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Rolex Rankings moves of the week

Karrie Webb

A win by Karrie Webb and top finishes by Paula Creamer and Cristie Kerr, led to some shifts in the Rolex Rankings top-10. Webb's second win of the season came at last week's RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup and pushed the Australian two spots higher to No. 8. Creamer's second place finish attributed to her three spot jump to No. 9 and Kerr's fourth place finish helped her climb two spots to No. 3.

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Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Yseng Headlines LPGA’s Kia Classic

LPGA will return to Los Angeles for March 21-27 event at Industry Hills Golf Club at Pacific Palms, featuring 22 of the top 25 players in the world

Final Field

(MARCH 15, 2011 – CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif.) – The final field has been set for the Kia Classic, and befitting the LPGA’s return to the Los Angeles area for the first time in six years, the tournament is packed with star power.

Rolex Rankings World No. 1 Yani Tseng and World No. 2 Jiyai Shin lead a major-championship-caliber field into the March 21-27 tournament at Industry Hills Golf Club at Pacific Palms. The field features all of the top 10 and 22 of the top 25 players in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, including the defending champions of all four LPGA majors.

“This field is truly spectacular,” tournament director Dennis Baggett said. “Nearly every top player in the world will be here, and we expect a tremendously competitive tournament because of that. We’re excited about the opportunity to showcase the LPGA to the great fans of Southern California.”

The 144-player field for the Kia Classic includes 2010 Rolex Player of the Year Tseng and Shin as well as top American Cristie Kerr, 2010 leading money winner Na Yeon Choi, American favorites Michelle Wie, Paula Creamer, Morgan Pressel and Brittany Lincicome, global stars Suzann Pettersen and Ai Miyazato, and many other great stars of the LPGA.

The field also includes defending champion Hee Kyung Seo and sponsor exemptions Shasta Averyhardt (the fourth African-American player ever to earn LPGA membership), Blair O’Neal (who appeared in last month’s Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in an ad for Cobra PUMA golf) and Julie Yang, a top Korean amateur.

Two players will also earn spots into the field via an open qualifier on Monday, March 21.

Tseng, the 2010 Rolex Player of the Year, won two major championships last season – the Kraft Nabisco Championship and RICOH Women’s British Open – and needs only a U.S. Women’s Open win to complete the career Grand Slam.

Shin is an eight-time LPGA winner who earned her first major championship victory at the 2008 RICOH Women’s British Open before joining the tour full-time in 2009, when she was awarded Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year honors.

Kerr, the top-ranked American player at No. 5 in the Rolex Rankings, owns 14 career victories and has won two major championships, including her record-breaking 12-stroke victory at last year’s LPGA Championship Presented by Wegmans.

Choi finished the 2010 season atop the money list, winning twice and logging 15 top-10 finishes in 22 events.

Wie notched her first career victory late in the 2009 season, then added win No. 2 at the 2010 CN Canadian Women’s Open. Despite playing just 18 tournaments last year while balancing her course load as a full-time student at Stanford, she had five top-10 finishes and was ninth on the money list.

Creamer is a nine-time winner on the LPGA who finally broke through last year with her first victory in a major championship. She won the U.S. Women’s Open despite missing significant time due to a thumb injury.

Pressel is a two-time winner on the LPGA who won the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2007, her second full season on tour.

Lincicome is among the LPGA’s biggest hitters, averaging 266 yards per drive last season. She is a three-time winner, and won the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2009.

The Kia Classic – which brings the LPGA back to the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles for the first time in six years – will feature a full field of 144 LPGA players battling for a $ 1.7 million purse at the tournament’s new host venue, Industry Hills Golf Club at Pacific Palms. Tournament week is scheduled for March 21-27 and will feature a qualifier and practice rounds Monday, practice rounds Tuesday, a pro-am Wednesday and four competitive rounds Thursday-Sunday.

Tickets and more information are available at www.kiaclassic.com or by calling 1-888-SEE-LPGA. Advance prices for daily grounds passes are just $ 10 for Wednesday’s pro-am day, $ 20 per day for competition rounds and $ 50 for weekly grounds passes. Children 17 and under will receive free admission to the Kia Classic when accompanied by a paid adult, and active military members and their families will be admitted free with military ID.

