Drama at La Manga - A 6 Way Playoff Decides LET Q-School

Ladies European Tour Class of 2012

When the grueling "Q-School grind" (as it's known across tours and around the world) finally came to an end today on the pastoral fairways of La Manga Golf Club, thirty golfers from 15 countries had won full playing rights on the Ladies European Tour for the 2012 season.

England’s Jodi Ewart, who earned her LPGA card in December, claimed a two stroke victory, with Swiss amateur Anais Maggetti and Spain’s Carlota Ciganda taking second and third, but the real nail-biter... with so much is at stake... was the six-player playoff for the last two cards.

As it turns out, final card was won... with a six-foot birdie putt on the third playoff hole... by Sharmila Nicolette, the talented Bangalore beauty we wrote about earlier this week.  The LET website has all the dramatic details.

Sharmila Nicollet Shines in Spain at LET Qualifying School

Sharmila Nicollet...... walking    -    photo: Golf Digest Online

We first wrote about Sharmila Nicollet in December of 2007 when she won a challenge match, paired with Laura Davies, at the EMAAR-MGF Ladies Masters, India's first ever LET event.

Just 16 at the time, the talented Bangalore beauty impressed Davies who told reporters, "I played with this 16-year-old girl and I can say from my experience she has the potential to become a really good player".

Four years later Nicollet is 20,  and she'll have "the whole of India" behind her as she enters the third round of the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School tomorrow in a three-way tie for second...  just one shot behind leader, Jodi Ewart (England).  

The 90-hole Q-School Final is being played on the two world-class courses at La Manga Club, in Murcia, Spain.

Golf is now the fastest growing sport in India... a country where cricket is revered... and to have this charismatic young golfer playing in global competitions at the highest level will surely be an  inspiration for other Indian women who aspire to play the game... either recreationally or professionally.

Oh, and FYI, if you're into following professional golfers on Twitter, @MissNicollet 's tweets are often remarkably drôle perceptive awesome.

Ryo Ishikawa Officially Comes of Age, Remains Ultra-Intense

© Golf Digest Online

Early this week Ryo Ishikawa officially "came of age".  In Japan the second Monday of January is "Coming of Age Day", a special holiday day where those who've reached 20, the age of majority, are celebrated with festivities, ceremonies and parties. 

Soon after the celebration the intrepid young golfer was heading to Hawaii for the Sony Open which begins tomorrow.  In the meantime, an intense ten hour practice round at Waialea Golf Club golf course seemed to demonstrate that the hardworking Japanese superstar had paid little heed to the words of Lee Westwood who a couple of weeks ago suggested that Ishikawa was "far too intense" and "needed to get away from golf more".

The young phenom will be paired with Webb Simpson and K.J. Choi at Sony, and it's a pretty sure bet they'll be one of the most followed groups. 

The Golf Channel's Randall Mell suggested that the "Bashful Prince" was in golf's "hot seat" as he hasn't yet proved himself on US soil.  While some readers agreed with that assessment, many disagree, citing his myriad wins in Japan... and his youth.  In any case, lots of us are expecting (and looking forward to) a Ryo Ishikawa PGA Tour win in 2012.

As one commenter perceptively wrote,  I think a win by a Ryo Ishikawa will do the world of golf a lot of good. 

Note: Many thanks to Noriko, a friend and an avid Ryo Ishikawa fan in Japan. 

Ryo Ishikawa - Words Worth Remembering for 2012

    Ryo Ishikawa         Photo: Khalid Redza /Asian Tour via Getty Images

If you read this blog... even occasionally... you probably know that Japanese golfer Ryo Ishikawa is a favorite of ours.  We love the quiet reserve that earned him the nickname "Bashful Prince" ...and the exhuberantly colorful sartorial style that had one writer calling him "The Pink Pantster"

2011 was a challenging year for the young champion both on and off the course. He finished the season winless, and at 51 in the world, one spot shy of earning automatic qualification for the Masters.

He'll now need to make the top 50 a week before the Masters, or win on the U.S. PGA Tour, to qualify for a spot in the field at Augusta. To that end the player who was recently called "too intense"  by W#2 Lee Westwood, will be playing very... intensively between now and April.

