This weekend was full of surprises. From random drug testing that was happening to the unfortunate few that got chosen after an exhausting 18 holes on the course to a top ten scoreboard dominated by South Koreans, I didn’t know what else could happen. The weather channel had been promising rain all weekend long, a thunderstorm to be exact, and on Sunday, it finally came. I had heard rain horror stories about this two year old tournament. The first two years was plagued with rain outs and delays. I hadn’t even seen a sprinkle since I arrived so I waited with bated breath for the storm that they said would befall us. The “storm” came, but a storm it was not. A few showers and gusty winds, but it seemed like the notion of rain was enough to keep the crowds away. There were more people there on Saturday for the qualifying round then there were on the final day of the tournament. A shame really because they missed some great golf.
From 7am tee times to gusty winds driving balls into trees and even into other holes, it was a day filled with unforeseen outcomes. The scoreboard was a tizzy with players jumping from under par to way over par. A few clubs were thrown, a few profanities uttered, mostly in foreign languages, as players tried to regain the momentum they had the day before.
And as the small crowds followed the likely crew of favorites, it was the Koreans who were staying on top. From one tie to another to a three way tie to a possible four way tie, everyone was on the edge of their seats to see who the leader would be. Jiyai Shin, who teed off at 7:22 am, finished at 9-under-par and waited around to see the final results. Angela Stanford and Sun Young Yoo managed to match her score for the day, and we waited to see Song-Hee Kim do the same as she had lead the day before. With her unfortunate miss at her last hole, she left the leaderboard in a three way tie that needed to be untied. And in the end, South Korean Jiyai Shin won the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship after surviving the tournament’s first ever sudden-death playoff against Angela Stanford and Sun Young Yoo. She birdied the 15th hole to win her third tournament this year and extend her lead as top runner for the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year and has jumped over Cristie Kerr on the money list. The 21-year-old is now in prime position to win Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year and Rolex Player of the Year, making her a household name and claiming an honor that hasn’t been claimed in over 30 years, not since Nancy Lopez in 1979!!
In the end, there were seven South Koreans in the top ten, but among them was our very own Team VTech’s BECKY MORGAN!! She finished 9th at 5-under-par 208 and did an amazing job out on the course! Last year’s champion Seon Hwa Lee came back from T106 3-over-par 74 on day one to finish T10 at 4-under-par 209. Alena Sharp finished T54 at 3-over-par 216 and Karen Stupples finished T69 at 6-over-par 219.
It was a great weekend in Arkansas. Great weather, great golf, great girls!! As I boarded my connecting flight with Cristie Kerr, Paula Creamer, Pat Hurst, Brittany Lincicome, Yani Tseng, etc., I was excited at the notion of going home and not walking 36 holes a day from morning till night. But also excited to see them again at the next tournament to see who comes out on top. With Samsung this week and Danville next week, we’ll keep our eyes open to see how the race pans out.