Webb inspired by Keating’s pratfall, comeback
Karrie Webb found out last week how “paying in forward” can be a big asset.
When Australian Stacey Keating was wrapping up her amateur career in 2010, she earned the prestigious $10,000 Karrie Webb Scholarship that included mentoring from Webb, the veteran World Golf Hall of Famer.
Last week, Keating was able to make some amends for that assistance. Two weeks ago, at the Ladies European Tour’s Australian Ladies Masters, Webb was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard and was understandably shaken. Webb received a quick text from Keating to console her that said: “Remember what happened to me after I got DQ’d?” The text reminded Webb that Keating experienced a similar mishap at the 2012 Ricoh Women’s British Open and came back to win in Spain and France for her first career professional wins in the next two scheduled LET events.
“It wasn’t something easy to shake off,” Webb said. “It was hard to walk out of the scoring tent this week until they had checked my scorecard about four times. It’s amazing what a difference a week makes. This time last week I wouldn’t be expecting to be sitting here.”
Webb, in her 20th season on the LPGA, continues to play at an extremely high level, with 40 career LPGA wins and 52 worldwide. The wins Down Under include a record five in the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open and eight in the Ladies Masters.
Here are a couple of quick facts about her place in history:
• With her victory last week, Webb remains fourth in wins by current World Golf Hall of Famers. Webb has won 10 times since being inducted in 2005. The Hall winners include: JoAnne Carner (five wins); Beth Daniel (one); Sandra Haynie (two); Juli Inkster (one); Betsy King (one); Nancy Lopez (12); Se Ri Pak (one); Patty Sheehan (three); Annika Sorenstam (24); Webb (10); and Kathy Whitworth (14). |
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• Webb’s win was her 40th, which places her alone in 11th place on the LPGA career victory list. The winner’s list includes: |
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1. Kathy Whitworth, 88 (6 majors) 2. Mickey Wright, 82 (13 majors) 3. Annika Sorenstam, 72 (10 majors) 4. Patty Berg, 60 (15 majors) 5. Louise Suggs, 58 (11 majors) 6. Betsy Rawls, 55 (8 majors) 7. Nancy Lopez, 48 (3 majors) 8. JoAnne Carner, 43 (2 majors) 9. Sandra Haynie, 42 wins (4 majors) 10. Babe Zaharias, 41 wins (10 majors) 11. Karrie Webb, 40 wins (7 majors) |
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• It’s not inconceivable that Webb could become the all-time earnings leader in LPGA history. Currently ranked second, she is just $4 million behind No. 1 Annika Sorenstam and has earned at least $750,000 annually over the previous three seasons. Here’s a look at the top 10: |
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Rank | Player | Earnings | Starts |
1. | Annika Sorenstam | $22,573,192 | 303 |
2. | Karrie Webb | $18,348,098 | 392 |
3. | Cristie Kerr | $15,079,403 | 405 |
4. | Lorena Ochoa | $14,863,331 | 175 |
5. | Juli Inkster | $13,593,574 | 643 |
6. | Se Ri Pak | $12,263,220 | 332 |
7. | Suzann Pettersen | $11,673,293 | 224 |
8. | Paula Creamer | $10,554,091 | 206 |
9. | Yani Tseng | $9,380,375 | 144 |
10. | Meg Mallon | $9,051,459 | 508 |
1-2-3: Inbee Park’s debut
The beginning of the season has been a weekly introduction for the top three players in the world. The season-opener featured World No. 3 Stacey Lewis from the United States. Last week, Norway’s Suzann Pettersen, ranked second, made her season debut. This week, No. 1 Inbee Park of South Korea begins her 2014 season at the Honda LPGA Thailand. She has been ranked No. 1 for 45 consecutive weeks. All three are in the field this week.
Pettersen was in position to overtake Park for the No. 1 spot entering the final round last weekend, sitting in fourth place, three strokes back. With a two-way tie for second, she would have moved to first. However, the wind came up in Australia and Pettersen recorded a triple bogey and two doubles on the way to an 80 and a T28 finish.
Eagles have landed
Last week at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open, two more players made multiple eagles in a round. In the second round, Caroline Hedwall shot 65 and made an eagle on the par-5 eighth hole and an ace on the par-3 16th. The following day, in the third round, Chella Choi shot a Victoria Golf Club course-record 62 that included eagles on two par 5s. That brings to five the total of multiple-eagle rounds in the first two tournaments of the season. Last year, there were seven the entire season.
Paula Creamer, Karine Icher and Amelia Lewis all made two eagles in the third round of the Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic to start the season.
Back to Siam Country Club’s Old Course
Siam Country Club’s Pattaya Old Course will be the site of this week’s tournament for the fourth consecutive year. The newer Plantation Course at the 45-hole complex was the site in 2009. The Old Course opened in 1971 as Thailand’s first privately owned golf club, located in Chonburi, 120 miles east of Bangkok on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand. Chonburi is 12 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time.
The Plantation Course was designed by the American architecture team of Schmidt-Curley Design, based in Arizona. Prior to building the Plantation Course, Schmidt-Curley built new greens and bunkers, installed new turf, expanded water hazards and removed trees on the Old Course. The Old Course will play to par 72 and measures 6,469 yards.
Etc.
Lydia Ko won the Supreme Hallberg Award last week, given to New Zealand’s athlete of the year for 2013. … Stacy Lewis turned 29 on Sunday and celebrated with a T6 at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open. Lewis has finished no worse than a tie for eighth in 12 consecutive tournaments, dating back to last June’s T42 finish at the U.S. Women’s Open. The streak included a win in the 2013 Ricoh Women’s British Open at St. Andrews. … This week’s Honda LPGA Thailand is one of seven events on the 2014 LPGA schedule that has never had an official American winner. Since the tournament debut in 2006, the winners have come from South Korea (Hee-Won Han in 2006), Norway (Suzanne Pettersen in 2007), Mexico (Lorena Ochoa in 2008), Japan (Ai Miyazato in 2010), Taiwan (Yani Tseng in 2011 and 2012) and South Korea (Inbee Park in 2013). Other tournaments that haven’t had an American winner include: LPGA KEB-HanaBank Championship (12 years), Walmart NW Arkansas Championship (6 years), Kia Classic (4 years), Sunrise LPGA Taiwan Championship (3 years), CME Group Titleholders (3 years) and the LPGA Lotte Championship (2 years).