With her third win of the season at last week's P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship Presented by John Q. Hammons, Jiyai Shin took the lead in the Rolex Player of the Year race and significantly extended her lead in the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year race. Should Shin win these two honors, it would be the first time a player claims both since Nancy Lopez did so in 1978.
Both awards will officially conclude at the season-ending LPGA Tour Championship, Nov. 19-22 at The Houstonian Golf & Country Club in Richmond, Texas, near Houston. The Rolex Player of the Year and Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year are both based on points systems, which awards players points based on how they finish in each official LPGA event. All points are doubled at the four major championships - Kraft Nabisco Championship, McDonald's LPGA Championship Presented by Coca-Cola, U.S. Women's Open, RICOH Women's British Open.
Rolex Player of the Year point system is based on top-10 finishes: 1st place-30 points; 2nd-12; 3rd-nine; 4th-seven; 5th-six; 6th-five; 7th-four; 8th-three; 9th-two; 10th-one.
Top-10 Rolex Player of the Year standings (as of 9/13/09)
1 | Jiyai Shin | 127.00 |
2 | Cristie Kerr | 114.00 |
3 | Suzann Pettersen | 107.00 |
4 | Ai Miyazato | 99.00 |
5 | Angela Stanford | 97.00 |
6 | In-Kyung Kim | 83.00 |
7 | Lorena Ochoa Yani Tseng |
82.00 82.00 |
9 | Karrie Webb | 80.00 |
10 | Paula Creamer Brittany Lincicome |
78.00 78.00 |
The Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year point system rewards points to rookies based on their finish after making the cut. Points range from 150 for a win and five points for positions 41st through each player making the cut.
Top-10 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year standings (as of 9/13/09)
1 | Jiyai Shin | 1,269 |
2 | Michelle Wie | 684 |
3 | Anna Nordqvist | 615 |
4 | Mika Miyazato | 405 |
5 | Stacy Lewis | 371 |
6 | Vicky Hurst | 343 |
7 | M.J. Hur | 332 |
8 | Mindy Kim | 128 |
9 | Haeji Kang | 126 |
10 | Shiho Oyama | 114 |