This Week at WorldGolf.com: March 25, 2008
Lorena Ochoa knows women's sports, the LPGA in more than a Wie bit of trouble
Lorena Ochoa's making noise about pulling off a season of Tiger Woods-level dominance. That's jumping the gun to the same decree as the girl who has one date with a dude telling her friends she's going to marry him.
For all her brilliance in 2007, Ochoa only holds one career major title, after all. One. Even when the LPGA's no. 1 seemingly won everything in '07, she went just 1-for-4 in the big ones.
This isn't a case of an athlete suffering from delusions of her own grandeur, though. There is about as much PacMan Jones in the classy Ochoa as there is in the Pope. No, Ochoa simply realizes how much trouble the LPGA Tour is in, how desperately her tour needs a crossover star with real game.
How high are the stakes?
The entire idea and existence of major women's professional sports depends on it. There are only two women's leagues that can be considered anything close to big time: the Women's Tennis Association and the LPGA. Don't even think of trying to include the David Stern-propped-up WNBA or any of the half dozen leagues that come and go quicker than an "American Idol" reject (the WUSA anyone? I didn't think so).
It's WTA and LPGA and right now women's golf is, in many ways, fighting for its life.
Oh, you'd never know it from the sunny dispatches coming from Commissioner Carolyn Bivens' office or from the overwhelming male sportswriters who don't pay the LPGA any real attention but pretend they do to feign enlightenment.
This week's Safeway International at Superstition Mountain in the thriving greater Phoenix-Scottsdale resort corridor is in serious future jeopardy, though. Safeway's pulling out, leaving one of the tour's top events outside of the majors without a sponsor.
If Bivens does not step up and find one, a tournament that's drawn the top-75-ranked players in women's golf this year, one that routinely breaks LPGA attendance records, will be no more, leaving the LPGA without a presence in arguably the country's top golf market.
This is not a one-tournament thing either, just the latest in a too-regular sponsor scramble. Why do you think the PGA Tour holds so many more tournaments than the LPGA? Because women's golf cannot find enough corporate backers.
Ochoa expressed surprise when reporters told her about the Safeway. The best in the world is realizing how tenuous her sport is. She deserves better. Women's sports as a viable business depends on it.
As always, WorldGolf.com welcomes your comments.
South Carolina golf vacation hotspots Myrtle Beach, Charleston and Hilton Head know a spa visit is an essential part of a golf trip for women golf travelers. With that in mind, we pair up golf courses women love with nearby spas.
Also: Reviewing Osprey Point at Kiawah resort
CLIENT FEATURE
If you're looking for a deal on some first-rate golf instruction, take a look at John Jacobs' Golf Schools' newest offer, an exclusive for WorldGolf.com readers. Sign up for a commuter golf program at one of their 25 golf schools in the U.S. and Canada between March 24 and April 11 and a friend can come along for half price. For more info on
the John Jacobs' Golf Schools promotion, call (800) 472-5007.
Also: Golf instruction and tips at WorldGolf.com |
The Cimarrone Golf Club in Jacksonville, Fla. is one of those courses that manages to preserve its aesthetics while on the verge of being overwhelmed by the sheer number of houses crowded around its fairways. While Cimarrone means "the wild one" in Spanish, which is the club's motto, this course is hardly in the wilds, but for green fees in the $60 range this is an excellent play, better than some other, higher-priced courses at higher rates.
Also: Readers' golf course reviews at WorldGolf.com
Timberwood Vacation Villas 5-Night Package |
Dates: January 7, 2008 - July 31, 2008
Stay at Timberwoods Vacation Villas & Resort and play Venetian Golf And River Club, University Park Country Club, The River Club, Oak Ford Golf Club and Waterlefe Golf And River Club starting at $619.00.
Price Range: $619 - $804
|
For more information, please call 1-800-767-3574 or click here. |
Despite being pursued by some of the top golfers in the world, par was good enough for Geoff Ogilvy Monday in the weather-delayed finish of the WGC-CA Championship. Ogilvy strung together nine consecutive pars on the back nine at Doral Golf Resort & Spa's Blue Monster Course to post a 1-under-par 71 in the final round and finish at 17-under 271. That was good enough for a one-stroke victory over Jim Furyk, Retief Goosen and Vijay Singh, while also halting Tiger Woods' winning streak.
Video: Geoff Ogilvy on his win at Doral
|