As a new “Big Three” makes headlines on the PGA Tour, or “Big Four” as Rickie Fowler made a case for this past weekend, the LPGA's “Big Three” is making headlines of their own at the season’s final major.
In a rare opportunity for golf fans, the top three ranked players in the women’s game in Inbee Park, Lydia Ko and Stacy Lewis are grouped together in the first two rounds of this week’s Evian Championship. This marks just the second time this season the three have teed it up together, the last time coming in the final round of the HSBC Women’s Champions in March, where Park went wire-to-wire and bogey-free to win. While Park has the opportunity to make history at Evian, it’s her playing partners that are on her mind this week.
“I don’t think I can name like one player that I’m going to be competing with, but the first two days is definitely going to be Lydia, Stacy, and we’re playing two days, so it’s definitely the ones to definitely watch out,” Park told the media Wednesday in France.
“I’m super excited when I see the tee times, and I don’t think we’ve played together, us three, since the Asia Swing,” said Ko. “It’s been a while and a lot of things have happened, and all three of us have played well since then, too. I think we’ll have fun out there, at least I will.”
A lot has happened, indeed.
When the trio last met in March at the HSBC Women’s Champions, Ko, Park and Lewis were ranked first, second and third respectively in the Rolex Rankings. Ko looked to have the top spot locked up for the foreseeable future, winning three times early in the season. But Park followed up her victory at the HSBC Women’s Champions with three more victories, including two major championships, one being her Career Grand Slam victory at the RICOH Women’s British Open.
For world No.3 Stacy Lewis the year hasn’t seen as much change. With 11 top-10 finishes this season, her consistency has helped her retain her spot in the Rolex Rankings without a win. Now more than 14 months removed from her last victory, Lewis has come close to winning, finishing runner-up four times in 2015. The Evian Resort Golf Club has been good to Lewis who twice finished runner-up in this championship, including in 2012 when she carded the lowest round of her career at the time with an opening 63. The good memories she has from those trips could be enough to stand in the way of Park’s run at history.
Park has the opportunity to again rewrite the record books this week in France with a chance to become just the second player in the history of the LPGA Tour to capture the Super Career Grand Slam in winning five different major championships.
“I feel like I’m doing something really never anybody has done before,” said Park. “It feels pretty special to actually have a crack at it and I will for the rest of my life if I come to Evian.”
Having won the Evian Championship in 2012 before it became a major championship, Park has already enjoyed the experience of admiring all five trophies, side by side at home in South Korea. But Park’s victory came before a total overhaul of the golf course that the South Korean says is much tougher than before and took a few years for her to adjust.
“I feel a lot more comfortable and feel like I am more used to looking at this new setup of this golf course,” said Park. “This is already a memorable place to me, so if I can do something like that again, it’ll be great, perfect.”
In what is already a memorable start to the week, the “Big Three” is scheduled off the 10th tee at 8:40am Thursday morning.
)
)
)
)
