2006 ShopRite LPGA Classic

Seon Hwa was one of several Korean players who got out to a strong start. Jeong Jang, Sung Ah Yim, Se Ri Pak and herself all started the TV coverage Friday at 4 under par. Hee-Won Han, who had won the previous week and who was paired with Annika, was not doing as well as that, but a birdie on the 11th hole moved her to 3 under and put her within shouting distance of the lead. They would soon be joined at 4 under by Mi Hyun Kim as well.

But Seon Hwa soon separated herself from the other Korean stars. She drained a 25 foot putt on the 11th hole for her third birdie in a row. That moved her to 6 under par. She hit a great pitch on 12 just past the hole, but could not make that birdie. But she would make par after leaving herself longish putts on the next few holes, then made bogey on 15 when her tee shot at this par 3 bounded over the green and she could not get it up and down. Thus, she was back down to 5 under par again.

While this was going on, Annika Sorenstam was making a charge. The Swedish superstar was in the midst of a rather long stretch of events without a win. Well, long by her standards, anyway: she had only won one tournament in 2006, the first one she had played in (where Seon Hwa had finished second). Her primary problem had been putting, but she had also been uncharacteristically inaccurate off the tee. This was not a problem on this day, however, and she made a short birdie on 13 and a longer one on 15 to move to 6 under herself. She would finish the day with an approach on the par 5 18th to inches for a tap in birdie. Her final score of 7 under par 64 would leave her tied for the lead. Not a welcoming sign for her opponents in the field.

But Seon Hwa didn't just cave in. She hit a gorgeous approach on 16 to three feet, then made the birdie to return to 6 under. She then parred out, finishing the day just one shot out of the lead. For the umpteenth time in 2006, she had put herself into the mix at a tournament.

Se Ri Pak had a pretty good start to her week as well. Her last few events, she had been gradually getting stronger and stronger. Only a balky putter had prevented her from gaining a top ten finish at the previous event, the Corning Classic. But she demonstrated all sorts of skill in the first round here. After starting on the back nine, she climbed to 4 under through the 6th hole. But she put herself into some pretty deep rough on the left side of that hole. Not to worry: she hit a truly awe inspiring iron from there to three feet (but then, unfortunately, missed the short birdie. Her putter was still acting up). It's doubtful that three or four other women in the entire league would have had the skill and strength to pull that shot off. That she was able to do it speaks volumes about how far she had progressed since the start of the year. On 7, she put her tee shot into the greenside bunker on the right. Her swing was impeded by fescue grass. Again, not a worry: she hit her bunker shot out, clanged the ball against the flag, and made the four foot par save. She would shoot a 68, leaving her at 3 under, tied for 22nd. This was one of her best starts of the year.

Other Koreans who did well on day one included Gloria Park, shooting a much needed 66 to remind herself of what she is capable of; Mi Hyun Kim, Jeong Jang and Sung Ah Yim, who all shot 67's; and Hee-Won Han, who finished the day at 69. Perhaps the most surprising result on this day was turned in by Aram Cho. Cho is a nonexempt Korean who has struggled to even get into fields in 2006, much less contend. She made it into this tournament via a Monday qualifier with a weird twist. She wound up in a playoff for the final spot in the field with Kelli Kuehne. Kuehne had a one foot par putt to prolong the playoff, but she missed it, handing the spot to Cho. Aram took advantage, shooting a 4 under par 67, her best round of the year, to get onto the leaderboard early. A good finish here would go a long way towards helping her gain an exempt card for 2007.

On Saturday, the weather was decidedly worse than it had been before. There would even be an hour long rain delay at one point during the round. Seon Hwa and Annika Sorenstam played together on this day, as they were two of the strongest players from the afternoon rounds on Friday, and now had to play a morning tee time together on Saturday. Seon Hwa had a good start to her day, getting to 9 under par by the halfway point of her round. Sorenstam and Ai Miyazato also were tied for the lead with Lee at that score. Gloria was at 6 under with several other players, while Se Ri and Kimmie were among those at 5 under. But Seon Hwa made a bogey on the tough 13th hole to fall back to 8 under. Despite her best efforts, she was not able to make another birdie for the rest of the day. But she didn't make any major mistakes, either, and wound up with a 69 and a two day total of 8 under par. The player who wound up with the best total on this day was fellow rookie Ai Miyazato. The Japanese star had been one of the rookies who did receive a lot of pre-season attention, yet to this point, Lee had been the superior player. After back to back 66's, however, Miyazato found herself at 10 under and in a great position to secure her first tour win before Lee. Lee had her work cut out for her to make sure that didn't happen.

In second place was none other than Annika. Although she had been a little more inconsistent on day 2, she was still solid, and wound up at 9 under after two rounds. Gloria Park and Jeong Jang finished at 6 under, four shots back.

