LPGA’s Young Guns – MIA?
Okay, we’re a quarter of the way through the season and after looking at the stats for the LPGA I can’t help but wonder what happened to the LPGA’s young guns? On first glance it appears that they’re missing, but in fact, it’s not all that bad. A couple of years ago, there were lots of TV ads touting the youngsters, and there was Lorena Ochoa (accounted for), Paula Creamer (accounted for), Cristie Kerr (MIA), Natalie Gulbis (MIA), and Christina Kim (MIA). Of that MIA list, Kerr is the only won that has continue to win (though she’s struggling this year), and Gulbis and Kim are completely off the radar.
But all is not lost because other “young guns” have stepped up to claim those spots. Julieta Granada, Morgan Pressel,and Brittany Lincicome have all won recently and have made their marks on the tour, and will continue to do so for years to come. I’ve said before that I think Gulbis has too many off-course commitments, which makes her golf secondary, but like Michelle Wie, you can only be an average golfer for so long before even the sponsors start backing away. I would hate for Gulbis to end up with the same reputation as Laura Baugh or Jan Stephenson.
Christina Kim lost all that weight a couple of years ago, but her golf game went south. There’s no doubt she has the talent, I just have no idea what’s behind her struggles.