Na Yeon Choi, 2011 Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia Winner
Since Se Ri Pak blazed the trail for Korean success on the LPGA in her 1998 rookie season with 4 wins, including 2 Majors, the face of the world’s premier women’s golf tour has never been the same. Sure, there had been Korean players before Se Ri. Ok-Hee Ku, for example, won the 1988 Standard Register Turquoise Classic (later called the Safeway International, the J Golf Phoenix International, among other names). However, it was Se Ri’s success, specifically starting with her win at the 1998 US Women’s Open, a tournament broadcast on all three major Korean networks, that started the wave of Seoul Sisters landing on American shores to show the world their phenomenal skills. Now, in 2011, we had the pleasure of seeing one of “Se Ri’s Kids”, Na Yeon Choi, earn the honor of posting the 100th win by a player of Korean descent on the LPGA Tour by emerging victorious at the 2011 Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia. The 2010 money list champion and Vare Trophy winner turned around recent bridesmaid finishes by holding off the charging Yani Tseng in the final round for a 1 shot victory at 15-under. Fittingly, the next highest finishing Seoul Sister was Se Ri Pak herself in solo 4th place.
It looked at various times like it was not to be. NYC started with an early double bogey on the par 4 2nd hole. At times in her career, it has seemed that nerves have had the best of her. Once she fell behind Brittany Lang, and with Yani making a final round surge, it looked as though another tournament might slip through Na Yeon’s fingers. Although she picked up birdies on 6 and 8 to nullify the double, even par on this course isn’t going to get it done. While NYC was even par for the final round through 11 holes, her closest two competitors were turning up the heat. Brittany Lang was threatening to secure her first victory by coming out at 2-under for her first 11, while golf uber-virtuoso Yani Tseng was at 4-under through 11, on her way to a 6-under round and 14-under overall. It looked like another collapse for NYC.
Not so fast. NYC did admit to being nervous on the back 9 after the final round, especially hearing Yani’s birdies. But Na Yeon responded like a champion, nailing 3 birdies, including both par 3s, in a six hole span between holes 12 and 17. Her 15-under overall tally would be enough to best Yani. Meanwhile, it was the hard-luck Brittany Lang, still looking for LPGA win #1, who would collapse coming in. After playing the first 12 holes at 2-under, lifting her overall score to 13-under, she fell apart, playing the final 6 holes at 4-over, including 3 bogeys, 1 double bogey and 1 birdie. I was pulling for either NYC or Se Ri to win, but I don’t want to see a player unravel like Brittany did; especially Brittany, whom I would greatly like to see get win #1. On this day, however, it would be win LPGA win #5 for Na Yeon Choi. More importantly, to fans of the Seoul Sisters worldwide, it was win #100 to continue the narrative of phenomenal Korean success on the greatest women’s golf tour in the world.
NA YEON CHOI
SE RI PAK
BRITTANY LANG
YANI TSENG
MICHELLE WIE
AI MIYAZATO
ANNA NORDQVIST
AZAHARA MUNOZ
