Flashback - 2005 HSBC Match Play: Diaz screams & Koch steams

************

Round 1 is history for the first LPGA event I’ve ever attended, so let’s get into it.

I got there a little late, but seeing Shi Hyun Ahn walk out of the clubhouse made me forget about that.  The pictures don’t lie – she’s a knockout!

The first pair I saw tee off was the 5th match, Candie Kung vs. Candy Hannemann.  They had “SWEET” swings! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist).

This Willie Wonka match didn’t interest me, so I walked ahead to catch up to the next pair, Grace Park and Michele Redman, on the 2nd hole.  Here’s a case where the seedings are absurd. Redman(28) is rated higher than Grace(37)! Are you kidding?

While we’re on this subject, how does an amateur from Japan (Shinobu Moromizato) get # 20?  It’s a little premature to give Birdie Kim # 6.  She could be another Hilary Lunke.  Candie Kung is a little high at # 8.  Natalie Gulbis has never won and gets # 5!  Fortunately, seedings mean zilch when a match starts.

I followed Grace for about three holes.  She was swinging well. Number 3 is a par 3, playing about 170.  She put it right over the flagstick, but left her putt short.  That could be expected, as we had heavy rain on Wednesday.  In fact, they were playing lift, clean, and place on the fairways.  Grace was down 1 when I left her match, but she won later.

I moved up to the next match, Natalie Gulbis vs. Marisa Baena, and followed them for a couple of holes.  I didn’t see Ben Roethlisberger following this pair. At 6-5, 240 lbs., he’d be hard to miss.  I had never seen Baena before...more on her later.

By the way, some of the pairs had local police officers following them to each hole.  Is this normal with the LPGA? Is this really necessary?

I decided to head to the clubhouse area between the 9th and 10th holes.  Mi Hyun Kim was one of many practicing pitching and putting.  However, she would stop to observe the third shots on the par 5 9th.  One of those approach shots was by Jimin Kang, who put some Greg Norman-like backspin on it (at least ten feet worth).  Grace did the same later.

I went to # 10 to check out the drives.  Of particular interest was the Birdie Kim/Sophie Gustafson pair.  Birdie’s up by one and goes first.  She hits a slight fade that splits the fairway (well, Johnny Miller did say faders win U.S. Opens).  Then Sophie, who is built to pull down rebounds or spike volleyballs, hits a humongous draw that disappears over the hill.

Ahn and Karine Icher are next, so I decide to follow them for some of the back nine.  Ahn was ahead and stayed there, but I broke away before they finished to watch some drama unfold elsewhere.

Jimin Kang was one down against Pat Hurst, heading to the 18th, a par 4.  Both hit the fairway off the tee.  Kang is on the far left side and hits first.  I’m over 50 yards away on the other side and hear a thud when her swing connects.  I’m guessing it was a fat shot and probably was, since she’s short of the green.  Hurst’s shot is maybe 10 feet from the pin.  Realistically, Kang had to chip in from long distance to save the match.  She didn’t make it, but at least it wasn’t short.

Kang looked really down after the match.  She did a lot of walking and talking with her caddie.  At one point, the caddie took both of her hands in his and raised them to waist-level, trying to boost her, I guess.

I return to the clubhouse area.  Some new players are on the practice green.  Annika and Carin Koch are cracking each other up in Swedish.  Soo-Yun Kang is the resident fashion plate.  Joo Mi Kim has a large birthmark(?) on her right calf with a 10+-stitch scar in the middle of it.  Christina Kim carries her own bag onto the green.  Is she nuts?  What if she pulls a muscle lugging that thing?

I made a couple of very brief trips to the driving range.  It’s the least interesting activity to view at a golf tournament.

I returned to the 10th for some more tee shots.  Yes, Laura Davies can really drive a ball off a clump of sod.  She murdered it, right down the middle.  As for the rest of her day, it must have been bad as Kim Saiki beat her by the biggest margin of the day, 6 & 4.

When Se Ri Pak showed up at # 10 with Rachel H., I decided to follow this group.  Se Ri was one up.  However, both players had a conversation in the tee box, which prompted them to call for a rules official (none was around).  I asked someone what it was about.  He said they weren’t sure who was supposed to tee off first!  WHAT?!!!  Even I know it would have to be the player who last won a hole.  How could they not know or forget?!  There must have been some additional complication that we weren’t aware of.  The wait for the official was taking forever, so I decided to take off.  (NOTE: The next day’s newspaper said it was about whether or not someone putted out of order on the 9th hole.  No penalty was assessed).

Wendy Doolan was on the practice green, following her win over Rosie Jones in the first match.  Picture this drill:  She’s in her putting stance, looking down.  Her caddie is squatting behind her line, pointing a club shaft to the hole about a foot over the green.  Doolan swings her putter so that its shaft is in contact with the other club’s shaft.  She makes one four-footer after the other.  When finished, she looks up at me and I see she has a piece of paper or a ticket wedged under her visor, blocking the vision of her left eye!  I guess it must work.

