953.00 |
| CUT | Kris Tamulis | 71 - 72 - 75 | 218 | 5 | $3,953.00 |
| CUT | Mirim Lee | 69 - 74 - 75 | 218 | 5 | $3,953.00 |
| CUT | Azahara Munoz | 73 - 72 - 74 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Mo Martin | 71 - 74 - 74 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Mika Miyazato | 71 - 73 - 75 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Sandra Changkija | 67 - 76 - 76 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Laura Gonzalez Escallon | 71 - 71 - 77 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Amy Anderson | 69 - 71 - 79 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Candie Kung | 69 - 71 - 79 | 219 | 6 | $3,296.00 |
| CUT | Mina Harigae | 74 - 71 - 75 | 220 | 7 | $2,884.00 |
| CUT | Anna Nordqvist | 73 - 72 - 75 | 220 | 7 | $2,884.00 |
| CUT | Olafia Kristinsdottir | 74 - 67 - 79 | 220 | 7 | $2,884.00 |
| CUT | Wei-Ling Hsu | 72 - 69 - 79 | 220 | 7 | $2,884.00 |
| CUT | Catriona Matthew | 70 - 75 - 76 | 221 | 8 | $2,689.00 |
| CUT | Caroline Masson | 73 - 71 - 77 | 221 | 8 | $2,689.00 |
| CUT | Becky Morgan | 74 - 71 - 77 | 222 | 9 | $2,544.00 |
| CUT | Laetitia Beck | 72 - 73 - 77 | 222 | 9 | $2,544.00 |
| CUT | Lizette Salas | 71 - 72 - 79 | 222 | 9 | $2,544.00 |
| CUT | Paula Reto | 71 - 71 - 80 | 222 | 9 | $2,544.00 |
| CUT | Demi Runas | 75 - 70 - 78 | 223 | 10 | $2,418.00 |
| CUT | Ashleigh Buhai | 71 - 74 - 78 | 223 | 10 | $2,418.00 |
| CUT | Beatriz Recari | 70 - 75 - 78 | 223 | 10 | $2,418.00 |
| CUT | Nontaya Srisawang | 70 - 71 - 82 | 223 | 10 | $2,418.00 |
| CUT | Ilhee Lee | 72 - 73 - 79 | 224 | 11 | $2,342.00 |
| CUT | Therese O'Hara | 75 - 71 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Dana Finkelstein | 74 - 72 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Simin Feng | 73 - 73 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Kim Kaufman | 73 - 73 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Madelene Sagstrom | 73 - 73 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Ally McDonald | 72 - 74 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Pavarisa Yoktuan | 72 - 74 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Jackie Stoelting | 71 - 75 | 146 | 4 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Sandra Gal | 77 - 70 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Mariajo Uribe | 76 - 71 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Lauren Coughlin | 75 - 72 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Karen Chung | 74 - 73 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Min Seo Kwak | 74 - 73 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Peiyun Chien | 73 - 74 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Na Yeon Choi | 73 - 74 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Maude-Aimee Leblanc | 73 - 74 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Kelly Shon | 73 - 74 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Pernilla Lindberg | 71 - 76 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Hee Young Park | 71 - 76 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Megan Khang | 70 - 77 | 147 | 5 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Mi Hyang Lee | 79 - 69 | 148 | 6 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Sei Young Kim | 77 - 71 | 148 | 6 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Julie Yang | 75 - 73 | 148 | 6 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Cheyenne Woods | 74 - 74 | 148 | 6 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Gina Kim | 72 - 76 | 148 | 6 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Wichanee Meechai | 72 - 76 | 148 | 6 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Jaye Marie Green | 76 - 73 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Beth Allen | 75 - 74 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Anne Chen | 75 - 74 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Ha Na Jang | 75 - 74 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Lee Lopez | 75 - 74 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Maria Parra | 74 - 75 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Perrine Delacour | 73 - 76 | 149 | 7 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Kelly Tan | 80 - 70 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | In Gee Chun | 76 - 74 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Vicky Hurst | 76 - 74 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | In-Kyung Kim | 76 - 74 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Alison Lee | 75 - 75 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Celine Herbin | 74 - 76 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong | 73 - 77 | 150 | 8 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Regan De Guzman | 80 - 71 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | P.K. Kongkraphan | 79 - 72 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Yani Tseng | 79 - 72 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Juli Inkster | 78 - 73 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Katherine Perry | 78 - 73 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Austin Ernst | 77 - 74 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Xiyu Lin | 77 - 74 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Maddie McCrary | 77 - 74 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Karrie Webb | 75 - 76 | 151 | 9 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Julieta Granada | 78 - 74 | 152 | 10 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Brittany Altomare | 75 - 77 | 152 | 10 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Tiffany Joh | 74 - 78 | 152 | 10 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Sadena Parks | 78 - 75 | 153 | 11 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Dani Holmqvist | 77 - 76 | 153 | 11 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Su Oh | 77 - 76 | 153 | 11 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Nasa Hataoka | 80 - 74 | 154 | 12 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Stephanie Meadow | 79 - 75 | 154 | 12 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Ssu-Chia Cheng | 78 - 76 | 154 | 12 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Belen Mozo | 77 - 77 | 154 | 12 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Jennifer Ha | 75 - 80 | 155 | 13 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Jing Yan | 79 - 77 | 156 | 14 | $0.00 |
| CUT | Ryann O'Toole | 77 - 79 | 156 | 14 | $0.00 |
| WDC | Paula Creamer | 75 | 75 | 4 | $0.00 |
| WDC | Lydia Ko | 70 - 73 | 143 | 1 | $2,312.00 |
Preview
Shin Ready To Defend
At the 2016 Volunteers of America Texas Shootout, Jenny Shin shot the low round on the final day, a bogey-free 67, to capture her first-career LPGA victory in her 135th start on Tour. Shin defeated Gerina Piller, Amy Yang and Mi Jung Hur by two-strokes.