PAULA CREAMER
SUZANN PETTERSEN
CHRISTEL BOELJON
ANGELA STANFORD
IN KYUNG KIM
SANDRA GAL
DEWI CLAIRE SCHREEFEL
AMANDA BLUMENHERST
CAROLINE HEDWALL
PAIGE MACKENZIE
NATALIE GULBIS
AMY YANG
JIYAI SHIN
| POS | START | CNTRY | PLAYER | TO PAR | THRU | TODAY | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | TOTAL | MONEY | |
 |
1 | 1 |  |
CHOI, Na Yeon | -15 | F | -3 | 66 | 68 | 67 | 68 | 269 | $285,000 |
|
2 | T4 |  |
TSENG, Yani | -14 | F | -6 | 69 | 67 | 69 | 65 | 270 | $176,791 |
|
3 | 3 |  |
MUNOZ, Azahara | -12 | F | -2 | 67 | 68 | 68 | 69 | 272 | $128,250 |
|
4 | T4 | |
PAK, Se Ri | -10 | F | -2 | 72 | 68 | 65 | 69 | 274 | $99,211 |
|
T5 | T4 |  |
LEWIS, Stacy | -9 | F | -1 | 68 | 65 | 72 | 70 | 275 | $72,594 |
|
T5 | 2 | |
LANG, Brittany | -9 | F | +2 | 66 | 67 | 69 | 73 | 275 | $72,594 |
|
T7 | T12 | |
STANFORD, Angela | -7 | F | -4 | 71 | 71 | 68 | 67 | 277 | $51,300 |
|
T7 | 7 |  |
PETTERSEN, Suzann | -7 | F | E | 68 | 69 | 69 | 71 | 277 | $51,300 |
|
T9 | T19 |  |
BOELJON, Christel | -6 | F | -5 | 68 | 73 | 71 | 66 | 278 | $38,112 |
|
T9 | T15 |  |
FENG, Shanshan | -6 | F | -4 | 68 | 73 | 70 | 67 | 278 | $38,112 |
| Download the new LPGA iPhone and iPod touch App in the App Store >> | |||||||||||||
|
T9 | T12 | |
BLUMENHERST, Amanda | -6 | F | -3 | 70 | 69 | 71 | 68 | 278 | $38,112 |
|
T9 | T8 | |
CREAMER, Paula | -6 | F | E | 71 | 67 | 69 | 71 | 278 | $38,112 |
|
T13 | T19 | |
SHIN, Jiyai | -5 | F | -4 | 70 | 69 | 73 | 67 | 279 | $30,779 |
|
T13 | 10 | |
KIM, I.K. | -5 | F | E | 68 | 68 | 72 | 71 | 279 | $30,779 |
|
T15 | T28 |  |
HJORTH, Maria | -4 | F | -4 | 66 | 76 | 71 | 67 | 280 | $26,585 |
|
T15 | T19 | |
YANG, Amy | -4 | F | -3 | 69 | 69 | 74 | 68 | 280 | $26,585 |
|
T15 | T15 | |
NORDQVIST, Anna | -4 | F | -2 | 79 | 67 | 65 | 69 | 280 | $26,585 |
|
T18 | T19 | |
CHOI, Chella | -2 | F | -1 | 74 | 70 | 68 | 70 | 282 | $22,301 |
|
T18 | T19 | |
KUNG, Candie | -2 | F | -1 | 70 | 76 | 66 | 70 | 282 | $22,301 |
|
T18 | T15 |  |
REID, Melissa | -2 | F | E | 72 | 71 | 68 | 71 | 282 | $22,301 |
|
T18 | T12 | |
SCHREEFEL, Dewi Claire | -2 | F | +1 | 66 | 68 | 76 | 72 | 282 | $22,301 |
|
T18 | T8 | |
WIE, Michelle | -2 | F | +4 | 68 | 68 | 71 | 75 | 282 | $22,301 |
|
T23 | T39 | |
HARIGAE, Mina | -1 | F | -3 | 74 | 70 | 71 | 68 | 283 | $19,197 |
|
T23 | T28 |  |
MIYAZATO, Mika | -1 | F | -1 | 74 | 70 | 69 | 70 | 283 | $19,197 |
|
T23 | T28 | |
SHIN, Jenny | -1 | F | -1 | 71 | 71 | 71 | 70 | 283 | $19,197 |
| LPGA Pro Shop: Think Pink | |||||||||||||
|
T26 | T39 | |
KIM, Christina | E | F | -2 | 75 | 69 | 71 | 69 | 284 | $16,164 |
|
T26 | T34 | |
FUTCHER, Katie | E | F | -1 | 69 | 70 | 75 | 70 | 284 | $16,164 |
|
T26 | T34 | |
PRESSEL, Morgan | E | F | -1 | 71 | 71 | 72 | 70 | 284 | $16,164 |
|
T26 | T28 | |
KIM, Mi Hyun | E | F | E | 72 | 70 | 71 | 71 | 284 | $16,164 |
|
T26 | T19 | |
GULBIS, Natalie | E | F | +1 | 71 | 71 | 70 | 72 | 284 | $16,164 |
|
T26 | T19 |  |
GRANADA, Julieta | E | F | +1 | 70 | 71 | 71 | 72 | 284 | $16,164 |
|
T32 | T39 |  |
MATTHEW, Catriona | +1 | F | -1 | 70 | 69 | 76 | 70 | 285 | $12,680 |
|
T32 | T28 | |
YOO, Sun Young | +1 | F | +1 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 72 | 285 | $12,680 |
|
T32 | T19 | |