Several winning players would later return to the practice range or green for more work.  I didn’t recognize one Asian girl on the range.  A caddie was nearby.  I asked him “Who’s that?”  He said she was an ‘alternate’ getting in some practice.  I couldn’t imagine any of the 64 regulars dropping out unless both arms and legs were broken.

My plan was start at the 18th hole and walk back to the 14th, where they had food and restrooms.  Near the 18th green, M. Baena was holding court with several reporters.  She talked about changing swing coaches in mid-year, about what it means to re-tool your game, about how you risk getting worse so that you improve later, about her prior match play experience (lost to K. Kuehne in U.S. Amateur finals), about beating Natalie Gulbis, etc.  She talked so much that when it was over, one reporter turned to another and said, “I can go home now” – and it was only lunchtime!

Then Birdie and Sophie arrive at the 18th tee all-square.  Birdie hits her little fade and Sophie hammers her big draw.  I counted about 50 paces between their drives.  Birdie’s next shot with a wood is short, while Sophie sticks an iron to about two feet.  Realistically, Birdie’s got to chip it in, but she leaves it ten feet short!  Her quota of miracles was met last week.  She rolls in her next one for par, but it won’t matter as Sophie birdies to beat Birdie!

The 14th hole area was a good convergence of several holes for spectators.  MHK and Meg Mallon approach the 14th, a par 5, 500 yds.  Kimmee’s up by 4, so maybe it will end here.  Peanut out drives Mallon, but neither try to get there in two.  Meg’s third is all over the stick and rolls in for an EAGLE!!!  Her caddie said the yardage was 97.

Kimmee, up by three, out drives her again on the short par 4 15th, but both make birdie.  The match ends on the 16th.  Separate carts drive the participants back to the clubhouse.  Kimmee squeezes into the middle of the front seat, so her Mother(?) can ride with her.

More drama on the 17th, a downhill par 3:  Julie Inkster is up by two against Sung Ah Yim.  Julie sticks it two feet from the pin.  Yim ends up about 20+ feet away.  Stick a fork in this match.  By the way, Yim was wearing a black shirt with the word SPORTS in large white letters across the back of her shoulders.  It looks like obtuse advertising to me.  I don’t recall what else was on her shirt.

Next up is Laura Diaz, who is one down against Ai Miyazato, as they approached the 17th.  I was now at a different hole, so I could only see the tee box.  Diaz’s tee shot is followed by her own very loud commentary:  “NO! GOD! GOD! GOD!”  Then she takes her club and tries to jam it headfirst into the turf three times.

I make my last trip to the 17th tee to see Pak and Rachel H.  Se Ri is now down by one, and the next two holes symbolized her present golf game.  I don’t remember who hit first, but Rachel was 30 feet from the pin.  Se Ri takes her swing and immediately lets go of the club on the follow-through.  She’s about 10 yards short of the green.  But, Se Ri makes a great chip to set up a par and halve the hole.

On the 18th (par 4), Se Ri misses the fairway to the right.  She pulls out a wood and blasts a low bullet that nearly clears the greenside bunker.  The lie must have been bad, because her sand shot came out almost completely vertical, landing about 10 feet from the pin.  She two-putted for five.  Even in loss, she was popular with reporters.  I don’t think anyone interviewed Rachel.

Another tight match has arrived at the 17th all-square.  It’s Carin Koch vs. Silvia Cavalleri.  Carin leaves her putt short and let’s out a yell.  She walks up and quickly rattles in her next putt.  Silvia says something and Carin says “Thank you”.  Perhaps, Silvia said she had already conceded her that short putt.  They halve the hole, but Carin, still steamed, gave her putter a hard bounce off the ground after walking off the green.  Number 18 and Number 1 are halved, so we go to Number 2, a par 5.

I’m one of about four total spectators as Koch out drives Cavalleri, but her ball disappears in the left rough just off the fairway.  Silvia hits a perfect lay-up from the fairway.  Carin pulls out a wood, which seemed pretty aggressive to me.  There’s a huge bunker in the middle of the fairway, which could catch a miss-hit.  It turned out worse than that.  She hit a thirty-yard grounder that remained in the rough.  Her next was an iron that set up her fourth to the green, which she two-putted.  Silvia got a birdie I think.

As usual, there are carts to take the players back to the clubhouse.  But, Carin starts walking back down the fairway, giving her putter another slam dunk.  I hitched a ride with a rules official, while Carin re-walked the 2nd and 1st holes, probably replaying in her mind every lousy shot that day.

My legs were gone, so that ride I took was welcomed.  I wish I had seen a few more players, particularly Nicole Perrot, but you can’t be everywhere at once.  An event like this was long overdue.  Has anyone heard if it will be rotated to other courses in the future?  I hope they keep it at Hamilton Farm.

On the way home, I made a pit stop at the mall where I think I passed Hee Won Han and Birdie Kim among a group of Koreans on the escalator (the Marriott nearby was serving many players this week).  I’ll bet Birdie is springing for dinner a lot these days.

***********