When epic natural disaster struck his native Japan almost a year ago, the then-19-year-old announced that he would donate all of his golf earnings for 2011 to the Japan relief fund.  I don't know exactly how much that ended up being but by mid-October it was approaching $1.5 million.  It was what he said about his donation however, that earned Ryo Ishikawa a place on business writer Jena McGregor's list of the past year's most inspiring leadership quotes: 

“As my social status in Japan is getting higher, I believe that is one of the responsibilities, to provide for those people who are in need."– golfer Ryo Ishikawa, on his decision to donate all of his 2011 earnings to earthquake relief in Japan.


The list appeared yesterday at On Leadership the blog McGregor writes for TheWashingtonPost.com. She explains that she finds Ishikawa’s quote memorable for a couple of reasons, "...one is his use of the word “responsibility” to describe what he believes he owes the Japanese people because his status in the golf world has risen.  The second is his remarkable willingness to donate all of his earnings of last year to earthquake relief. So many people in power are paid far more handsomely than Ishikawa, and yet we don’t know of many who have made such generous gestures."

If you're a Ryo Ishikawa fan you can do what we did and send the inspiring golf star New Year message here.

Global Golf - The Inaugural 2012 Iranian Amateur Open

A couple of days ago I received a message from Dylan Harris, an ultra-adventurous friend of mine who happens to run a travel company.

Based in the UK, Dylan is passionate about golf... and a number of the trips his company runs revolve around the game.  But these aren't your typical golf trips... because Lupine Travel specializes in unique destinations, the kind of places some might find... intimidating.

Earlier this year Dylan took a group to North Korea where they played in the North Korean Open.  A fun and fascinating time was had by all.  Now, the success of the North Korea tournament has inspired, Mr. Harris to plan for a new destination and a new golf event for 2012: The Inaugural 2012 Iranian Amateur Open.   Scheduled to take place at Tehran's Enghelab Golf Club over three days from the 14th to 16th  of April, and the event is open to all amateur golfers with an up-to-date verified handicap.

Here's the thing;  though there's currently only the one course in Iran, there's a well established Iranian Golf Federation and part of it's recently stated mission  is "... to popularize and develop golf among every walk of life..."  As such the game has seen a huge increase in popularity over the past several years, particularly among women, many of whom compete regularly on a local and regional level. 

So, I've wanted to visit Iran for years.  I fully understand that the relationship between US and Iranian governments is rocky... to say the least... but Lupine Travel is adept a managing travel in geopolitically sensitive areas, plus I've spoken to a number of Americans just back from Iran, and what I've heard from all has encouraged me to seriously consider taking this opportunity to be a part of the 2012 Iranian Amateur Open.  My intrepid twin sister Cat, is also hoping to make the trip.

We'll keep you posted as our plans develop.

Consistent and Creative: Yani Tseng's Winning Style

Photo by Darren Carroll/Getty Images North America

Yesterday's playoff victory at Pinnacle Rock was just one more sign: Yani Tseng's LPGA dominance is incontrovertible, unambiguous and actual.

Ten career victories, five majors by age 22, money milestones, POY honors and quantifiable uber-consistency... these are some of the highly visible results of Yani's stellar game.

But lets get really superficial and shallow for a minute and talk about the girl's look.

As much as Yani Tseng's distinctive personal style, may not appeal to a Bleacher Report Swagger kind of guy... or to those who swear by FoxSports Incomplete Coverage ... there are lots of us who do appreciate her special fashion sense.

Simplicity, it would seem, is at the base of Yani's sartorial strategy:

•  A fitted cap (Adams Golf) and half jacket shades (Oakley)
•  Classic tops in bright colors and close fitting bermuda shorts with a destinctive belt (Lacoste)
•  Simple solid-colored shoes (Footjoy) 

That's pretty much it... the Yani Tseng style playbook.  Like her game, Yani's on-course look is consistent... yet it's also very creative because, as she demonstrates week after week, consistency and creativity are not mutually exclusive.

The last really dominant LPGA player was Lorena Ochoa who, like Yanni, is 5'6".  The two champions also have Lacoste in common, so it's not surprising to note a few stylistic similarities between them,  but it's the details that make the difference, and personality adds that extra something that creates a personal style.  Like Lorena Ochoa before her, Yani Tseng has a winning one.

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