Ochoa Crushes Field
Courtesy: aljazeera
When Tiger Woods made his much anticipated entry into the ranks of professional golfers, the move was hailed as a new dawn for the game.
Woods was going to be the ambassador who would introduce golf to minorities, open up the doors of a largely white-only sport and bring new blood into the game.
The jury's still out on that but change comes slow in society.
Lorena Ochoa may do the same thing for golf in Mexico and she may do it much more quickly that Tiger.
Ochoa is at the top of the heap in the women's game today. What more evidence do you need than her 11 shot victory at the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore on Sunday?
20 under par. A runaway win that is Tiger-like in so many ways.
The Women's Champions was Ochoa's first tournament of the season. It's only the third tournament of the LPGA season but already Ochoa has sent a strong message.
The diminutive Mexican is playing golf at another level from her competitors, including the not-so-long-ago world number one, Annika Sorenstam. Sorenstam finished second. At 9 under par, 11 shots behind.
During the off-season, Sorenstam said she was working hard to regain the world number one spot. Ochoa obviously worked a little harder.
Staying on top of the women's game may be tougher than it is on the men's tour. There is a clutch of golfers who are just a putt or two away from reaching Ochoa's level of play. The LPGA tour is much like a NASCAR race where lead changes occur on almost every lap and no one knows who the winner's going to be until the final left turn is made.
The PGA Tour is much like a Formula One race where the leader on lap one will likely win if the engine holds together.
It's what makes LPGA golf so much fun to watch and why the women's tour is growing almost as fast as a Pacific Rim economy.
But when a golfer is playing as well as Lorena Ochoa, a waiting game ensues. The moment she makes a mistake or a crack begins to occur is the signal for the sharks to move in. If they're ready.