Difficult Road Ahead for Ochoa
Lorena's the Best in the World, but the LPGA is Too Talented
Her critics are silent after her win at the British Open, her first of many Majors. The road ahead now gets tougher, considering the LPGA's superior top-to-bottom talent.
- 2001 NCAA Player of the Year at the University of Arizona
- 2003 LPGA Rookie of the Year
- 2006 Rolex Player of the Year
- 2006 Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year
- 2006 Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average
- 12 Career Victories
- Current No.1 in the Rolex World Ranking
Such awards and stats would equal a good career by anyone's standards, but Lorena Ochoa is only 25. She hasn't even reached her prime playing years. For her, they represent only the beginning of a career.
Since her rookie year in 2003, Ochoa has become a fabulous player. In last week's British Open she displayed spectacular ball-striking, putting and composure, while finishing four-shots clear of the rest of the field. The tournament was historic, being the first women's professional tournament played at St. Andrews. It was also historic for her, as it was Ochoa's first Major championship victory.
Prior to capturing the British, only Ochoa and Suite 101 Golf were confident in her ability to win the big ones. After failing to close the door on Cristie Kerr and company at the U.S. Open, and ultimately finishing T2, her critics took the opportunity to decry her ills. What they must not have recognized was she played a great tournament, including the final round. Kerr played a fantastic tournament as well. Ochoa didn't choke. Kerr simply played inspired golf and deserved to win.
She now has her first Major and she's the best in the world. There's no rest for her because there are too many talented players out there. No one will ever match Annika Sorenstam's complete domination, not even Annika. That's not a criticism of Ochoa's game, just the talent level of the LPGA. In the past handful of years, players like Paula Creamer, Morgan Pressel, Mi Hyun Kim, and Brittany Lincicome entered the scene and are beginning to come into there own. When Sorenstam was summarily destroying the competition, the competition wasn't as good. There were other great players, just not as many.
A glance at the LPGA Money List will reveal tons of players with strong golf backgrounds. No other time in women's professional golf history have there been so many high-caliber players. It's great that Ochoa has won her first Major. She knew it was coming. She may have grown impatient after 23 tries, but she hadn't lost confidence in her abilities.
She's a champion in every since, on-course and off. If she is able to win nine or ten or eleven tournaments each year for several years she will be called the greatest golfer who ever lived.
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