Lydia Ko and Brooke Henderson, the top-ranked golfers in the world, are grouped together for the first two rounds of this week's U.S. Women's Open at CordeValle Golf Club outside of S.F. and the opportunity "is there for the LPGA to showcase its budding rivalry without the competition of the PGA Tour," according to Beth Ann Nichols of GOLFWEEK. The women's event will have the national stage all to itself after "an unplanned off-week" for the PGA Tour "due to the flooding in West Virginia" that led to the cancellation of the Greenbrier Classic (GOLFWEEK.com, 7/6). The AP's Doug Ferguson writes without a competing PGA Tour event, the stage is set for women's golf to "finally get the attention it deserves." The cast of characters the LPGA now has is "stronger than ever" (AP, 7/6). GOLF CHANNEL's Randall Mell asked if Ko and Henderson are "ready to begin delivering women’s golf its best rivalry since Annika Sorenstam and Karrie Webb began battling for the game’s biggest prizes back in the ‘90s?" It is too early to "begin calling Ko and Henderson rivals, but the show they put on at the Women’s PGA makes for a nice foundation to launch one" (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 7/6). In S.F., Ron Kroichick noted USGA officials "recognized the value of putting" Ko, Henderson and Lexi Thompson in the same group. They form "a dynamic trio of young players with blindingly bright futures" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 7/5).
YOUTH MOVEMENT: GOLF DIGEST's Ron Sirak wrote one of the "cool things about the U.S. Women’s Open is it loves the glamour pairings." Not only are Ko, Henderson and Thompson "No. 1 (Ko), No. 2 (Henderson) and No. 4 (Thompson) in women’s golf ... they are 19, 18 and 21 years old, respectively." That is "pretty much a snapshot of the women’s game right now: young, talented and with a ton of attitude." Looking at the top 10 female golfers, the oldest is No. 8 Stacy Lewis at 31, and she is the only player over 27 (GOLFDIGEST.com, 7/6). In San Jose, Carl Steward noted there have been "19 tournaments staged on the women's tour this year and 18 of them have been won by players 23 years old or younger." Ten of those 18 have "been won by players 20 or under, and six of those by women still in their teens." The top nine players in the women's world rankings "are all under 25," and no player can match 19-year-old Ko's achievements "over the past 2½ years." The last woman older than 30 to win an LPGA event "was 38-year-old American veteran Cristie Kerr, who won the CME Group Tour Championship in November." Going back a full year to last year's U.S. Women's Open, "there have been two tournament winners 30 or older." The current "wave of youngsters seems much more equipped both mentally and physically to handle the tour grind, and also appears to have been better taught at earlier ages." There is a "flood of young players, many from Korea, who play with a polish and confidence belying their age." Other Asian countries "such as Taiwan, Japan, China and Thailand are also now producing fabulous young players" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 7/6).
PARENT TRAP: The S.F. CHRONICLE's Kroichick notes nowhere are parents "more a part of the professional sports landscape than on the LPGA Tour." The challenge is "finding that elusive balance." Michelle Wie's parents "probably are the most visible parents on tour, but they’re hardly alone." Ko’s mother "travels to nearly every tournament," while Paula Creamer’s dad "is a frequent presence (outside the ropes)." Kroichick notes the "influx of teenagers on tour only increases parental influence." Lewis said this is “absolutely” a bigger issue now than it was five years ago. Lewis: "There are probably too many parents out here. ... It’s a problem to an extent. If players are 18, they need their parents. But the parents often become too involved and don’t let the kids be themselves and do things outside of golf." Creamer said, "When I first came out, I think I was the only one who had her mom and dad out here. Now if you don’t have your parents, it’s a little weird" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 7/7).
