Defending Champion Shin To Compete In P&G NW Arkansas Championship
ROGERS, Ark. - Defending champion Jiyai Shin, the No. 1-ranked golfer in the Rolex Women's World Golf Rankings, will return to the P&G NW Arkansas Championship presented by Walmart in September with hopes of winning her second title. Tickets are now on sale for the tournament held at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, September 10 - 12.
Shin carded a bogey-free final-round 64 and held off Angela Stanford and Sun Young Yoo in a sudden-death playoff to win the 2009 Championship. Her final round included five birdies on the back nine and seven total. She finished the tournament at 9-under 204. The win was part of tremendous season in which Shin posted three victories and 12 top-10 finishes to become the LPGA's 2009 Louis Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year winner. Shin became the first South Korean to lead the LPGA Tour Official Money List in 2009 with over $1.8 million earned.
In April, at a ceremony held during the Masters in Augusta, Ga., Shin was honored as Female Player of the Year by the Golf Writers Association of America. The following month, Shin became the top-ranked player in the world according to the Rolex Rankings following the retirement of Lorena Ochoa.
Shin held the No. 1 spot for seven weeks before emergency appendectomy surgery forced her out of two tournaments. She reclaimed the No. 1 ranking on July 26 following a victory at the Evian Masters Presented by Societe Generale in Evian-les-Bains, France. Shin carded a one-stroke victory over three players who tied for second, including 2010 P&G NW Arkansas Championship sponsor exemption Alexis Thompson. The second-place finish gave Thompson, a 15-year old who turned pro in June, her best finish as a professional.
Shin's victory at the Evian Masters was her first of the season. She previously finished third or tied for third in four tournaments - the HSBC Women's Champions, the KIA CLASSIC Presented by J Golf, the Sybase Match Play Championship and the LPGA Championship Presented by Wegmans. Shin has posted eight top-10 finishes in 10 starts this season.
Tickets to the tournament are on sale now. Fans can purchase tickets online at www.nwachampionship.com or by calling (479) 715-6100. Daily tickets are $25 for championship play, Friday - Sunday. Week-long grounds badges can be purchased for $50. Admission is free to the public Monday - Thursday. Children 17-years old and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.
Fans also can support local charities by purchasing an LPGA weekly ticket through one of eight participating organizations. These charities are selling $50 weekly tickets and keeping 100 percent of the proceeds.
To learn more about the tournament's charitable ticket program and for other tournament information, visit www.NWAChampionship.com or follow the event at www.facebook.com/NWAChampionship and www.twitter.com/NWAChampionship.
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