So Yeon Ryu
Name:
So Yeon RyuCountry:
South KoreaBorn:
June 29, 1990 in Seoul, South Korea.Original/Home Club:
Occupation:
Professional golferTurned Pro:
2007MAJORS (2): US Women's Open (2011); ANA Inspiration (2017). Multiple wins on the Korea and LPGA Tours. LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year (2012). Held the position of No.1 golfer in the Women's Official World Golf Rankings.
Ryu turned professional in 2007 at the age of 17. Her first success came on America's Cactus Tour, before she joined the LPGA of Korea Tour in 2008. In Korea she recorded a win in her rookie year, and then five more in 2009. She joined the LPGA Tour in 2012, having won the U.S. Women's Open in a playoff the previous year.
Ryu's second major championship (2017 ANA Inspiration) also came after a playoff. Her playoff opponent Lexi Thompson appeared to be cruising to a comfortable win in the event, until she was hit with a four-shot penalty on the 12th green on the final day. The penalty was for an unintentional and inconsequential rule "infringement" that occured on the previous day. The "infringement" was not picked-up by anyone at the event, but was spotted by a hyperactive armchair TV viewer.
America
Meijer
Played as the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give (June 14-17). Second-placed Caroline Masson (Ger) finished 2 shots behind So Yeon Ryu (S Kor). [Blythefield CC, Belmont, nr Grand Rapids, Michigan].
America
Walmart/P&G
Played as the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G (June 23-25). Second-placed Amy Yang (S Kor) and Moriya Jutanugarn (Thai) finished 2 shots behind So Yeon Ryu (S Kor), whose win took her to the No.1 spot in the Women's World Golf Rankings. [Pinnacle CC, Rogers, Arkansas].
Awards
Rolex
So Yeon Ryu (S Kor) and LPGA Tour rookie Sung Hyun Park (S Kor) were joint winners of the LPGA Rolex Player of the Year Award, based on a points system for top 10 finishes and performance in Majors. Lexi Thompson (USA) and Shanshan Feng (China) were jointly third with 159 pts each.
Majors
ANA
The ANA Inspiration (46th) (Mar 30-Apr 2). Ryu (S Kor) beat Lexi Thompson (USA) with a birdie at the first playoff hole (par-5 18th). [Dinah Shore Tournament course, Mission Hills CC, Rancho Mirage, CA].
NOTE: Thompson was denied a second major title by the intervention of an armchair TV viewer, who spotted a "rule infringement" from Saturday's play. This led to LPGA rules officials giving Thompson a 4-shot penalty, which was advised to her on the 12th green during Sunday's play! Thompson's "crime" was misplacing her ball by a quarter of an inch (6mm) on a one-foot putt. The misplacement was unintentional, did not put the ball any nearer the hole or on a better lie, and was completely inconsequential to the score. A day when the spirit of golf was again trampled on by the combination of a hyperactive TV viewer and microscopic rule interpretations, which turned the event against its rightful winner.
Played as the Mission Hills World Ladies Championship (March 12-15; CLPGA/LET Tours event). Second-placed Inbee Park (S Kor) finished 1 shot behind So Yeon Ryu (S Kor), who recorded her first LET win. The team strokeplay competition was won by South Korea (Inbee Park & So Yeon Ryu); second was Norway (Suzann Pettersen & Marianne Skarpnord). [Blackstone course, Mission Hills Haikou, Hainan Island, China].
America
Canadian Pacific
Played as the Canadian Pacific Women's Open (Aug 21-24; formerly CN Canadian Women's Open). Second-placed Na Yeon Choi (S Kor) finished 2 shots behind So Yeon Ryu (S Kor). [London H&CC, London, Ontario].
Awards
Rolex
Ryu (S Kor) won the LPGA Tour 2012 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Award as the leading first-season player. Using a season-long points system (based on finishes in Tour events), Ryu accumulated 1,448 pts; Lexi Thompson (USA) was second with 817 pts. Ryu finished sixth on the LPGA money list, with earnings of $1,282,673.
America
Kroger
Played as the Jamie Farr Toledo Classic presented by Kroger, Owens Corning & O-I (Aug 9-12). Second-placed Angela Stanford (USA) finished 7 shots behind Tour rookie So Yeon Ryu (S Kor), who claimed her first win as a full LPGA Tour member. [Highland Meadows GC, Sylvania, nr Toledo, Ohio].
Majors
USGA
The US Women's Open (66th) (July 7-11). Ryu (S Kor) beat Hee Kyung Seo (S Kor) in a three-hole aggregate playoff: Ryu 10 (-2), Seo 13 (+1). This was Korean Tour player Ryu's first major championship title and first LPGA Tour win. [East course, The Broadmoor GC, Colorado Springs, Colo.].
Tournaments:
2021 Opens: whether by accident or design, four of the top five mens’ Open Championships played in the British Isles occupy consecutive weeks in July: the Irish Open (1-4), Scottish Open (8-11), The Open (15-18) and Wales Open (22-25). The recently relaunched English Open is scheduled for early-August.
Hoag Classic: Ernie Els defends his title in this prestigious PGA Tour Champions event, played since 1991 at the Newport Beach Country Club, CA (Mar 5-7).
Who's Who:
Brooks Koepka: won his second Phoenix Open title, with a chip-in eagle at TPC Scottsdale’s short par-4 17th included in his final round.
Annika Sörenstam: the legendary Swede makes a return to the LPGA Tour in the Gainbridge LPGA, to be played at Lake Nona, her home club (Feb 25-28).
New course opens for play at Barnbougle
Bill Coore designs 14-hole layout with “sporty” holes on dune ridge above Lost Farm.
New links course planned for Scottish Highlands. Landowner aims to appoint a ‘world-class architect’ to work on site next to Cromarty Firth.
New Faldo Design layout in Vietnam set for summer completion. Nine holes of the course at Thanh Lanh are routed across a the lake peninsula.
Dundonald Links Scotland: Construction work is in progress on new practice facilities and course changes at Dundonald Links in Irvine, Scotland, as part of a £25 million investment by new owners Darwin Escapes that also includes the construction of a new clubhouse with rooms, plus eighteen lodges. Read more ...
R&A submits planning application for new golf facility in Glasgow.
Look up the Top Golf Courses in Scotland.
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