Kia Classic fans can follow the tournament through social media. The Kia Classic’s Facebook page (Kia Classic) and Twitter feed (@LPGAKiaClassic) allow fans to keep up on pre-tournament and tournament-week news, see exclusive photos and enter various contests for the chance to Kia Classic tickets and other prizes.

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Rolex Rankings No. 1 and 2 highlight RR Donelley LPGA Founders Cup

ROLEX RANKINGS No. 1 and No. 2 HIGHLIGHT FIELD FOR INAUGURAL RR DONNELLEY LPGA FOUNDERS CUP, MARCH 18-20

Rolex Rankings No.1 Yani Tseng and No. 2 Jiyai Shin headline a star-packed field which includes Top American Cristie Kerr, Hall of Fame members Juli Inkster and Karrie Webb, and LPGA newcomers Jennifer Song and Jessica Korda

Yani Tseng

PHOENIX (March 8, 2011) – As the field closed Tuesday for the inaugural RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup, Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Tseng, already a four-time winner worldwide in 2011, and No. 2 Jiyai Shin, headline what will undoubtedly be an unforgettable first year for the unique event.

The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup, taking place March 18-20 at Wildfire Golf Club at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa in Phoenix, will donate its entire $ 1-million purse to charity, with $ 500,000 going to The LPGA Foundation and its LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program and $ 500,000 going to the top-10 finishers’ designated charities.

Top American Cristie Kerr, No. 5 in the Rolex Rankings, will play, as will other fan favorites Morgan Pressel, Christina Kim and Paula Creamer. LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member Karrie Webb, who won her 37th LPGA title two weeks ago at the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore, will also be in the field. There’s also the long-hitting Brittany Lincicome and Laura Davies, the 74-time world-wide winner who will make her 2011 debut in Phoenix. You also can never count out 50-year-old Hall of Fame member and 31-time winner Juli Inkster, who’s still at the top of her game, vying to become the oldest winner in LPGA history.

Jiyai Shin

The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup will be the American professional debut of much-heralded young gun Jessica Korda, daughter of former professional tennis player Petr Korda. Joining her will be two-time LPGA Futures Tour winner Jennifer Song, the 2009 U.S. Women’s Amateur and Women’s Public Links champion and now an LPGA Tour rookie. LPGA Futures Tour Player of the Year last year, Cindy LaCrosse, will make her 2011 debut.

But there’s not a hotter player in the world right now than Tseng. Tseng, who won Rolex Player of the Year last year after winning two major championships – the Kraft Nabisco Championship and RICOH Women’s British Open – made headlines when she bought Annika Sorenstam’s Orlando home and was challenged by the 73-time winner to refill her trophy cases.

Well, Tseng must have taken the challenge to heart, because to so far in 2011, she has won four times world-wide, including the ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open and ANZ RACV Ladies Open co-sanctioned by Australian Ladies Professional Golf (ALPG) and the Ladies European Tour (LET)and the season-opening Honda LPGA Thailand on the LPGA Tour. Then the following week, going for four straight, she finished third at the HSBC Women’s Champions, almost chasing down eventual winner Webb with a final-day 67.

Two players will also earn spots into the field via the qualifier on Tuesday, March 15.

While LPGA players will forgo tournament earnings in favor of charity, results at the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup will impact the 2011 LPGA Official Money List. Players also will earn points towards Rolex Player of the Year, Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year, Rolex Rankings and U.S. Solheim Cup team. Scores posted also will count towards the prestigious Vare Trophy.

The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup Pro-Am will take place at Wildfire Golf Club at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa in Phoenix Thursday, March 17 and the first round begins on Friday, March 18 with the tournament concluding on Sunday, March 20.

For more tournament information, please visit www.LPGAFounders.com or call 1-888-LPGATIX (574-2849). Children 17 and under will receive free tournament admission with a ticketed adult. Active military members and their immediate family can receive free tournament admission when showing a valid active military ID at the main admission gate.

