Yani Tseng

May 31, 2012

Yani Tseng brings her star power, No. 1 ranking, and three 2012 tour wins to New Jersey this week for the ShopRite LPGA Classic.

Tseng, who cadged spots among Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people last month and was rated the 10th most marketable athlete in the world two weeks ago by SportsProMedia, is one of 21 of the top 25 players in women’s golf to tee it up starting Friday in Galloway, N.J. She’ll try to keep 12th-ranked Brittany Lincicome from defending her title on the Bay Course at Stockton Seaview Hotel and Golf Club.

Lincicome, who won last year’s event by one stroke, went on to capture the Canadian Women’s Open and post five more top-10 finishes in 2011. The seventh-year pro is still looking for her first triumph of this season, as are No. 3 Suzann Pettersen, fifth-ranked Cristie Kerr, and No. 13 Paula Creamer.

Meanwhile, No. 7 Stacy Lewis has her sights set on becoming the highest-ranked American on tour. With six top-10s and one missed cut so far in 2012, Lewis leads the U.S. contingent in Player of the Year points but is third behind Tseng and reigning Kraft Nabisco champion Sun Young Yoo.

Change was the name of the game for Kerr, who made yet another caddie switch. For the second consecutive tourney, Kerr replaced her looper, this time swapping Jason Gilroyd, who had been on her bag for the last two years, for old friend Worth Blackwelder. Blackwelder caddied for Kerr at the beginning of her career and helped her to five tour victories.

“I had been struggling with some caddie issues,” Kerr told reporters Wednesday. “I let my caddie of a few years go after Mobile and then had a temporary guy at [the Sybase Match Play Championship two weeks ago, where Kerr was eliminated in the third round] and I was pretty uncomfortable on the golf course. Not his fault, just kind of a bad situation.”

Kerr said it was difficult to find an on-course partner with the right blend of personality and know-how.

“I like to be part of the team,” she said. “Yes, I like to drive the ship but I like to have a teammate out there.”

Kerr hoped that Blackwelder would add some stability to her game. “He’s really easy-going and he keeps me peaceful and he’s really supportive,” she said. “He’s just a good caddie so I’m comfortable and feel like I’m going to be ready to go for the rest of the year now.”

Working with someone who knew her game was important to the 14-time tour winner. “I’m glad I’m going to have some kind of continuity and somebody that’s familiar and someone that’s a good caddie and positive,” Kerr said. “He’s exactly what I need right now and hopefully it will work out for the long term.”

Kerr, whose father is a Vietnam veteran, spent Memorial Day honoring members of the military by hosting 50 servicewomen and men at Liberty National Golf Course in New York. The event raised $15,000 for the Wall Street War Fighter Foundation, which helps wounded military personnel train for jobs in finance.

Other notables in this week’s field include:

Lexi Thompson, who began her professional career at this tournament in 2010 at the age of 15 (she missed the cut by four strokes)
Natalie Gulbis, who’s had two top-10s in seven starts so far this year
Michelle Wie, who’ll be coming off three consecutive missed cuts to go with a T38 and a 59th-place finish

from: http://www.sbnation.com/golf/2012/5/31/3053565/tiger-woods-niece-lpga-debut

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Yani Tseng was born on January 23rd, 1989 according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yani_Tseng

January 23rd, 1989

1 + 23 +1+9+8+9 = 51 = her life lesson = Formidable.

King of Swords Tarot card