Rose Zhang's generational talent-status led her to win many amateur titles and turn pro after just two years at StanfordGetty Images
Rose Zhang made her professional debut on the LPGA Thursday at the Mizuho Americas Open, and to say there was a "fair bit of expectation is perhaps an understatement,” according to Golf Channel's Cara Banks. She asked, “How much weight do you think she carries though as this next potential new American superstar that the women’s game always craves?” Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee: “That’s the downside of greatness. Tiger Woods couldn’t escape it. It comes with so much expectation and there’s been a number of good players from the United States come out onto the LPGA Tour that had incredible hype … but I wouldn’t say that in the last 20-25 years there’s been a dominant player from the United States.” Chamblee noted “with all of her great skills, the one thing that she has to be is impervious to the hype and it appears that she is” (“Golf Central,” Golf Channel, 6/1).
GENERATIONAL TALENT: SI’s Michael Rosenberg wrote Zhang -- along with LPGA golfers Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, and a “few other stars -- have a chance to take the tour to an even higher level.” There is a “mass audience for women’s sports, as long as you invest and think creatively.” Rosenberg: “The more that people watch Rose Zhang, the more they will want to watch her.” As her fan base “grows, so will the sport.” Everybody in golf “should be rooting for her to thrive -- and be thinking of ways to help her do it” (SI, 6/1). ESPN’s Michael Wilbon said Zhang is “joining a field of women internationally with some big stars and great players. I love watching the LPGA now” (“PTI,” ESPN, 6/1).