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Tseng Solidifies Hold on No. 1 in Rolex Rankings

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida, Feb. 28, 2011 - Yani Tseng strengthened her hold atop the Rolex Rankings with a tie for third finish at the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore Sunday. The twenty-two year old from Taiwan closed with a final-round 67 to finish three strokes behind winner Karrie Webb, who captured her 37th career LPGA victory. Tseng was attempting to capture back-to-back LPGA victories and her fourth consecutive title world-wide.

Arguably the hottest player on the planet, over the last 11 months, Tseng has won four times on the LPGA Tour, including twice at major championships - the 2010 Kraft Nabisco Championship and the 2010 RICOH Women's British Open - and another three times internationally. After two events on the LPGA Tour in 2011, Tseng holds the early lead for the LPGA Official money list title and Vare Trophy, and she is tied with Webb for Rolex Player of the Year honors.

Entering championship Sunday in Singapore, Webb trailed Japan's Chie Arimura by one. A back-nine rally lifted the LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member to a final-round 69 and a one-stroke victory. The win was Webb's 37th in a highly decorated career which includes seven major championships, three LPGA money titles, three Vare Trophies and two Rolex Player of the Year awards.

The win also lifted Webb to No. 10 in the Rolex Rankings. Webb also is the youngest player in LPGA history to achieve the Career Grand Slam, a record that Tseng is chasing. Tseng needs only to win the U.S. Women's Open to complete the Grand Slam. Tseng is 22. Webb was 26 when she accomplished the feat.

"When I was younger, I watched Karrie playing golf all the time," said Tseng after her final round in Singapore, "and then the first time played with Karrie, I was so nervous… she shot 62, so I never forgot."

Both Tseng and Webb will next compete with a host of other top-ranked players at the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup to be played at Wildfire Golf Club at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa March 18-20. Webb was the last LPGA player to hoist a trophy in Phoenix when she won the 2009 Safeway Classic at Superstition Mountain. The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup will kick start a three-week stretch in the United States, culminating in the year's first major, the Kraft Nabisco Championship, where Tseng is the defending champion.

Tseng ascended to the No. 1 position on the Rolex Rankings after capturing two events in Australia co-sanctioned by the ALPG (Australian Ladies Professional Golf) and LET (Ladies European Tour). A week later, Tseng won the season-opening Honda LPGA Thailand on the LPGA Tour. While Tseng makes a case to become the game's next dominant player, several others look to get back in the mix for the race for No. 1, including former world No. 1's Jiyai Shin, Cristie Kerr and Ai Miyazato.

After a compelling start to the LPGA season, the top-10 players in the Rolex Rankings are the following: No. 1 Tseng, No. 2 Jiyai Shin, No. 3 Na Yeon Choi, No. 4 Suzann Pettersen, No. 5 Cristie Kerr, No. 6 Ai Miyazato, No. 7 I.K. Kim, No. 8 Michelle Wie, No. 9 Sun Ju Ahn, No. 10 Karrie Webb.

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Tseng Set to Ascend to Rolex Rankings No. 1

Tseng Set to Ascend to Rolex Rankings No. 1 as LPGA Tour season kicks off this week in Thailand
The 2011 LPGA Tour season begins as 2010 ended, with a battle at the topStar-packed lineup prepares to tee off Thursday at Honda LPGA Thailand

Japan’s Ai Miyazato set to defend her titles in both Thailand and Singapore

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida, February 13, 2011 – Yani Tseng, 22, the 2010 Rolex Player of the Year, is projected by the LPGA Tour to ascend to the top of the Rolex Rankings for the first time in her still blossoming career when the Rolex Rankings are officially announced Monday.

Tseng captures the No. 1 ranking as the eagerly anticipated 2011 LPGA Tour season kicks off this week at the Honda LPGA Thailand, where a star-studded field awaits fans following Golf’s Global Tour.

Taiwan’s Tseng surged to the top spot from her 2010 season-ending position of No. 5 by winning the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open and the ANZ RACV Ladies Masters over the past two weeks, tournaments co-sanctioned by the ALPG (Australian Ladies Professional Golf) and LET (Ladies European Tour). Tseng accomplished one of her goals for the season before hitting a single ball on the LPGA Tour, which begins Thursday in Chonburi, Thailand at the Siam Country Club.

