The Rolex Rankings debuted less than 20 years ago on Feb. 21, 2006. For context, the men’s Official World Golf Ranking has been around since 1986.
In that time, 18 different women from nine different countries have risen to the top, giving fans from all over the world reason to celebrate.
The rankings are used to fill fields at the majors, determine teams like the Solheim Cup and International Crown and decide which top players qualify for the Olympics.
Both amateurs and professionals are eligible and the rankings are updated every Monday.
Here are 10 interesting things to note about the Rolex Rankings, which are now 18 years old:
True dominance on the LPGA might be a thing of the past. There was a time when Mickey Wright won a staggering 10 times or more over the course of four consecutive seasons.
It’s been a decade since a player has won more than five times in a single season. Yani Tseng was the last player to win seven times in 2011.
Compare that to Annika Sorenstam’s double-digit years or when Lorena Ochoa won six, eight and seven times from 2006 to 2008.
Is anyone capable of matching those efforts in the modern game?
As the tour gets deeper by the decade, here’s a closer look at most wins by year on the LPGA:
Maria Fassi topped the list last year at 279 yards.
Maria Fassi topped the LPGA’s driving distance category last year with an average of nearly 280 yards. The year prior, Anne van Dam clocked in at 291 yards, a full six yards ahead of her nearest competitor.
As the women’s game gets longer, stronger and deeper with each passing year, it’s interesting to note that some of the most powerful players in the game also often happen to be ranked No. 1.
Conversely, there are a handful of names on this list that might be new to casual fans.
The LPGA tracks driving distance on two holes each week, and there are times when the holes selected are designed in such a way that promotes the longest players on tour to hit a fairway metal or hybrid. In other words, the numbers below could’ve been even higher.
Here’s a look at the biggest hitters on the LPGA over the past 20 years:
A record-setting six players crossed the $2 million mark this season on the LPGA and 27 players won seven figures.
Almost any other season, Minjee Lee’s $3,809,960 earnings would’ve topped the LPGA money list. But with the CME Group Tour Championship offering a record-setting $2 million first-place prize, Lydia Ko’s season-ending victory pushed her to the top of the list for 2022 at $4,364,403. Lee finished second.
Ko moved up to fifth on the LPGA career money list with $16,695,357, ahead of Lorena Ochoa. Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Cristie Kerr and Inbee Park are the four players ahead of Ko.
A record-setting six players crossed the $2 million mark this season on the LPGA and 27 players won seven figures.
Where do Ko’s season earnings rank in history? Read on:
Spork and Ochoa practically bookend this tour, and no Hall of Fame would be complete without them.
RANCHO MIRAGE, California – Lorena Ochoa was out walking behind her house in Valle de Bravo, Mexico, with her dog when Nancy Lopez called. Ochoa thought the call, organized by her brother, was going to be about her foundation or playing in an exhibition. After a brief catch-up, an emotional Lopez told Ochoa that she was going into the LPGA Hall of Fame.
A stunned Ochoa, 40, didn’t know what do to. Her husband was at work in Mexico City, and it was time to pick up the kids from school. She tried to explain to her three children, ages six, eight, and 10, what had happened.
“They didn’t care. They didn’t understand,” said Ochoa, tilting her head back with that infectious laugh.
“Mom, can you please put music on?” came the request from the backseat.
Perhaps another time.
It’s a sweet story, especially given that school pick-up lines are among the million little reasons Ochoa chose to leave the LPGA after amassing 27 titles, including two majors, in seven seasons.
Ochoa, who arrived at Mission Hills on Wednesday to meet with the media, said she thanks God to this day that she was strong enough to make the choice to walk away, regardless of the rule. She likened the news that she’s in to a present.
“Some of the media as well, or my sponsors or fans, golf fans in Mexico, they always ask me about this all the time,” said Ochoa, “so finally I can say, that’s it. I’m in. I think I completed my career with this great honor, so in a way I feel relief and relaxed and happy, and just this is going to be great.”
Of course, Ochoa’s wait for the Hall pales in comparison to the woman who came over on Wednesday afternoon and asked to look at a picture of her kids. LPGA founder Shirley Spork, still spry at 94, is one of eight LPGA founders who are finally being inducted as honorary members of the tour’s Hall of Fame.
Of the 13 founders, only five were already included. Spork, a local desert resident, is one of two founders still living along with Marlene Hagge, who was already in the LPGA Hall.
Shirley, 94, wanted to know if Lorena was going to play today! Also asked to see pics of her kids. So great for them to share this moment. Lorena thanked Shirley, who said “We had to mark the course and rule on ourselves and play for $3,000.” pic.twitter.com/hlVON4tyfU
Spork heard the news earlier this week from LPGA commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan and said she was surprised.
