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Post by HappyFan on Oct 7, 2021 2:38:39 GMT
Nelly Korda has a big lead in the Vare race, but... guess what? She will not play the minimum number of rounds (70) she needs to qualify. So she can't win it! Neither can #2 Inbee Park or #3 Jin Young Ko. In fact, the highest player on the list who can still win it is #4 Lydia Ko. In Gee Chun, who is 5th, is also eligible. That's right, we could end up with this award going down like in 2016! That year, In Gee edged out Lydia for the Vare on the final hole of the year. Lydia "leads" right now with an average of 69.738; In Gee is at 69.903. I don't think the next two, Leona Maguire and Hyo Joo Kim, can get enough events, either. All I can say is, GO IN GEE! Hey, why not?  |
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Post by don on Oct 7, 2021 17:09:45 GMT
Lydia could probably use that HOF point.
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Post by HappyFan on Oct 29, 2021 17:33:10 GMT
A new wrinkle. Lydia is skipping Pelican to play for the Saudis (!!!), meaning she will fall one round short of qualifying for the Vare Trophy: linkThat means In Gee is now IN THE LEAD for the Vare (!!). Go Dumbo! 1. That is crazy. Lydia, what are you thinking? 2. I did the math, and Lydia has 69 rounds RIGHT NOW. She is surely playing in the CME. Does that not count for Vare? Or does the team event not count (that makes sense, since the scores are not part of her average, but it does penalize players who go to that event, or the match play)? Or is Grant simply wrong? |
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Post by IceCat on Oct 29, 2021 21:14:32 GMT
The team event wouldn't count, nor would anything else not contested at individual stroke play. Think about that one for a moment: in a four ball round only one score for the team counts on each hole, and of course it isn't always the same player. If a player, say, plops a shot into a penalty area, effectively taking her out of the hole, then how would you calculate a total score for her afterwards? That's in addition to not being able to get an individual score from a foursomes format.
Kevin
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Post by HappyFan on Oct 29, 2021 23:43:01 GMT
I did say it makes sense vis-a-vis not counting a team score, but I also point out that it's not fair to a player who attends both of those events, in that she gets no credit towards the Vare round total for those. In essence, she has to attend two more events than others. Perhaps such a player could get "credited" for 4 rounds even if they don't count in her average?
Also not fair: they only canceled the Toto three weeks ago. If it had been Lydia's plan to finish her minimum rounds there, she got "toto"lly screwed. I think they need to come up with a way to credit everyone whenever an event get canceled (or give a player credit for rounds not played due to weather).
It's a seriously bad look when so many of the top player in an important category can't qualify due to a technicality. And this is the second straight year this happened...
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Post by philknj on Oct 29, 2021 23:50:20 GMT
They should have done what the JLPGA did: combine 2020 and 2021 into one season for awards ... heck, the LPGA sort of did that by freezing most of the priority list for two years.
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Post by don on Oct 31, 2021 7:22:21 GMT
The LPGA is always riding into a storm for no good reason.
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Post by legitimategolf on Oct 31, 2021 15:18:59 GMT
I scoured social media, to find any evidence of blowback from Lydia et al blowing off LPGA's tour championship to do business with Saudis. And there is practically none. So playing there is a shrewd move by Team Lydia. Might as well capitalize as long as golf remains in the dark ages. This situation can't last for much longer.
On the other hand you just never know. Given the growing obscurity of, and the public's indifference to women's golf, this sportswashing party may go on for a while. If I was LPGA brass I'd actually be very concerned, as their top players seemingly can't even get arrested, or canceled, or whatever. Very curious about the kind of money being paid. I bet it makes jaws drop.
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Post by legitimategolf on Oct 31, 2021 15:27:47 GMT
Ooh, this just in. Lydia to have cake and eat it too. And of course, hiding behind little girls always provides sufficient cover. I am so naive. This is a pretty safe cash grab for Team Lydia. Of course she will still probably get cornered by some reporter, probably a Euro, and have to pretend to not know the meaning of the word politics. golfweek.usatoday.com/2021/10/29/lydia-ko-lpga-commits-to-saudi-arabia-events-vare-trophy-ineligible/?itm_source=parsely-api“Being able to play in different countries around the world and inspire more young people and young girls especially into golf is something that I never take for granted,” Ko said. “I know the impact this event had with Saudi girls last year – with more than 1,000 signing up to learn to play – so it sounds like I’ll be playing in somewhere that’s really starting to fall in love with golf.” |
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Post by vanyogan on Oct 31, 2021 16:00:08 GMT
Ko Jin Young and Nelly may rue the day, it's a point and tour success is fleeting, it takes points to get in the Hall of Fame.
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Post by philknj on Oct 31, 2021 16:24:22 GMT
I'm a little confused. Doesn't the CME tournament count towards the accumulated 70+ rounds for the Vare Trophy? Maybe it does not anymore because it is no cut and a small field? That makes no sense ... CME sure counted in 2016 when Dumbo won it there. That's probably why The Old Ko thought she could skip Pelican. Now she's playing Pelican and I think Daniela Darquea got kicked back to the curb.
Ko's LPGA stats say she has played 69 rounds this year, but the Nichols article says 65 "official" rounds. Ok, I just figured it out ... Sura must have been including Dow Great Lakes, which would get her to 69 rounds, but that was a team event, so you have to exclude it for Vare.
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Post by HappyFan on Oct 31, 2021 16:33:42 GMT
Jin Young will have 67 rounds this year if she plays Pelican and CME. Two of her events this year were rain shortened, so that's 69, and she went to the match play which didn't count. She also missed a cut. If she had planned to attend Toto (she was already in Korea), that would have gotten her over the top.
As I say, they need to write into the rules what happens if there are cancelations. These women shouldn't have to schedule 90 rounds to make sure they get 70. There should be some minimum, but based on what happened, it seems it is too high.
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Post by HappyFan on Oct 31, 2021 16:34:56 GMT
I'm a little confused. Doesn't the CME tournament count towards the accumulated 70+ rounds for the Vare Trophy? Maybe it does not anymore because it is no cut and a small field? That makes no sense ... CME sure counted in 2016 when Dumbo won it there. That's probably why The Old Ko thought she could skip Pelican. Now she's playing Pelican and I think Daniela Darquea got kicked back to the curb. Ko's LPGA stats say she has played 69 rounds this year, but the Nichols article says 65 "official" rounds. Ok, I just figured it out ... Sura must have been including Dow Great Lakes, which would get her to 69 rounds, but that was a team event, so you have to exclude it for Vare.
Yes, that includes the team event, which doesn't count towards Vare. |
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Post by jumpcut on Oct 31, 2021 16:38:50 GMT
Now she's playing Pelican and I think Daniela Darquea got kicked back to the curb. What a clusterfuck. Now what about all those 1,000 Saudi girls she'll be disappointing who were just "starting to fall in love with golf?” |
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Post by philknj on Oct 31, 2021 16:58:06 GMT
Now she's playing Pelican and I think Daniela Darquea got kicked back to the curb. What a clusterfuck. Now what about all those 1,000 Saudi girls she'll be disappointing who were just "starting to fall in love with golf?”
The Old Ko will be there one week instead of two ... she is playing this week's Aramco Saudi Ladies International Presented by Public Investment Fund. She'll miss out on playing with "His Excellency" at the Aramco Team Series - Jeddah the following week. Btw, America's Guest, Nat Nat, will be the KSA's guest at Aramco.
Speaking of the LET, there are eight invitee openings for the Andalucia Open de España (11/25 -11/28).
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