Lorena ready for a triumph

Mexican Lorena Ochoa started her participation in the Tres Marías Championship breaking par and with a very consistent game. She's 7 under par and in good position to leave on Sunday with a win.

Lorena controlled her approaching shots and putted excellent, which she hadn't done in sometime. This was reflected in her first hole (#10) where she shot an eagle after sinking a 3 footer.

Her round was strong from beginning to end and, even when she showed frustration after some shot, she handled the pressure. Climate conditions were good in the morning, with no wind which helped lots of players to go low and break par.

Japan's Ai Miyazato broke the curse record, set by Ochoa in 2006, with an impressive 10 under (63). Her game was impeccable all day long, especially on the green, which put her as the leader of the tourney.

North American Michelle Wie tied for 3rd, along with Lorena, and seems like she's ready to take home another Mexican event, since she won in Guadalajara last year becoming a Rolex first-time winner.

Mediocre or necessary?

That's the question that many have been asking themselves about Lorena Ochoa's retirement. Since Tuesday I've received several comments regarding this issue and it's been curious to compare Mexican and non Mexican mails; trust me, they are way different.

Guadalajara's sweetheart debuted in 2003 as a LPGA member

She was the best female golfer in the world for 3 years, she won the Player of the Year award 4 consecutive seasons, she received the National Sport's Award, she broke records such as first LPGA member to reach the 4 million dollar mark in a single season, lowest round in a major championship (62), fastest to reach 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 million dollars in career earnings.

Nevertheless, some people see Ochoa's leave as a mistake and even as a justification since she was close to losing the first position at the Rolex Rankings, after displaying a very inconsistent game since last year. Either way, it's pretty interesting how lots of Mexicans just won't forgive her for saying goodbye, while most North Americans and Europeans think she deserves to step away, they support her decision and look at the bright side of it; ironically they didn't received any benefits from Lorena's Foundations, while many Mexican kids did get education and have a place to spend their time while having fun.

Lorena's decision is a combination of factors:

Marriage: many years ago, since she was chasing Annika's position at the Rolex Rankings, Lorena said she didn't want to stay in the tour forever, 'cause her priority was having a family. After she got married it was obvious that her time was running out.

Pressure:the Mexican had lots of up and downs in the mental side of her game; still, this was something difficult to master for her and, of course, easier for Scandinavians since keeping it cool is just part of their culture. But, lets not forget that roots determine personality; therefore, most Koreans are shy, Nordics are unattached and Latins are outgoing and amicable.

Lack of interest:doing the same for 23 years must be exhausting by itself, now imagine doing it at the toughest level, with no support form the government and in a country where golf is simply unknown. Maybe there will be some people who think: Hey, Tiger has been doing this for even longer; yes, that's true but guys tend to be unattached while most women look for stability and realization through family.

I must confess I've never been Lorena's fan, compared to some buddies from the source, in fact I always questioned her "mental debility" and I never forgave her for throwing tantrums in the course and in some press conferences; still I need to be honest and objective: Lorena is great and is very possible that Mexico won't have such an important golfer again; so we should celebrate her success, as well as putting Mexico in the map of a sport that many rejected.

Having three LPGA events, plus the skins game organized by Grupo Ochoa, was something that we never had before and it's gonna be tough to repeat it. So, what about leaving criticism behind and start feeling proud for having such a big star as a representative of our country?

I'm leaving as the best

Lorena Ochoa dispelled all the doubts regarding the retirement statement Grupo Ochoa made last Tuesday. She's not pregnant and is saying goodbye from competitive golf because she wants to spend more time with her family. Nevertheless, she'll stay as a non active member of the LPGA and will compete annually at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

Ochoa was joined by her family, sponsors and LPGA executives.

Thru a long later she explained her decision; even when she tried, she couldn't held the tears. Visibly  moved, she thanked her family, friends, business partners and everyone who followed her for the past 8 years during her spectacular LPGA career.

She talked about the most special moments she lived, such as jumping in to Poppy's Pond, which gave her the record of most people celebrating in there, her first victory in Mexico, which came in Morelia and where ironically she'll play her last event as active member.

Then her sponsors gave her a few words and it was pretty clear that they were proud and ok with her decision. Afterwards, her coach Rafael Alarcón, thanked her for being with him since she was 5; and, finally, her brother and sister shared a couple of letters with her, which gave the session a very sentimental mood.

Alejandro, who has been her manager since she became a pro, started saying "I remember that you were only 8 when all the family went to San Diego so you could play the Junior World Championship; we rushed you so we can still go to Disneyland”.

The memories kept going until the acknowledgment came in "I want you to know that I enjoyed the competition, chasing your nerves, eating hot wings until being fed up and driving as I'd never done it before", while he made a paused to apologize for the tears that ran down his face.

Later, Daniela, the youngest of the Ochoa Reyes family came forward:"China (curly), I don't see you as a rock star, I see you as a big sister; as an example of perseverance, strength and determination". She closed with certainty; "China, you'll be fine, you made the best choice in the best moment of your life. Now you'll be able to live that life you always dreamed of".

