Lewis’ home victory adds to phenomenal streak
Stacy Lewis won close to home on Sunday at the North Texas LPGA Shootout. The Woodlands, Texas, native had lots of family in attendance, but perhaps more importantly, she added a victory to a streak of play that makes her perhaps the most consistent player on the LPGA over the last year.
- In her last 22 events dating back to last June’s Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, Lewis has recorded two wins, six runner-ups and 19 top-eight finishes.
- In her last nine rounds, Lewis has never been below third at the end of the day. She has been in the top 10 in 20 of her last 36 rounds this season.
- Eight of Lewis’ last 10 rounds have been in the 60s. In the 22 events, she has shot 63 once and 64 four times (twice last week, including the final round).
- Lewis’ six-stroke win last week was the largest victory margin on the LPGA since Jiyai Shin won the 2012 Ricoh Women’s British Open by nine.
- The win pushed Lewis to second in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, an improvement of two spots, and to within close range of No. 1 Inbee Park (9.99 to 9.78). Park replaced Lewis at No. 1 on April 15, 2013 and has remained there since.
- Lewis leads the LPGA in earnings ($833,976), Race to the CME Globe points (1,979), Rolex Player of the Year (100 points), Scoring Average (69.47), top-10 finishes (89 percent) and Greens in Regulation (89.7 percent, tied with Michelle Wie),
Wie continues her run
Michelle Wie’s statistic of the week from the North Texas LPGA Shootout was that she eagled the par-5 10th hole at Las Colinas Country Club three of the four times she played the hole. The byproduct of that surge was another great finish, a third. She hasn’t finished worse than 16th in her last 11 starts, dating back to last October.
Wie is tied for first with Stacy Lewis in the Greens in Regulation category (78.7 percent) and tied for first in Eagles (six) with Cristie Kerr, Karine Icher and Gerina Piller. She is second in earnings ($738,693), the Race to the CME Globe and Scoring Average (69.69). Her best season in earnings ($918,650) and scoring (70.57) occurred in 2009.
Another statistical note: Even though Wie is averaged 259 yards off the tee (28th on the LPGA), much of that is attributable to playing clubs less than a driver off the tee. She showed her power last week in Texas, averaging 293 yards, including 300 yards in a final-round 67.
Off week before run to the U.S. Women’s Open
After wins by Lexi Thompson, Michelle Wie, Lydia Ko and Stacy Lewis over the last month, the LPGA takes a break this week to gather itself for four tournaments in four weeks en route to the U.S. Women’s Open (June 19-22 at Pinehurst, N.C.), the second of five major championships.
The events include the Kingsmill Championship Presented by JTBC (May 15-18, Williamsburg, Va.), Airbus LPGA Classic Presented by JTBC (May 22-25, Mobile, Ala.), ShopRite LPGA Classic Presented by Acer (May 30-June 1, Galloway, N.J.) and Manulife Financial LPGA Classic (June 5-8, Ontario, Canada).
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Keep an eye out for Kim Kaufman. The LPGA rookie from South Dakota by way of Texas Tech has made a fast start on the LPGA. She finished fourth last week at the North Texas LPGA Shootout, two weeks after a T42 at the LPGA LOTTE Championship in her LPGA debut. Last May, the 5-foot-11 Kaufman graduated from Texas Tech and has won twice on the Epson Tour. She is averaging 270.8 in Driving Distance over two weeks on the LPGA and has five of her eight rounds at par or better. … How about this for a long-drive contest? On Tuesday, May 20, at the Airbus LPGA Classic, players will have a chance to hit drives on Runway 18 at Brookley Field in Mobile, Ala. Among the early entries are Brittany Lincicome and PK Kongkraphan. … More long driving: Lexi Thompson leads the LPGA in Driving Distance at 276.1. She averaged 285.6 yards last week in a T6 finish at the North Texas LPGA Shootout. … There have been five American winners in 10 events this season – Lewis, Wie, Thompson, Jessica Korda and Paula Creamer.
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