“It is so soon,” Tseng said. “I wasn’t expecting it as quickly as this. I still have another 10 months to go. I just need to be very patient and keep working hard. I still have a lot of things to learn too.”

If that’s the case, it should make for a riveting 2011 LPGA Tour season. Tseng already has won three of the four LPGA Tour majors—the 2008 LPGA Championship, and the 2010 Kraft Nabisco Championship and 2010 RICOH Women’s British Open—and has her eyes set on capturing this year’s U.S. Women’s Open, to be contested at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado from July 7-10. If Tseng achieves her goal of winning the 2011 U.S. Women’s Open, she will become the youngest player in LPGA history to achieve the LPGA Career Grand Slam.

Last season, Japan’s Ai Miyazato was the hottest player out of the gates as she set the stage for a season-long battle for supremacy on the LPGA Tour. She is the defending champion this week in Thailand and next week at the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore. Both events will be shown on the Golf Channel.

After the two-tournament season-opening swing in Asia, the LPGA prepares for three tournaments out West in the U.S. The inaugural RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup, a 134-player, 54-hole event, will take place March 18-20 at JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Arizona. Players participating will forgo a tournament purse in favor of financially supporting the LPGA Foundation that runs the LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program as well as their own favorite charities. The Kia Classic, moving to the Los Angeles area this year, will follow from March 24-27, while the LPGA Tour’s first major, the Kraft Nabisco Championship, will be held March 31-April 3.

In 2011, LPGA Tour players will showcase their talent across 13 different countries including new tournaments in the U.S., Taiwan and China. Who will distinguish herself on the leader boards this season? Along with Tseng and Miyazato, there are a number of other exciting players to watch closely in 2011:

Other notables to watch the next two weeks in Thailand and Singapore include Americans Michelle Wie and Paula Creamer, who both posted impressive victories last year (Wie at the CN Canadian Open, and Creamer for her first major, the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open); South Korea’s I.K. Kim, who won the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in 2010 and proceeded to donate all her winnings to charity; a pair of second-year Spaniards—last season’s Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Azahara Munoz and Rolex First-time Winner Beatriz Recari; and a riveting rookie class that includes Americans Jessica Korda and Jennifer Song, who both will be playing at the Honda LPGA Thailand on sponsor exemptions.

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Tseng surges to No. 2 in Rolex Rankings with victory in Australia

Shin maintains top honors with tie for second DAYTONA BEACH, Florida, Feb. 7, 2011 - Taiwan's Yani Tseng jumped three spots to No. 2 in the Rolex Rankings following her victory Sunday at the ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open on the Ladies European Tour (LET). With the win, the 22-year-old moved 0.37 points behind Rolex Rankings No. 1 Jiyai Shin, who tied for second with two others at the Australian Open. Tseng won three times on the LPGA Tour last season including major championship victories at the Kraft Nabisco and RICOH Women's British Open. She also won the P&G NW Arkansas Championship Presented by Walmart and added 2010 Rolex Player of the Year honors to a résumé that includes 2008 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year honors, five Tour victories (with three majors) and over $ 4.6 million in earnings in three seasons. She continues her quest for world No. 1 at this week's ANZ RACV Ladies Masters on the LET before teeing it up at the LPGA season-opening Honda LPGA Thailand. She will then go on to the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore before playing the inaugural RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup in Phoenix.

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Tags: Australia, Rankings, Rolex, rr donnelley lpga, surges, Tseng, victory

McGirr Wins Ellen Griffin Rolex Award

January 31, 2011 by  
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McGirr Wins Ellen Griffin Rolex Award; Values Mentor’s Impact On Career

Mary Beth McGirr became the recipient of the 2010 Ellen Griffin Rolex Award last week. The honor is presented annually to recognize a member of the LPGA Teaching and Club Professionals (T&CP) for superior contributions to teaching golf. Griffin is considered a pioneer in American golf instruction and the award was established in 1989 to honor her legacy in the game.