Lorena was crying heavily; she thanked all the people in there and assured that she still has a chance of getting into the Hall of Fame thru the Veterans Comitte "I've heard they want me as a member, so lets wait and see".

Finally, she assured that she'll continue to help her country through her Foundation. Also she'll be immerse in course design, both in Mexico and Asia.

Lorena leaves the course

Mexican super star and world number one, Lorena Ochoa, is about to retire indefinitely from professional golf. Grupo Ochoa, who's in charged of representing her, announced that she'll giver her reasons and further details this Friday, during a press conference.

Ochoa has battled with her consistency since last year.

Lorena's  management group sent the invitation last Thursday and cleared out that the reasons for this unusual event was to celebrate her 3rd anniversary as women's golf leader and also "due to other important changes in her schedule". Nevertheless, today around 9:30 am, the Director's Assistant emailed the media and confirmed that Lorena was stepping away from the LPGA, which was already spread by Mexican newspaper, Reforma, early this morning. 

Seems like Lorena will leave for personal reasons, she wants to spend more time with her family, don't forget she got married last December with AeroMexico's CEO, Andrés Conesa. Also, she's determined to focus a bit more in her foundation. Nevertheless, this decision is pretty strange, especially after she declared (in February) that she was ready to protect her position in the Rolex Rankings. 

With this, it's possible that the Tres Marías Championship will be her last event, leaving some issues pending, such as her sponsors and the involvement and participation she'll have in the Lorena Ochoa Invitational, which is scheduled for November.

The next Annika?

Anna Nordqvist is a 22 year old Swedish golfer who made her debut on the LPGA last season. As many Scandinavian athletes, she was drove by her parents to practice sports. Still, she didn't planned to make golf her priority.

With only 10 months as an exempt member of the LPGA, she has won 3 times.

At age 10 her older brother introduced her to golf, but after three months she gave up and decided to focus on other disciplines. Even when she had already chosen to leave the clubs in the garage, her mother instilled her with passion for the game that will later give her fame and fortune.

In 2000 Anna noticed not only mom's improvement but also the rest of the family, which made her the weakest golfer in the house. Her competitive spirit was harmed and she refused to be the worst of the family, so she decided to give golf another shot.

Four years later, as a teenager (17), the Swedish was part of the Junior Team of her country, where she matured and showed she had all the conditions needed to become one of the world's greatest amateurs. Nordqvist won the "Junior Swedish Player of the Year" award in 2004 and 2005, and finished second in the British Girls' Open Amateur Championship. 

Her dream of becoming one of the most outstanding golfers was closer than ever; thanks to her wonderful results, Annika Sörenstam, former world number one, gave her a scholarship to practice with her in Phoenix, Arizona.

Nordqvist's development caught the scouters' attention, which took her to the Arizona State University, where she won two championships (ASU/PING Invitational and Derby Invitational) and awards such as "Frehman of the Year", "First Team Selection", among others.

In 2008 she left college to play in the Ladies European Tour qualifying school, eventually she finished first and grabbed her exempt card; later she went into the LPGA Q-School but couldn't get the same results and started the season as non-exempt.

Nevertheless, her perseverance brought wonderful results and in only her fifth start she won the second major of the schedule, the McDonald's LPGA Championship. Five months later she lifted the LPGA Tour Championship trophy after putting up with Lorena Ochoa.

This past weekend she grabbed her 3rd victory at The Mojo 6, a Raceway Golf event where she defeated Kristy McPherson, Sophie Gustafson, Christina Kim, Cristie Kerr and Amanda Blumenherst.

Today, Anna is one of the top ten golfers of the world and is considered by many to be the future Annika Sörenstam, thanks to her potential, both mentally and psychically, along with her training routine, which includes Annika's former coaches as well as being one of the best students in her Academy.

There's no doubt that Nordqvist is one of the players that will put the LPGA back on track, so keep and eye on her, because she's destined to achieve greatness.

He roared again

Tiger Woods attended, for the first time, a press conference and even when he talked about his infidelity exclusively with Golf Channel and ESPN, he hadn't given a shot to the rest of the media. Still, he finally broke silence prior to the Masters.

The press conference lasted around 30 minutes.

Forty thousand people went to Augusta National to follow closely Woods' first practice round. The galleries were huge and it seemed like it was a regular tournament day which reaffirmed that Tiger can make what others just can't. Besides the support he received was unbelievable and the fans showed him support.

Different from what happened in Australia, where he scorned the crowds, the best golfer showed he's thankful and, even with all he's dealing, style and class prevail in his life. Fred Couples joined him in the adventure and later, on 13, Jim Furyk did the same to complete the 18 holes of the round.

Shortly after, Woods went straight into the media room. Questions were precise and clear, something that was expected and that Tiger took politely. He spoke about his behavior, his short term goals and how much he suffered when he realized the damage he had done. The only time he answered with a "that's personal, thank you" came after questioned about the kind of treatment and rehab he was receiving.

