Hur Makes Leap in the Rankings
Sunday, Mi Jung Hur returned to the winner’s circle for the first time in five years with her victory at the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open. With her victory, she jumped 36 spots in the Rolex Rankings, moving from 79 to 43 in the world. Over the last five years, Hur has taken a ride up and down the rankings. In August 2017, she climbed to a career high No. 15 in the world as she recorded one of her most consistent seasons on Tour with six top 10s. But Hur didn’t record a single top 10 in 2018 and dropped as low as No. 121 in the world before rebounding in 2019 with two top 10s and a victory through the first eight months of the year.
Ko In the Hunt For Season's Biggest Awards
Jin Young Ko skipped last week’s event in Scotland following an incredible stretch that saw her record three consecutive top-3 finishes, including a major victory at the Evian Championship. Although she didn’t tee it up last week, she still maintains her hold on the Tour’s biggest awards heading into the final stretch of the year. Ko sits atop the money list, the Race to the CME Globe point standings, the Rolex Player of the Year race and she leads the Tour in scoring. She’s also ranked No. 1 in G.I.R.
Rookie Jeongeun Lee6 is putting on quite a show in her first season on Tour. She not only leads the Louise Suggs Rolex Player of the Year race, she also sits No. 2 behind Ko on the money list, the Race to the CME Globe point standings and the Rolex Player of the Year race. She’s also ranked No. 4 on Tour in scoring average.
Solheim Teams Taking Shape
With Team Europe finalized for the 2019 Solheim Cup, all the focus turns to Team USA, who finalizes their team after next week’s CP Women’s Open.
The top 5 in the Solheim Cup point standings - Lexi Thompson, Nelly Korda, Danielle Kang, Lizette Salas and Jessica Korda – secured their position on Team USA in recent weeks. Monday, Marina Alex and Megan Khang secured their spot on the team via the Solheim Cup point standings, which means the eighth and final spot is the only remaining position to be determined following the CP Women’s Open. Brittany Altomare sits at No. 8 in the standings with 257.50 points, Ally McDonald is at No. 9 with 250.50 points and Cristie Kerr is No. 10 with 224.50 points. Players competing in Canada must finish inside the top 10 in order to earn points, with as many as 60 points going to the winner. Click here for the complete standings.
Two players will qualify for Team USA based on the Rolex Rankings. The two highest ranked players, who have not already qualified via the Solheim Cup point standings, are Angel Yin at 2.72 and Austin Ernst at 2.27. Altomare sits between the pair in the standings at 2.36, but she’s more likely to qualify via the Solheim Cup point standings with a solid finish in Canada as she’s currently in the final automatic qualifying spot at No. 8.
McDonald needs to finish 17th or better in Canada in order to have a chance at making the team. Kerr, Yin and Stacy Lewis would all need to win in Canada in order to have a chance.
Aon Risk Reward Challenge
Lee-Anne Pace hasn’t competed since the Marathon Classic in mid-July but continues to hang on to the top spot in the Aon Risk Reward Challenge. She currently leads the challenge with a score of -0.818, ahead of Hyo Joo Kim at -0.769. Kim continues to close the gap on Pace as she went 2-under for the week on the par 4, 14th hole at the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open. Carlota Ciganda and Ariya Jutanugarn, who previously shared the No. 3 spot with a score of -0.722, broke out of the tie as Jutanugarn dropped to No. 4 in the standings with a score of -0.711. after making birdie at the 14th hole just once last week. Click here for the complete standings.