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Post by HappyFan on Nov 28, 2023 3:15:17 GMT
Don't forget that this week is the Australian Open! Scheduled to take place November 30 - December 3, this event combines the men's and women's opens, which means 80% of the TV coverage will focus on the men. So besides Min Woo and Minjee Lee, are there any other good Korean storylines? Main page: Aussie OpenWell, Godiva Kim qualified today. That could be interesting; she either plays in the nude on a horse or really likes chocolate.  Last year, you may recall that Grace Kim had the lead going into the final hole but made a crushing double and handed the event to Ashley Buhai, who seemed to make a habit of winning national championships last season. Well, Grace is back to see if she can avenge that loss. The big name in the field for the Koreans is Jiyai Shin, who really, really wants to get another of these. She came close last year, second behind Buhai. As a consolation prize, she won the Vic Open, also in Australia, not long after. Still looking for the full field on their useless website... |
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Post by HappyFan on Nov 28, 2023 3:18:06 GMT
OK, here is the full fieldNotables: Jenny Shin (listed as 'USA') Jiyai Shin Amateurs: Thailand's Eila Galitsky Korean Aussies: Minjee Lee Grace Kim Soo Jin Lee Stephanie Na Sarah Oh (not the former pro) No Min Sol Kim or other Korean amateurs, and the only other Korean pro is Na Yeon Eum, whoever she is. Not a thrilling group, but Jiyai, Grace, Jenny and Minjee is a decent foursome. I always like it when a KLPGA starlet comes over, though, and it looks like that didn't happen... It's listed as on NBC (I'm guessing that means Golf Channel) at 8 PM ET (10 PM on Saturday) starting November 29th.
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Post by fanofseri on Nov 30, 2023 5:47:45 GMT
I've never seen a bigger bunch of losers than the men trying to win this tournament. They are slobs wearing white pants and shirts that Marshall's would be embarrassed to sell. Meanwhile, Jenny Shin looks like 10 million dollars.
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Post by bullfinch on Nov 30, 2023 8:43:55 GMT
There's one amateur that's done really well otherwise it's a case of the cream rising to the top again. LPGA pros dominate the top of the leaderboard and Jenny's switch to being an American is definitely paying off! I guess the Aussies can't cope with 2 J Shin's from Korea on the leaderboard so Jenny is an American this week.
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Post by HappyFan on Nov 30, 2023 14:52:44 GMT
Yeah, I realize it probably helps the women to be seen with the men, exposing them to an audience that would otherwise ignore them. But on the other hand, this is their most important Aussie showcase each year and they end up seeming like a sideshow. I don't have a stopwatch, but it sure feels like the men get a lot more coverage, at least in round one they did. And I agree, with just a few exceptions, the guys are a scraggly bunch. The women own them in terms of professional presentation and tee to green excellence. Do the guys ever hit the fairway? Do they even need to? Anyways, round one was pretty much as good a start as I could have asked for. Jiyai managed to avoid the deluge and set herself up as the morning leader at 5 under. Rachel Lee is an Aussie Korean 16-year-old who had the thrill of her life when she played a practice round with her idol Jiyai a few days ago, then today goes out and beats her to take the lead (!). And some of her round was finished in the pouring rain. Jenny Shin looked all-world. She shot a 66, no bogies, and left some stuff out there. Even when she missed the green she nearly holed out. I love Jiyai, but it would help Jenny more if she somehow got the win. Grace Kim was the most dicey of the major Sisters, but she still notched a top ten finish. But watch out for Minjee Lee. I have a feeling she is on a mission to finally win her national title. Hwaiting!  |
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Post by HappyFan on Nov 30, 2023 15:29:41 GMT
Round 1 scores (note that there are two courses, one a par 71 and the other a par 72):
T1 Rachel Lee (A) -6 67
- Jenny Shin -6 66
3 Jiyai Shin -5 68
T4 Ashley Buhai -4 68
- Kyriacou S. -4 69
T6 Minjee Lee -3 70
- Scaysbrook E. (A) -3 70
- Sukapan B. -3 69
T9 Hammett S. -2 71
- Grace Kim -2 70
Notables:
T23 Galitsky E. (A) +1 74
T23 Oh Sarah +1 74
T51 Eum N. +4 77 (world ranking: 992!)
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Post by SoYeonFan on Nov 30, 2023 18:39:05 GMT
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Post by HappyFan on Nov 30, 2023 18:52:40 GMT
Interview with the first round co-leader. She nearly missed her tee time until her coach reminded her to high tail it to the first tee!
