After taking a week off the ladies of the LPGA Tour go back to work this week in Hawaii.
If anyone can really work in Hawaii?
Suzann Pettersen defeated Lisette Salas last year in a playoff at the LPGA Lotte Championship presented by J Golf. She will not be able to defend her title this year due to back issues that have plagued her for the last few weeks.
This will be the third year for the LPGA Lotte Championship, which is held at the Ko Olina Golf Club on Oahu. It is a par 72 and will play just under 6,400 yards. High winds on the island have made shot selection difficult and the wind is predicted to be a factor all week.
144 players will vie for the total purse of $1.7 million with $255,000 going to the winner.
Salas had her career best finish here last year, when she carded a back nine 29, set a new course record at 10-under par 62, and caught Pettersen to force the playoff.
Michelle Wie will be the home-town favorite this week, as she is returning to her native Hawaii. She has been playing much better of late and has moved to No. 23 in the world rankings. Wie has not missed a cut this season in six starts and is coming off a runner-up finish to Lexi Thompson at the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
“I love coming back home.” Wie said, “I get so excited the night before, I can’t sleep, and that flight from LA can’t be longer. It’s such a long flight, the longest five hours of my life, but when I finally land, that feeling I get is that I am home.”
Several big names are taking the week off, but Inbee Park, who has held the No. 1 ranking in the world for 53 consecutive weeks, is here along with Lydia Ko (4), Paula Creamer (9) and Anna Nordqvist (10).
The Lotte Championship begins on Wednesday, April 16, and all four rounds will be aired on the Golf Channel in prime time, 6:30-10:30 PM ET.