Even when almost all subjects had been given an answer or were clarified in previous sessions, when asked is Elin and the kids were coming to support him, he said "no, Elin is not coming"; which showed that his marriage is still pretty much fragile.

About sponsors, he'll do whatever it takes to recover what he lost and to gain his fan's hearts in order to become a role model for all.

Now, the only thing left to see is if Tiger has what it takes to wear, for the fifth time, the green jacket and go back to the competitive status he's been used to, because media-wise it's obvious that he's still a phenomenon.

Enormous: on and off the course

A year ago I had the chance to interview Yani Tseng for Mexican magazine Caras Golf. I remember that I was kind of worried when they assigned me the task, since there wasn't too much information about her, so I went though the LPGA, her official site and other media to put together the questionnaire. Back then the "English only" policy had been recently banned, so my first thought was: we'll have a communication problem due to language...

She's the first Taiwanese to have won an LPGA major tournament.

I must confess that meeting "Nini", as she's known by her friends, was very refreshing. By that time, she was 20 years old and was number 2 in the Rolex Rankings, behind Lorena Ochoa; she became a champion after winning the McDonald's LPGA Championship -second major of the schedule- with only 19 years old, which put her as the second youngest player to win a Grand Slam title, and was named Rookie of the Year.

With that backround, March 11th 2009 was the day when we met. I got into BosqueReal Country Club around 15:30, which was the venue of the MasterCard Classic and where we were having the interview and shooting. Yani came in some minutes later, carrying her own bag and with a huge smile on her face; she said hi and asked where we needed her. Her warmness and accessibility were overwhelming and soon I knew she was also a star outside the ropes.

Maybe the best part and the most surprising one came when she talked about media, never, -in the 4 years I've been covering golf- a player had told me that she had been taking English lessons and preparing to answer questions and give speeches, since the reporters needed to be treated extraordinary.

Yani also told me she was a big fan of Annika Sörenstam, from whom she brought a house and received wise advises last January; she loves pool and she didn't know how to swim, ironically she jumped into Poppie's Pond after winning the Kraft Nabisco Championship.

At the end of the interview "Nini" thanked for our time and waited until the photographer dismantled his equipment, meanwhile she offered her thoughts about Mexico.

Yesterday "Nini" grabbed her third LPGA victory and second major of her career. Which was her secret weapon? just having fun. That was precisely one of Annika's advices and proved she took it to heart, when she bet repeatedly with long time friend Suzann Pettersen during the 3rd round. That simple fact helped her keep cool and not think about it as a Grand Slam tourney.

"Nini" made clear she's a player that has what it takes to keep the spotlight over her; she can either surprise and come from behind to claim a title or maintain the lead in pressure moments.

Her performance is especially important because its obvious that Asian player dominate the most competitive women's golf tour; in the 4th event of the schedule there were 6 players from the far East among the top ten, including the winner.

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Ochoa's fall?

Lorena Ochoa's last appearances have been disappointing and she needs good results desperately, especially in the season's first major, the Kraft Nabisco Championship, or she could say goodbye to the first position of the Rolex Rankings.

The Mexican became number 1 in March 2007.

In 2006 Lorena was the player to beat; her 6 victories, 20 top tens, "Player of the Year" award and Vare Trophy were enough to dethrone Annika Sörenstam, considered by many as the greatest femanle golfer in history.

Four seasons later and with 27 titles, no one would imagine Ochoa's mess, which might led her to lose the position she's held for 154 weeks (2.9 years). The Mexican super star needs to give her very best this week because if Japanese and world number 3, Ai Miyazato, or South Korean and number 2 in the Rolex Rankings, Jiyai Shin, win the Kraft Nabisco they'll have enough points to claim the first position and start a new reign in women's golf.

But, how's that Lorena is in such trouble? The answer can be found in the 2009 season, when she only grabbed 3 titles, being the Navistar LPGA Classic the most successful one, since she finished with a 4 shot lead. Further more, she showed a temperamental side, mainly in the MasterCard Classic, where she slammed her clubs after bad shots and scorned local media after the 3rd round, which by the way, was a mess.

If that wasn't enough, she changed her putting routine and fired long time caddie, David Brooker, who had been with her in the most important moments of her career, including her first Grand Slam win the Women's British Open in St. Andrews' Old Course.

To all this we have to add her personal life, lets remember that she had to prepare her wedding and move to another city; besides, she appeared repeatedly in Quien and Hola, socialite magazines from Mexico.

So, what's going on with Lorena?, there isn't a clear or easy answer, but some think she's reached the pinnacle of her career and it's time to go down; others say she just needs to adjust her newlywed life and try to combine it with her golf super star status; while other group thinks her new routines and the caddie change have been costly.

No matter which are the true reasons, the thing is Lorena will face one of the most challenging episodes of her career this week. She needs to show temper, confidence and personality to overcome her situation and defend her position as women's golf leader.