Making the turn

This month the LPGA will welcome the second half of the 2010 season, which executives and fans are waiting for impatiently since the tour wasn't as spectacular as expected and brought some bad moments during its first part.

Tournaments:from February to May there were 9 events, compared to 17 that will be played from June to November. From those disputed in the first semester, the most interesting were the Kraft Nabisco Championship, first major of the year, and the Tres Marías Championship, which was Lorena Ochoa's farewell as an active member of the tour.
Thus, the second part of the schedule will certainly make the ratings raise, since the top players will dispute the remaining Grand Slam tourneys -LPGA Championship, U.S. Women's Open and British Open- as well as the prestigious Evian Masters.

Lorena Ochoa: her decision to leave the game was shocking because, even when Jiyai Shin became world number 1 -after a very consistent 2009 season- it's gonna be tough for the LPGA to find another player with Ochoa's charm. Perhaps the youngsters, such as Paula Creamer, Michelle Wie, Brittany Lincicome and Anna Nordqvist, can take Lorena's legacy, but their game hasn't been as mature as it should be to become the boss in the most competitive women's golf tour.

Erica Blasberg: the decease of the 25 year old North American shook the LPGA and its members in a very particular way. The cause of death is still unknown, therefore there have been lots of theories about ex-Wildcat's relationships and way of living off the course. With this background, it will take at least 3 more weeks for the coroner to release further information.

Paula Creamer: she's, by far, one of the favorite golfers around and, even when she's one of the most devoted players of the tour, the Pink Panther hasn't seen action in 2010 after going through surgery in her left hand, as a result of an injury that had been bothering her since last year. Now it's just matter of weeks before she comes back and makes her debut at the ShopRite LPGA Classic.

Asian players: once again it was pretty clear who leads the tour. The golfers from the Far East won 7 of the 9 tournaments played from February to May, after displaying quality and consistency on the course. Besides, they lead the top 5 of the Rolex Rankings: Jiyai Shin (1), Ai Miyzato (2) and Yani Tseng (4). It's gonna be very interesting to see their performance in the remaining events, but it's almost a fact that they'll continue to dominate.

The best of the season is still to come, so expect lots of emotions and many youngster winners because the average age of those who have lifted a trophy in 2010 is 24.7 years.