Kraft Nabisco Championship - Epilogue

There are now four events remaining before Cinco de Mayo. If Lorena Ochoa wins one of them, she will clinch entry into the LPGA Hall of Fame and make one of my all-time favorite predictions come true. The tally: 20 wins, two major championships, two Player of the Year awards and two Vare Trophies = 26 points. She would be inducted in 2012 after completing her tenth LPGA season.

ESPN and CBS both did a nice job of focusing on Amy Alcott in her final KNC event. Alcott will be forever linked to Dinah Shore and as such, deserves to be a large part of the event’s legacy. I’m hoping the tournament directors keep Alcott involved in future events in some capacity.

Even though he only watches one LPGA event a year – ok, maybe he watches one or two others whenever he’s at home – and it shows a bit in his pronunciations and delivery, Verne Lundquist did a fine job yesterday. I thought he and Judy Rankin worked very well together. My greatest wish now is for someday to witness Verne Lundquist interviewing Minea Blomqvist.

Amanda Blumenherst was the low amateur, finishing T30 and one shot behind fellow Dookie Brittany Lang. Maria Uribe finished T58 and Mallory Blackwelder wound up T68 – good weeks all around. Even though it was her second Top 10 of the year and third of her career, the Big Surprise goes to Na Yeon Choi, who finished tied for sixth. The Big Disappointment goes to Stacy Prammanasudh – she missed the cut by a whopping six shots.

Not everybody who writes about golf on the web cares as much about the LPGA as I do. I’m used to seeing my girls get fourth or fifth-billing behind the various men’s tours. However…the Kraft Nabisco is a major championship – the first major of 2008, in fact, for ANY professional tour. I read Geoff Shackelford’s blog almost every day but I’ve been very disappointed all weekend. As of Monday morning, there is still no mention of the KNC in any way. Daniel Wexler at least posted a final recap, although while he found time after earlier rounds to write about the European men’s event and Donald Trump’s bid to build a course in Scotland (yet again), he kept us “updated” by tacking up links to pages at lpga.com. C’mon guys - when the ladies play their majors, at least ACT like it’s sort-of a big deal!

Kim Saiki-Maloney retired after missing the cut. While her rookie season was 1992, Kim played her first event way back in 1981. Her victory in the 2004 Wegmans just misses my Fluke Victories chart, but she did also claim five second-place finishes – the last at the 2006 Safeway Classic. Kim got married prior to the 2006 season and was occasionally Larry Smich’s loop. Good luck Kim!