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Post by HappyFan on Dec 1, 2023 15:52:06 GMT
Min Woo Lee electrified the crowd with a massive run to take a three shot lead. He can't seem to keep his ball out of the woods, but it doesn't seem to matter on this course.
Meanwhile, on the ladies side, slow and steady Jiyai Shin has moved into a two-shot lead over Buhai. Jenny Shin played in the morning but only shot an even par round and is having a little tizzy about it on Twitter. Basically, she keeps complaining about being jet lagged. She is a bit of a headcase but she's fun to follow. Oh, and she gave an interview after her round and TOTALLY used her Aussie accent. I couldn't believe it. I don't think the guy interviewing her had any idea that that wasn't her normal voice. Hilarious. I'll see if I can find it.
Rachel Lee had an interesting front nine, bogies, birdies, but she stayed at or near the lead. Then on the back... disaster, plunged all the way down to t-19th. A good learning experience for her, that's for sure. Meanwhile, there are amateurs all over the leaderboard.
1 Jiyai Shin -9 68-68 136
2 Buhai A. -7 68-70 138
3 Jenny Shin -6 66-73 139
4 Bosio J. (A) -4 72-69 141
T5 Hammett S. (A) -3 71-71 142
- Peirce C. (A) -3 73-69 142
7 Grace Kim -2 70-73 143
T8 Kobori M. -1 72-72 144
- Kyriacou S. -1 69-75 144
- Porter C. (A) -1 72-72 144
Notables:
T11 Galitsky E. (A) Even 74-71 145
- Hannah Green Even 72-73 145
- Minjee Lee Even 70-75 145
T19 Rachel Lee (A) +1 67-79 146
T27 Oh Sarah +3 74-74 148
T41 Eum N. +6 77-74 151
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Post by HappyFan on Dec 1, 2023 18:15:02 GMT
On the broadcast they mentioned how there was a pre-event press conference featuring Aaron Baddely and Jiyai Shin that was supposedly a riot. Trying to locate it now, ought to be fun to see.
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Post by HappyFan on Dec 2, 2023 6:49:46 GMT
Man, this has been a terrible day for the Sisters so far. Buhai made four straight birdies to start including a hole out from a bunker. Jiyai had several lipouts, then a double. Everything went wrong basically for the Koreans. At that point I gave up for today.
This isn't over yet. Jiyai is currently 3 back with a hole to go. If she just hangs in there and can activate Final Round Queen Power tomorrow, she could still win this. Gotta say, I'm sick and tired of losing to Buhai, so I hope she can do it.
Jenny really is struggling, and Grace has also fallen away, but Minjee made a run and has an outside chance of pulling this off.
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Post by HappyFan on Dec 2, 2023 7:09:07 GMT
Jiyai just missed a three foot birdie try on the last hole. Man, she can't buy a break today.
She'll be in the final group tomorrow. Hopefully Buhai has burned every last bit of her luck and good play and Jiyai will be able to run her down. I really want to see her get at least one of these big international events after so many near misses this year. Hwaiting!
1 Buhai A. -12 68-70-67 205
2 Jiyai Shin -9 68-68-72 208
3 Minjee Lee -5 70-75-67 212
T4 Kyriacou S. -4 69-75-69 213
- Jenny Shin -4 66-73-74 213
T8 Hannah Green -1 72-73-71 216
- Grace Kim -1 70-73-73 216
T20 Galitsky E. +3 74-71-75 220
T31 Rachel Lee (A) +6 67-79-77 223
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Post by bullfinch on Dec 2, 2023 9:16:19 GMT
Jenny Shin is now showing as Korean on the scoreboard
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Post by HappyFan on Dec 2, 2023 18:21:11 GMT
Jenny Shin is now showing as Korean on the scoreboard I'm surprised she isn't listed as Australian given that she is now using her Aussie accent in interviews. Yeah, she's a weird lady. |
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Post by philknj on Dec 3, 2023 6:07:51 GMT
I've never seen a bigger bunch of losers than the men trying to win this tournament. They are slobs wearing white pants and shirts that Marshall's would be embarrassed to sell. Meanwhile, Jenny Shin looks like 10 million dollars.
I thought maybe The Old Goofball was off the reservation on this one, but I'm watching this tonight for the first time and Exhibit A is Alex Fitzpatrick:
Just uninformed speculation: If he showed up with his shirttail out in a member-guest at Galloway National, he'd be thrown off the golf course.
*******
Buhai has an oil leak in progress, but Minjee will probably still not take advantage of it. 
******
If Hoshino wins on the men's side, will he do a Hideki-I-Don't-Understand-English routine afterward? Well, he looks pretty young, maybe he doesn't understand English.
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