A 26-year Master Professional in the LPGA’s T&CP, McGirr currently serves as the director of programming and instruction at The First Tee of Roanoke Valley in Roanoke, Va. McGirr studied golf instruction under Griffin at her teaching facility called The Farm in Greensboro, N.C., from 1977 until Griffin’s death in 1986, continuing to run The Farm until its closing in 1993. She has taught golf for 35 years and coached college golf for 15 years. McGirr sat down with LPGA senior writer Lisa D. Mickey recently to discuss the significance of winning the Ellen Griffin Rolex Award. Here is what she had to say:

LPGA: What does it mean for you to win the Ellen Griffin Rolex Award?
McGIRR: For me, it’s the ultimate professional award because Ellen was my mentor. I think the award helps keep Ellen’s spirit alive.

LPGA: How did you connect with Ellen Griffin and how did she help you become a teacher?
McGIRR: I was in graduate school at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and I taught golf lessons and clinics with her for many Saturdays. We would be out there together and she would make excuses to go inside. I’d see her out of the corner of my eye, checking me out with the students. She wanted me to take over the class, to teach them, and she gave me the opportunity to do that. She taught me so much by example and I think I always recognized that I was learning from a creative genius. From her, I learned to always teach the person and that golf was just the vehicle to do that. She made learning fun and innovative.

LPGA: What set Ellen Griffin apart as a teacher?
McGIRR: Her creativity and her unpretentiousness. She didn’t brag or toot her own horn, but she certainly could have. People flocked to her! And even when the touring pros would show up, we never talked about swing mechanics. I thought I would learn all the technical stuff when they came to The Farm, but it was more about refined basics, discovery learning, brain hemispheres and sports psychology back before we ever talked about those kinds of things. Ellen was just a gifted educator and she was an educator to the core.

LPGA: The joke at The Farm was that Griffin was more of a teacher and not much of a businesswoman.
McGIRR: [Laughter] That’s true. She gave away half the stuff in the Tee House [the instruction center’s clubhouse]. She didn’t care about business and for her, teaching golf was never about making money. She cared about making people better. And I never heard Ellen talk about a “client.” They were always “students.”

LPGA: Why do you think Griffin was such an effective teacher?
McGIRR: Because she was a chameleon teacher. She would adapt herself to fit the student’s learning style. That’s what made her so gifted. Sometimes it’s a challenge to reach those people who are most unlike you, but Ellen taught the person, the individual, and recognized that they were all different. She had a real creative spirit and she was always thinking outside the box. I think she had a remarkable way to help people “get it.”

LPGA: You talk about Ellen Griffin’s creativity. How did that become a part of what she did at her teaching facility, The Farm?
McGIRR: Well first of all, she wore painter pants, British wool socks and tennis shoes, a bucket hat and was what [her former UNCG teaching colleague], Dr. Celeste Ulrich called “a whole in one.” She was a nature lover and an animal lover, so there were always cats, peacocks, guinea hens, a turkey and other animals wandering around The Farm. Everyone who came out there knew she loved to hold putting and chipping contests and she would give away prizes to the winners.

LPGA: Is there one memory of your days at The Farm with Ellen that stands out?
McGIRR: I remember one Saturday morning, when we had all of these students at The Farm for lessons, it just poured down rain. For most, the day would have been a washout, but for Ellen, it was still an opportunity to learn. We all stayed inside at The Tee House and had a morning of lessons in the hitting cage, with indoor putting and chipping. It turned out to be fun and engaging. Ellen could always think on her feet, which has become a lost art. Just in how she would do things, she showed me that creativity separates good teachers, widens the avenue of communication and makes the lessons fun for the students. It doesn’t have to be technical.

LPGA: Ellen introduced you to a number of other excellent teachers. Why has that been important?
McGIRR: Through Ellen, I met [LPGA Teaching & Club Professional Hall of Famers] Peggy Kirk Bell, Anne Casey Johnstone and Carol Johnson. That’s a pretty amazing group, so I was really lucky to have a lot of incredible mentors. You take a little bit of each one of them with you into how you teach.

LPGA: How does your experience with Ellen at The Farm help you now at The First Tee of Roanoke Valley?
McGIRR: I think fate took me to The Farm, and it was Ellen who took me to the First Tee. She was just a grown-up kid and she was so creative with juniors who came to The Farm. Now, when I’m working with kids, every now and then, I can see Ellen’s mischievous blue eyes. I can picture the things she would say to them. She was so much into guided discovery. She would never give you an answer to the question. So now, I ask the questions, but I don’t give the answers. The answer is what the student thinks it is. That process of discovery is what leads to permanent learning. Ellen was very “cutting edge” in how she approached helping students learn and I’ve tried to bring that into the way I teach.