MACKENZIE, Paige | +1 | F | +2 | 67 | 74 | 71 | 73 | 285 | $12,680 |
|
T32 | T19 | |
MIYAZATO, Ai | +1 | F | +2 | 72 | 68 | 72 | 73 | 285 | $12,680 |
|
T32 | T15 | |
HEDWALL, Caroline | +1 | F | +3 | 72 | 70 | 69 | 74 | 285 | $12,680 |
|
T32 | 11 |  |
GAL, Sandra | +1 | F | +5 | 72 | 70 | 67 | 76 | 285 | $12,680 |
|
T38 | 55 | |
KERR, Cristie | +2 | F | -4 | 72 | 72 | 75 | 67 | 286 | $10,284 |
|
T38 | T46 | |
LEE, Meena | +2 | F | -2 | 74 | 70 | 73 | 69 | 286 | $10,284 |
|
T38 | T34 | |
SONG, Jennifer | +2 | F | +1 | 74 | 67 | 73 | 72 | 286 | $10,284 |
|
T38 | T34 | |
UEDA, Momoko | +2 | F | +1 | 71 | 72 | 71 | 72 | 286 | $10,284 |
|
T42 | T52 | |
PARK, Hee Young | +3 | F | -2 | 74 | 71 | 73 | 69 | 287 | $8,905 |
|
T42 | T46 |  |
WEBB, Karrie | +3 | F | -1 | 74 | 72 | 71 | 70 | 287 | $8,905 |
|
T42 | T42 | |
LINCICOME, Brittany | +3 | F | E | 75 | 68 | 73 | 71 | 287 | $8,905 |
|
45 | T34 | |
BONDAD, Frances | +4 | F | +3 | 70 | 73 | 71 | 74 | 288 | $8,227 |
|
T46 | T52 |  |
DAVIES, Laura | +5 | F | E | 74 | 72 | 72 | 71 | 289 | $7,646 |
|
T46 | T42 |  |
PHATLUM, Pornanong | +5 | F | +2 | 73 | 74 | 69 | 73 | 289 | $7,646 |
|
T46 | T28 | |
JI, Eun-Hee | +5 | F | +5 | 72 | 69 | 72 | 76 | 289 | $7,646 |
|
49 | T56 | |
STUPPLES, Karen | +6 | F | -1 | 74 | 73 | 73 | 70 | 290 | $7,065 |
|
T50 | T46 | |
HURST, Pat | +7 | F | +3 | 74 | 69 | 74 | 74 | 291 | $6,485 |
|
T50 | T46 | |
LACROSSE, Cindy | +7 | F | +3 | 74 | 71 | 72 | 74 | 291 | $6,485 |
|
T50 | T42 | |
KANG, Jimin | +7 | F | +4 | 69 | 72 | 75 | 75 | 291 | $6,485 |
|
T50 | T42 | |
WARD, Wendy | +7 | F | +4 | 77 | 68 | 71 | 75 | 291 | $6,485 |
|
T54 | T52 | |
GUSTAFSON, Sophie | +8 | F | +3 | 69 | 77 | 72 | 74 | 292 | $5,807 |
|
T54 | T46 | |
HUNG, Amy | +8 | F | +4 | 72 | 69 | 76 | 75 | 292 | $5,807 |
|
T54 | T46 | |
KIM, Mindy | +8 | F | +4 | 69 | 73 | 75 | 75 | 292 | $5,807 |
|
57 | T58 | |
RECARI, Beatriz | +9 | F | +1 | 73 | 73 | 75 | 72 | 293 | $5,421 |
|
58 | T58 | |
BAE, Kyeong | +10 | F | +2 | 75 | 76 | 70 | 73 | 294 | $5,226 |
|
T59 | 63 | |
PILLER, Gerina | +11 | F | +1 | 75 | 70 | 78 | 72 | 295 | $4,872 |
|
T59 | 62 | |
MCPHERSON, Kristy | +11 | F | +2 | 73 | 78 | 71 | 73 | 295 | $4,872 |
|
T59 | T56 | |
HURST, Vicky | +11 | F | +4 | 76 | 74 | 70 | 75 | 295 | $4,872 |
|
T62 | T67 | |
HAN, Hee-Won | +12 | F | -2 | 75 | 74 | 78 | 69 | 296 | $4,549 |
|
T62 | 66 | |
INKSTER, Juli | +12 | F | -1 | 76 | 75 | 75 | 70 | 296 | $4,549 |
|
T62 | T58 | |
CHUTICHAI, Porani | +12 | F | +4 | 75 | 72 | 74 | 75 | 296 | $4,549 |
|
T65 | 64 |  |
*TAN, Kelly | +13 | F | +2 | 77 | 73 | 74 | 73 | 297 | |
|
T65 | T58 | |
HULL, Katherine | +13 | F | +5 | 76 | 72 | 73 | 76 | 297 | $4,355 |
|
67 | 65 | |
*PAN, Aretha | +14 | F | +2 | 75 | 76 | 74 | 73 | 298 | |
|
68 | T70 | |
KONGKIATKRAI, Tanaporn | +19 | F | -1 | 80 | 76 | 77 | 70 | 303 | $4,259 |
|
T69 | 69 | |
O’TOOLE, Ryann | +21 | F | +3 | 82 | 75 | 74 | 74 | 305 | $4,114 |
|
T69 | T67 | |
CHUA, Jean | +21 | F | +7 | 76 | 78 | 73 | 78 | 305 | $4,114 |
|
T71 | 72 | |
JOH, Tiffany | +25 | F | +2 | 80 | 77 | 79 | 73 | 309 | $3,920 |
|
T71 | T70 | |
JOHANI, Ainil | +25 | F | +5 | 76 | 80 | 77 | 76 | 309 | $3,920 |
Fairways and Forehands 
Pingback: 2011 Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia - LPGA Tour Forum