The case for LPGA Tour participant of the 12 months might be compelling if it have been determined by a vote of the gamers as an alternative of a factors system.
Because it stands, Nelly Korda has nearly locked up the award for the primary time. Lydia Ko must win 4 extra tournaments the remainder of the season, and she or he is taking part in in solely two of them. Two different gamers, Ayaka Furue and Haeran Ryu, must win out.
Korda successful wouldn’t elicit a lot of a debate. Her six victories this 12 months embody a serious at The Chevron Championship, and she or he tied an LPGA document by successful 5 in a row that introduced much-needed consideration to the LPGA.
Ko has received 4 instances this 12 months, together with the AIG Girls’s Open at St. Andrews . The LPGA remarkably counts solely three wins towards the points-based award. Unnoticed is that shiny gold medal on the Olympics .
How would the gamers vote?
The advantage of utilizing factors is eliminating subjectivity. The PGA Tour makes use of a participant vote, and it was shocking final 12 months when Scottie Scheffler together with his two wins captured the award over Jon Rahm , whose 4 wins included the Masters.
Scheffler’s consistency — the most effective statistical season since peak Tiger Woods — was an enormous issue. Unknown was whether or not Rahm misplaced votes by defecting to LIV Golf in the midst of the voting.
Ko could be the primary to agree Korda is deserving of the award. It’s additionally doubtless the Kiwi wouldn’t commerce her season. Golf is about trophies, and it’s additionally about moments. Ko had some large ones.
Her gold medal in Paris, which adopted a bronze in Tokyo and a silver in Rio de Janeiro, made her eligible for the LPGA Corridor of Fame. Profitable one other main was large, however successful at St. Andrews is subsequent stage.
The Golf Writers Affiliation of America will determine at 12 months’s finish via a vote.
The PGA Tour, in the meantime, may need an analogous argument. Scheffler is the doubtless alternative for an additional beautiful statistical 12 months, this time to go together with seven victories, together with the Masters and The Gamers Championship, and 4 signature occasions.
He additionally received the Olympic gold medal with a 62 within the closing spherical.
Xander Schauffele received solely twice, however they have been majors on the PGA Championship and The Open. And gamers are likely to put probably the most weight on majors.
No PGA Tour member has ever received two majors in the identical 12 months with out being voted participant of the 12 months (Nick Faldo was not a member in 1990). Then once more, it might be a measure of whether or not gamers actually put The Gamers on par with a serious.
Voting for PGA Tour participant of the 12 months doesn’t begin till after the season ends on Nov. 24.
This would appear to a straightforward alternative — at the very least Schauffele thinks so. He was requested Tuesday in Japan what it will take to win the award subsequent 12 months.
“It appears I have to have the most effective profession ever,” he stated. “I simply had my greatest profession ever and wasn’t actually shut.”
