The LPGA Tour will hold this week, its third of five major championships on their schedule, the U.S. Women’s Open conducted by the USGA. This event began in 1946 and is the longest-running tournament currently on the LPGA Tour. The tournament carries US$3.25 million in prize money, equal to that on offer at the Evian Championship.
It will be played Thursday through Sunday. After 36 holes, the field is cut to the low 60 scores and ties. For the first two rounds, players will go off the first and 10th tees. If the tournament is tied after four rounds, there will be an immediate three-hole playoff. If that playoff results in a tie, play continues hole-by-hole until a champion is determined.
It will have two big stories, The Sebonack Golf Course and Inbee Park looking to extend her majors-winning streak.
The opening in 2006 of the Sebonack Golf Course in Southampton, NY was one of the most eagerly anticipated in recent memory. The course design was the result of collaboration between Tom Doak and Jack Nicklaus. Both have vastly different design styles, and leaves you wondering how these two master architects got together to come up with this natural and unique golf course.
The end result is a golf course that mixes Nicklaus most demanding emphasis regarding long iron approaches, and Doak’s vintage view of the severe bunkers and brutal greens stimped over 12. The course will tease the players off the tee this week with its wide fairways, non-intimidating roughs and stunning beauty before taunting them with its tricky greens and, most likely, tough pin positions. Scores can soar quickly and hopes dashed immediately.
The signature hole has to be the 570 yards Par-5 18th. The founder of Sebonack, Michael Pascucci, insisted on a par five finishing hole even though both architects wanted a long par four. After months of battling it over, the owner got his wish and Sebonack finishes with a chance to score birdie rather than scrambling to get a par. The result is a fantastic hole that runs along the coastline and provides some of the most stunning views on the course.
And on this stunning course will be where the World’s No. 1 player, Inbee Park will be gunning for the rare chance to win a third consecutive LPGA tournament and a third major championship of the season. She is aiming to become only the second player to claim the first three LPGA majors in a single season.
But most of all, Park is going for what I have called the ‘Pentaslam’, winning all five majors in a season. This year, with the addition of the Evian Championship to the major’s list on the LPGA, it would take winning five to sweep the majors in one year; if someone can do it, is Inbee Park.
She has dominated the women's game this season, triumphing five times on the LPGA Tour, all thanks to dramatically improving her driving accuracy and the precision of her long game. In her five wins this season, Park has come from behind to win three times and has shot a final round in the 60s four times. Her last two victories both came in playoffs.
The stats are there, but it’s the supreme confidence, the overall great play that Park has shown that makes her look almost unbeatable and think that the rest of the players are playing for second place. She always had the master putting skills, now has the overall game that has driven her to being the most dominant golfer on any tour.
But, this is an elite field and you can make sure the world’s best players are not just going to hand over the trophy to Park, they will go down fighting.
The World’s No. 2, Stacy Lewis, had been struggling of late but she rebounded with a nice effort at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. She started the final round on Sunday in a four-way tie for the lead and unfortunately, she couldn’t sustain her momentum, but still finished T-4th.
While she is not at her peak right now, she is a player who has the kind of game that should do well at the US Open. Still, her record in the event is not great; she third in her second appearance in 2008 but in four starts since has not recorded a top ten.
Suzann Pettersen is one player who has been finishing great lately and has been a Top 10 machine. In her last eight starts, she has six Top 10s including five Top 3 finishes. If patience is a virtue, then Pettersen needs to be a virtuoso this weekend and channel every ounce of patience if she is to win. She is the kind of player that if she turns that switch on, is not turning it off until she raises the trophy.
Na Yeon Choi, is the defending champion and she certainly knows how to win this tournament. She has yet to win this season but she has collected enough good finishes for that not to make you think she can get her back-to-back win. She is one of the best putters on tour and that will come in handy this weekend.
So Yeon Ryu, along with Choi, are the last two winners of the Women’s U.S. Open. She has also been unable to win in 2013 but she has racked up five Top 5s, including her runner-up finish in a playoff last week in Arkansas to Inbee Park. Her consistency should ensure she is in the mix at least on Sunday afternoon.
Before Choi and Ryu, Paula Creamer was the winner in 2010. Shas not finished outside the Top 20 in her last 13 US Women’s Open starts and seems to thrive on the demanding layouts that the Women’s U.S. Open golf typically presents. Creamer does not win often on the LPGA, in fact she has not won since her US Open victory in 2010 but there have been plenty of good finishes and she along with Stacy Lewis and Cristie Kerr appear the best of the American hopes.
Kerr is another one of the tough uncompromising types that possesses the mindset necessary for success in the US Open. She won in 2007 and has been 3rd on two occasions since. The concern about Kerr is that she has withdrawn from a couple of events lately with an injury issue.
Australian Hall of Famer Karrie Webb is a two time winner of the event and a few weeks ago gave an indication while winning the Shoprite LPGA Classic that she is not far from where she needs to be to contend in this event. Webb has been able to tally several other good finishes this season and has moved back inside the Top 10 in the world.
The World’s top ranked amateur, Korean-born New Zealand resident phenom Lydia Ko, at 16-years-old is an amazing talent and is either fearless or naive enough to relish the big stage despite her relative lack of experience and age. She finished 39th on her debut in the event last year and has since gone on to win the Canadian Women’s Open and finished third at the Australian Women’s Open. She comes from finishing T-4th last week in Arkansas and could be a factor in the weekend.
TV Times
Jun 27 - ESPN2 3:00 PM-7:00 PM EST
Jun 28 - ESPN2 3:00 PM-7:00 PM EST
Jun 29 - NBC 3:00 PM-6:00 PM EST
Jun 30 - NBC 3:00 PM-6:00 PM EST
For a complete listing of the final pairings and tee times, click here.