RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. - There’s a “Big Three” on the LPGA Tour these days, or so it’s said. Lydia Ko. Inbee Park. Stacy Lewis.
Ko won the Race to the CME Globe in 2014 and now owns the world No. 1 ranking. Park won a major championship in 2014 and ended the season ranked No. 1 a year ago and is currently ranked No. 2 in the world. Lewis, for her part, only won three of the biggest season-ending awards a year ago – the Vare Trophy, money list title, and Rolex Player of the Year honors.
Park’s aware of the ridiculous golf her two main competitors are playing. She’s heard about Ko’s streak of 28 straight under par rounds, calling it “amazing”, and she wants the No. 1 ranking back from Ko and the Rolex Player of the Year trophy back from Lewis. But keeping up with Ko and Lewis isn’t at the forefront of her mind when her thoughts wander to goals and what she wants to accomplish in the game.
“Obviously the career Grand Slam is in my mind, definitely, and that would be the one that I really want the most,” Park said.
Park, a five-time major champion, already has three different major championships, winning the ANA Inspiration, Wegmans LPGA Championship and U.S. Women’s Open in succession in 2013, and now she’s got her eyes on the RICOH Women’s British Open and the Evian Championship. She nearly had the fourth leg a year ago, entering the 15th hole at Royal Birkdale with a one-shot lead before a 1-over finish over the final four holes allowed Mo Martin to steal the championship away with an eagle at the last.
At only 26 years of age, Park’s window is far from closing, but she’s not fond of waiting if she can help it.
“I mean, the earlier, the better, but obviously – I think I’m just going to give it a try until I do it,” Park said.
However, the same can’t be said for Park’s other goal – play in the 2016 Summer Olympics for South Korea. Park currently sits in prime position to make the team at No. 2 in the Rolex World Golf Rankings, but 11 South Korean players currently rank in the top-25 in the world. And Park noticed in the offseason when highly ranked players from the KLPGA – Hyo Joo Kim, Q Baek, Ha Na Jang, and Sei Young Kim – left this offseason to play the LPGA Tour. Hyo-Joo and Sei Young have already won LPGA Tour events as rookies, and Jang’s already got three top-10s.
“I think everybody really wants to represent their country, and obviously I know because this year there is a lot of good rookies from Korea came [to the LPGA Tour],” Park said, “and I know that the main reason is to be in the Olympic Games. That’s why they came to the LPGA Tour, to get their rankings up, and obviously they have been playing really good golf this year, and it definitely gave us the pressure that we need to play well, as well.
With a max of four to a team even if more than that rank inside the top-15 in the world, Park realizes there could be a situation where she’s ranked in the top-10 in the world and misses out on the team. In other words, her spot on the team could be fleeting if she doesn’t keep up the level of golf we’ve become accustomed to from her.
“Who knows if we can be in the top 10 and not even make the Olympic team. I just think that’s unlucky,” Park said. “If you’re top 20 in the world, you should be able to play in the Olympic Games, but I think that’s how competitive my country is in women’s golf right now, and you’ve just got to play better.”
But that’s not the case. To absolutely guarantee herself a spot, she knows she needs to be in the top-four of the Rolex World Golf Rankings when the final field closes.
“I think it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity that you get an opportunity to represent your country in the Olympics, and being an Olympian is just a dream for all the athletes,” Park said.)
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