Shin was recognized on the field at AT&T Stadium on Tuesday night at the official Volunteers of America pro-am party. “Everybody’s welcoming me,” Shin said. “A few Texans were recognizing who I am and they’ve been really kind and really supportive, so it’s good to be back.”
A slower start to the 2017 season doesn’t have Shin worried.
“I think I turned it around in Hawaii,” Shin said of her season-best T11 finish at the LOTTE Championship. “So we’ll see what happens this week.”
Solheim On The Mind For Stanford
Five-time LPGA Tour winner Angela Stanford is Texas born and bred, so it’s no surprise the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout is one of her favorite stops on Tour.
“I love playing at home,” Stanford said. “I love being in Texas. I love that the Texas golf fans come out and support it, and to still be here years later is a good sign. There’s just nothing better than playing at home.”
The TCU graduate has three top-20 finishes already this season and is searching for another good finish this week to boost her bid to make her seventh U.S. Solheim Cup appearance. “I would really love to be a part of this team for a number of reasons,” Stanford said. “To play for Juli again obviously, but I think at some point there’s going to be a crossover where the team’s going to get younger.”
“It’s kind of cool to get to play six, seven Solheims and you get to see different generations of amazing golfers, so it would be fun to be a part of.”
As the Team USA Standings sit now, Stanford is in ninth place with 163 points. Members of Team USA are decided by the top-8 U.S. Solheim Cup Points earners, two players from the Rolex Rankings not already qualified by points, and two captains picks.Next Gen On Display
From a field of 68 players (51 high school and 17 collegiate), four amateur female golfers qualified in the annual one-day High School/College Shootout for exemption into the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout.
• Eun Jeong Seong, 17, senior, Youngpa Girls High School, Seoul, South Korea, score 71 (E)
• Gina Kim, 16, junior, Chapel Hill High School, Chapel Hill, NC, score 72 (+1)
• Maddie McCrary (from Wylie, TX), 21, junior, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, score 73 (+2)*
• Anne Chen, 15, freshman, Clements High School, Sugar Land, TX, score 73 (+2)*
*Top two of a three-way playoff
Seong has competed in six LPGA events in her amateur career, most recently posting a career-best T16 finish at the LOTTE Championship. When asked about her expectations for herself at Las Colinas, Seong said, “This week, top 10.”
McCrary will be playing in her second Volunteers of America Texas Shootout, after she also earned exemption into the 2015 event by way of the HS/College Shootout. It will be the first LPGA tournament for Kim and Chen.
While most of the field was practicing on Tuesday, Chen was leading Clements High School to the girls Region III-6A tournament to qualify for the Texas state tournament for a fifth straight year. Chen finished third individually.
Number One Scenario
Lydia Ko has spent the past 79 weeks as No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings, but either No. 2 So Yeon Ryu or No. 3 Ariya Jutanugarn could take over the No. 1 spot depending on what happens this week.
There are two scenarios for Ryu to take over the No. 1 spot:
• Ryu can become No. 1 if she finishes 2nd AND Ko finishes 13th or worse
• Ryu can become No. 1 if she wins AND Ko finishes 3rd or worse
• If Ryu finishes 3rd or worse, Ko remains No. 1 in the world
Jutanugarn can become No. 1 if she wins AND Ko finishes 7th or worse, Ryu does not play a factor.
National Golf Day
The LPGA was part of a delegation of more than 200 people from the golf industry who visited Capitol Hill today on National Golf Day 2017 to raise awareness about the game’s considerable impact on society and its long-term benefits for good health.
For more information visit: http://www.lpga.com/news/lpga-joins-other-golf-organizations-on-capitol-hill-to-raise-awareness-on-2017-national-golf-day
Quotable
“It means I’m getting old.”
- Angela Stanford on the possibility of playing on her seventh Solheim Cup team
“My goal is four majors.”
- Amateur Eun Jeong Seong on her career goals
Quick Hits
• In six starts this season, Lexi Thompson has three top-5 finishes including a pair of playoff losses at the ANA Inspiration and Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic
• Thompson leads the LPGA in Driving Average (275.6) and sand saves (84.6%) and ranks second in greens hit (81.1%), rounds under par (20 of 22/90.9%) and money earned ($489,367)
• Heading into this season, Thompson is one of only five players on the LPGA or PGA Tour to have won an event in each of the last four seasons. Dustin Johnson (9 straight), Jimmy Walker (4 straight), Patrick Reed (4 straight) and Lydia Ko (5 straight) are the other four
• Thompson’s best finish at the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout was a tie for fourth in 2015
• In her last two appearances at Las Colinas Country Club, Jenny Shin has a 12th place finish (2014) and a win (2016)
• In 2016, Shin was one of nine Rolex First-Time winners with her victory at the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout Presented by JTBC
• In seven starts this season, Shin has made seven cuts with a season-best T11 finish coming at her last outing at the LOTTE Championship Presented by HERSHEY in Hawaii
• Aside from being close to home, this week is special for Angela Stanford who will host her annual Let Your Light Shine Charity Golf Tournament on Monday in Fort Worth, Texas, the tournament has helped the Angela Stanford Foundation raise over $600,000 the past 8 years
• In four starts at the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout, Stanford has three top-22 finishes including a sixth place finish in 2015
• Amateur Anne Chen, was born in Melbourne, Australia but has lived in Sugarland, Texas since she was nine years old and will have her dad Byron on the bag this week for her first LPGA tournament
• North Carolina native and high school junior Gina Kim is verbally committed to playing college golf at Duke University
