| First half of LPGA Playoffs 2006 comes to a close; Ochoa leads 11 players who earn an ADT Championship berth
The field for the ADT Championship grew to 15 players on Sunday, as the first half of the LPGA Playoffs 2006 came to an end at the conclusion of the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic Presented by Kroger.
Lorena Ochoa, a two-time champion in 2006, headlines the top-11 players on the ADT Points list who gained entry into the historic ADT Championship via the LPGA Playoffs 2006, the first-ever playoff system in golf. Ochoa finished the first half of the season with 467 points after wins at the LPGA Takefuji Classic and at the Sybase Classic presented by Lincoln Mercury to go along with five runner-up finishes.
Mi Hyun Kim, who notched her second win of the season on Sunday at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic Presented by Kroger in a dramatic three-hole playoff with Natalie Gulbis, finished second in the points race with 362. Kim jumped from seventh to second in ADT Points with the win.
Natalie Gulbis (254 points) and Paula Creamer (266 points) were toeing the line to qualify for the ADT Championship coming into last week, but second- and third-place finishes, respectively, on Sunday helped both players earn their spot in the season-ending playoffs. The remaining seven players who filled out spots five through 15 include: Cristie Kerr (323 points), Juli Inkster (316 points), rookie Seon-Hwa Lee (316 points), Hee-Won Han (300 points), Jeong Jang (288 points), Pat Hurst (233 points) and Meena Lee (166 points).
Eight of the 11 players to earn spots via the ADT Points race are winners on Tour this season.
Karrie Webb, Se Ri Pak, Annika Sorenstam and Brittany Lincicome already secured their spots earlier in the season. Webb, Pak, Sorenstam and Lincicome all gained entry by capturing one of the Major or Winner Events in the first half of the LPGA Playoffs 2006. Webb won the first two automatic qualifying events – the Kraft Nabisco Championship and the Michelob ULTRA Open at Kingsmill – to punch her ticket for the ADT Championship, while Pak qualified after beating Webb in a playoff at the McDonald's LPGA Championship Presented by Coca-Cola.
Sorenstam won the U.S. Women's Open conducted by the USGA in an 18-hole playoff against Hurst to become the third person to qualify, while Lincicome won six consecutive matches at the HSBC Women's World Match Play Championship to earn her spot.
Players who just missed qualifying for the ADT Championship via first half points, include: Florida's Natural Charity Championship hosted by Nancy Lopez winner Sung Ah Yim (160 points) and star rookies Julieta Granada (160 points), Brittany Lang (150 points) and Morgan Pressel (150).
The Nov. 16-19 ADT Championship is a one-of-a-kind event that will feature 32 LPGA stars playing for a record $1 million first-place paycheck at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Fla.
The second-half of the LPGA Playoffs 2006 begins July 26 at the Evian Masters, where all point totals will be cleared to begin anew for the chance to fill an additional 15 second-half spots.
During the second half of the season, five players will earn automatic spots for the ADT Championship. Winners of the Evian Masters, Weetabix Women's British Open, Samsung World Championship and The Mitchell Company Tournament of Champions will all receive an invitation, as will the player who earns the most combined ADT Points at the Honda LPGA Thailand 2006, CJ Nine Bridges Classic presented by SEMA Sports and the Mizuno Classic.
After the conclusion of The Mitchell Company Tournament of Champions, spots will be filled off the ADT Points list until 15 players have been added to the ADT Championship field from the second half of the LPGA Playoffs 2006. Two additional players from the ADT Official Money List and not otherwise qualified will be added as wildcards to round out the 32-player field.
The ADT Championship will be played in the following format (a sudden-death playoff will be used at the end of each round in the event of a tie). The first cut will be after 36 holes to 16 players; the second cut will be after 54 holes to eight players (scores are cumulative through 54 holes). The final round will be played in four groups of two, with all players starting with a fresh scorecard. Whoever shoots the lowest score in the final round will win the ADT Championship and $1 million.
First Half Final ADT Points
1 Lorena Ochoa 467
2 Mi Hyun Kim 362
3 Cristie Kerr 323
T4 Juli Inkster 316
Seon Hwa Lee 316
6 Hee-Won Han 300
7 Jeong Jang 288
8 Paula Creamer 266
9 Natalie Gulbis 254
10 Pat Hurst 233
11 Meena Lee 166
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