Se Ri, meanwhile, had a second solid result. She followed her first round 68 with a 69, the first time all year she had had back to back rounds in the 60s. Kimmie also finished at 5 under. Although it looked like an uphill climb for Se Ri to win, she was in prime position to get her second top ten of the year.

On Sunday, Seon Hwa played with Patricia Meunier-Lebouc, while Annika and Miyazato were paired. Both of the latter got out to bad starts, with Annika hitting several shots into trouble early and paying for it. But Sorenstam managed to rally, and by the halfway point stood at 10 under. Miyazato, however, never got back on track and would wind up shooting a terrible 3 over par 74. She would have to wait until another day for her first win.

The surprising player early on was Sophie Gustafson. Playing well ahead of the final groups, she went on a tear early, making a birdie-eagle-birdie combo on her first few holes. By her 14th hole, she had climbed into the lead at 12 under. At that point, Seon Hwa and Sherri Steinhauer were at 11 under, Annika, Laura Diaz and Jeong Jang at 10 under, and Gloria Park among those at 9 under. Any one of those women could still win the event with a push. But of all those golfers, it would be Seon Hwa who would push the hardest. She made a birdie on 10, then followed that with a fifteen footer into the center of the cup on 11 to move to 12 under and a tie for the lead. Gustafson then hit her approach on 16 to 6 feet and drained her birdie to retake the solo lead at 13 under. Moments later, Seon Hwa hit her approach to about 15 feet on 12, and dunked that birdie to move back into a tie for the lead. Then, while Sophie missed a birdie chance on 17, Seon Hwa hit a great iron on 13 to a few feet, and dunked that for her fourth straight birdie. She was now at 14 under, and once again held a one shot lead.

While all this was going on, the other women in the field were not able to keep pace. Annika had looked ready to win after her Friday 64. But on this day, she made as many mistakes as good shots. She three putted 11 to fall back to 10 under. She also struggled to make par on 12. Seon Hwa now led her by 4. Jeong Jang was doing slightly better, making a birdie on 17 to move to 12 under. But it looked to be a case of too little, too late.

On the par 5 18th, Gustafson, one of the longest drivers on tour, hit a great tee shot and looked primed to reach the green in two. An eagle would certainly make life difficult for Seon Hwa. But Gustafson's second shot was terrible, hitting the grandstand on the right. Even after a free drop, she had an awkward pitch over weeds to the flag. She hit a pretty good third shot, considering, and left herself 8 feet for birdie. But she missed that, then botched a comebacker from two feet. Her bogey dropped her to 12 under, and suddenly, Seon Hwa had a two shot lead. The way she was playing, that might just be enough.

Annika was not making short putts, but the long ones were a different matter. She buried a 50 footer on 14 to move to 11 under. She was three shots back, but still had an outside shot at putting pressure on the rookie leader. But Lee was having none of that. She hit decent approaches on 15 and 16 and made routine pars. Her swing looked like perfection itself, and she showed absolutely no signs that she was going to make a mistake. If Annika, or anyone else, wanted the tournament, they would have to make birdies and catch the leader. But while Annika struggled to make par on 15, Seon Hwa hit a superlative tee shot on 17 to three feet and made the birdie to move to 15 under. She all but had the trophy in her hands.

Jeong Jang realized it, too. On 18, she nearly reached the green in two, then hit a wonderful 50 foot eagle putt to a foot for an easy birdie. Even her 7 under par 64 had not been enough to catch Lee on this day. So right after finishing at 13 under, JJ ran off the green to find some beer and champagne. She felt like she would need it for the victory celebration that was sure to come for her pal Seon Hwa.

Seon Hwa was not about to disappoint. Her drive on 18 was perfect, as was her layup. It was only as she prepared for her third shot that her caddie revealed to her that she had a two shot lead; up until then, amazingly, Lee had not been paying attention to anything but her next shot. That is the level of focus this rookie has. Somewhat surprised she was in the lead, Seon Hwa hit a great pitch from 40 yards that nearly went into the hole. She then drilled the six footer to end any doubt: no matter what anyone did, Seon Hwa Lee could not be caught. Seon Hwa Lee, in her fourth top two finish, at last had that elusive win! JJ had found the beer just in time, and greeted the stunned but happy youngster with a spray of liquid that she could wear on her body, but not legally drink. She couldn't have been more thrilled.

Her final round 63 was the best round of the tournament. That was impressive enough, but what really was amazing was that, at the halfway point on Sunday, half a dozen players could have been the winner. It was at this point that Seon Hwa had turned on the jets and left the other golfers in the dust. She had done it with one great shot after another: straight drives, accurate irons, and clutch putting. It was the kind of a performance you would expect out of a veteran, not a rookie. And it boded awfully well for Seon Hwa Lee, not just for her chances to win the Rookie of the Year, but for her career in general. One thing was definitely sure: they might not have been talking much about her at the start of the year, but she definitely had earned everyone's attention now!