LPGA Update

The next event was the John Q. Hammons Hotel Classic, held from September 8th - 10th in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In fact, this has not been an event with a history of Korean success. The only Korean to ever win it was Gloria Park, who came from seemingly nowhere to capture the crown in 2001. This year, very few of the top Koreans appeared in the field, so it seemed unlikely that a Korean golfer was going to win. The most promising contenders were Hee-Won Han and Meena Lee, but both of those ladies had been in mini-slumps the past few months. The only top Korean rookie present was Sun Young Yoo, who had never finished in the top five before.

Round one proved to be a hearty disappointment for the Koreans. Hee-Won Han, Meena Lee and Aree Song were the top finishers after this round, and even they could only manage a one under par round that left them tied for 13th. The leader was Annika Sorenstam, who had won the event several times in the past. She produced a 7 under par 65 in the first round.

By the middle of Saturday's round, the Koreans were effectively eliminated from contention. Cristie Kerr had risen to 11 under, with Annika right behind her at 10 under. The best any Korean could do was 3 under by Meena Lee. Rookie Sun Young Yoo (pictured) had also risen to 2 under, a tie for 11th at that time. But Hee-Won Han shot a one over par round to fade to 21st.

Perhaps the sole ray of sunshine for the contingent was the performance of Hana Kim. Kim has struggled since turning pro in 2005, and in fact had never finished in the top 30 until recently. But the last few tournaments showed her gaining confidence in her abilities. She collected her career best finish at the Safeway Classic, a 25th. Here at the Hammons, she was doing quite well after two rounds. After a one over par first round, she shot a one under par 70 in round two, and now sat tied for 21st. With a little luck, her first top 20, or even her first top ten, were in her reach. Alas, at this point in the season, she would have needed a top five to get enough money to secure an exempt card. But any good finish was bound to help her confidence.

In the final round, the Koreans, as expected, were not much of a factor in determining the winner, but they did manage to rally somewhat to produce some good results. Sun Young Yoo was the most impressive on this day. She made two birdies on the front nine, then followed that up with birdies on 14 and 15 to move to 6 under total. Even a late bogey on 17 didn't sour things completely: her final score of 5 under was good enough for a tie for 5th, her career best finish. Meena Lee (pictured) also started off great, going three under on the front nine, but she struggled on the back, making two bogies and no birdies. Still, she finished at 4 under, another top ten for her.

Best of all, Hana Kim took advantage of her situation and had a great final round. She, too, was two under on the front nine, with two birdies and no bogies. On the back she had a bogey and birdie and finished with her best round of the week, a 69. That moved her total to 2 under, which gave her a career best finish of 17th. She was just two shots out of a top ten.