LPGA: What would you like for Ellen to know now about your own career as a teacher?
McGIRR: I think she would love the concept of The First Tee and the way we try to seamlessly integrate golf skills and life skills. We teach kids about honesty, integrity and golf skills. I think she would also love the LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program. She would definitely see the fun in learning golf for kids in both of these programs.

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Tags: award, Ellen, Griffin, McGirr, Rolex, wins

Anna Nordqvist featured in latest Rolex advertisement

January 31, 2011 by  
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[unable to retrieve full-text content]Anna Nordqvist is featured in latest ROLEX advertisement.
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Annika and Yani visit newly opened Rolex Presented by Mayors Store

December 21, 2010 by  
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Annika and Yani visit newly opened Rolex Presented by Mayors Store in the Millenia Mall, Orlando, Florida Rolex Presented by Mayor's hosted LPGA and World Golf Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam and 2010 LPGA Rolex Player of the Year Yani Tseng on Friday, December 17th. Annika and Yani greeted customers and press who were present for the two-hour champagne reception which included  lots of autographs and photos.

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Golf’s Best in Media Honored by LPGA, Rolex at Evian Masters

July 24, 2010 by  
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Golf’s Best in Media Honored by LPGA, Rolex at Evian Masters
Davies Recognized for Media Excellence; 6 others lauded in France

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France, July 23, 2010 – Patricia Davies, a golfers&co magazine writer who has reported on golf for nearly 30 years for media outlets including The Times of London, The Guardian and Golf World (U.K.), was honored with the Rolex Media Excellence Award at the inaugural LPGA Global Media Awards Presented by Rolex. The ceremony, hosted by the Hotel Ermitage at the Evian Masters, recognized three writers and four photographers for their creativity, passion and innovation in covering women’s golf.

“After university, I joined a radio station where I learned to write quiz questions that had only one possible answer before I joined Golf World magazine in London,” recalled Davies, who was born in Belfast and raised in Portstewart, Ireland. “I initially thought all golf courses were like Portstewart, Royal Portrush and Castlerock, and it was some time before I realized how spoiled I was.”

“When we started golfers&co magazine in 2003, I had one writer in mind to establish our credibility from the beginning: Patricia Davies,” said Editor-in-Chief Philippe Hermann. “She’s a wonderful writer who always probes beyond the scores and results to get to the heart of the sport and its appealing personalities.”

Two writing awards went to Ron Sirak of Golf World (U.S.) and Randall Mell of GolfChannel.com, for their articles on LPGA Founder Kathy Whitworth and the recently retired Meg Mallon, respectively. Faculty and students at the University of Oregon’s internationally renowned Warsaw Sports Marketing Center selected the writing winners.

The photography winners:

 

The four photography awards were selected by a panel of seven—a fan vote on LPGA.com getting one vote, with the other six votes coming from the LPGA Global Media Awards Presented by Rolex Selection Committee comprised of recent Evian Masters champions Ai Miyazato (2009), Helen Alfredsson (2008) and Natalie Gulbis (2007); Franck Riboud, Evian Masters President and Chairman/CEO of Group Danone; Jacques Bungert, Evian Masters Tournament Director; and LPGA Commissioner Michael Whan.

Players and executives were on hand Friday to not only present awards to the winners but also applaud all members of the media who have followed and supported the LPGA and women’s golf around the globe.

Davies played junior golf for Ireland, but it was her younger sister, Maureen Madill, who rose to be the top player in the family, becoming a British champion and playing on the Ladies European Tour (LET) for several years. Besides her work for Golf World, The Times, The Guardian, golfers&co and, occasionally, the Irish Daily Mail, Davies also wrote two golf books with her late husband, David Davies, the renowned golf correspondent for The Guardian.

Five Filters featured article: Headshot - Propaganda, State Religion and the Attack On the Gaza Peace Flotilla. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

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Tags: Best, Evian, Golf's, Honored, LPGA, Masters, media, Rolex