“It’s a great honor,” said Spork. “I feel I’m very deserving of it, having developed the (LPGA) teaching division from 0 to 1,700 people.”
Spork, who still gets out and plays nine holes, asked Ochoa if she planned to tee it up today at Mission Hills. Ochoa, who recently played in a mixed event in Portugal in which she tied for 10th alongside Miguel Angel Jimenez and Thomas Levet, said she needed to get home.
Ochoa said she was “responsible” going into the event and did adequate preparation. Even with little media onsite and few fans, Ochoa admitted to being quite nervous.
“I started thinking, I cannot imagine being in an LPGA tournament,” said Ochoa, “like a big one or a real LPGA tournament crowded with the media and me trying to play good. Too much.”
Fellow Mexican Gaby Lopez annually asks Ochoa to partner with her in the LPGA team event, the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational. This year, Ochoa said she will have to tell her once again that she isn’t going to play.
But that’s not a no forever.
“I don’t want to say no because maybe two, three years I will come and play with Gaby and have a good time,” said Ochoa. “I do see maybe playing in the senior, you know, in the Senior Tour, just coming back and playing couple tournaments just to enjoy.
“My kids are going to be older and maybe they understand a little bit more than today, so we’ll see.”
Stacy Lewis was one of several players who came over to greet Ochoa near the putting green as she met with the press. Lizette Salas declared that she was speechless.
“She did so much for this game when she played,” said Lewis. “When she retired we had three events in Mexico; we still have players from Mexico on this tour.”
Lorena Ochoa of Mexico and caddie Greg Johnston walk across a bridge on the second hole during the third round of the Tres Marias Championship at the Tres Marias Country Club on May 1, 2010, in Morelia, Mexico. (Photo by Darren Carroll/Getty Images)
While Ochoa isn’t out at LPGA events much, she’s still having a great impact on the next generation in her country through the IGPM, Impulsando al Golf Professional Mexicano. Currently there are 14 Mexican women in the program. Ochoa is part of three to four fundraisers a year that help pay for caddies, coaching, equipment, medical costs – whatever is needed.
“We’re very close to them,” said Ochoa, “because all of them are so particular, so they have different necessities. Once a year we get together for four or five days. I invite them to my home and spend time with them to see how are they feeling, how are they with their families, if they are happy, what are their goals for the year, how are they going to start the year or the changes that they’re making, if it’s working or not.
“And they call me, and we keep in touch and they ask me. I try to help them a little bit to make, I guess, less mistakes and be a little bit easier, and in a way to feel that they belong to something. They were part of the family, and all the Mexicans get together and support each other.”
It is the ultimate founder-like mentality. Ochoa became the first Mexican player to reach No. 1 in the world and lit a fire in minds of boys and girls across her country to take up a new sport. She now works to help the next generation continue what she started.
Spork and Ochoa practically bookend this tour, and no Hall of Fame that bears its name would be complete without them.
The LPGA’s Hall of Fame is the toughest to get into in all of sports. To date, there are 25 entrants.
Lorena Ochoa is on her way to the desert again and what a celebration it will be at the Chevron Championship as she’s finally getting into the LPGA Hall of Fame. Golfweek has learned that the LPGA will soon announce that the 10-year requirement that kept Ochoa out of the Hall has been removed by the tour’s Hall of Fame committee.
Players must amass 27 points and play 10 years to gain entry into the LPGA’s Hall of Fame. Ochoa amassed 37 points in seven years before retiring in 2010.
In addition, all 13 LPGA founders will now be in the LPGA’s hall, including local resident Shirley Spork. Currently, only five of the 13 founders are in the LPGA Hall of Fame.
The tour will also now award one point for an Olympic gold medal, Golfweek has learned.
The LPGA’s Hall of Fame is the toughest to get into in all of sports. To date, there are 25 entrants.
Honorary starter Lorena Ochoa participates in the first tee ceremony to begin the final round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur golf tournament at Augusta National GC. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
The key to handling pressure situations? Be brave.
Gaby Lopez backed up behind the tee markers a smidge on the seventh playoff hole at the season-opening Tournament of Champions two years ago at Tranquilo Golf Course, striking a solid 3-hybrid exactly as she’d drawn it up in her mind on the 197-year par-3 18th. It was chilly that morning and the conditions played to her favor as Lopez poured in a 25-foot birdie putt to claim her second LPGA title.
Compatriot Lorena Ochoa, a World Golf Hall of Famer, mentor and friend, has talked to Lopez about the importance of linking nerves with positive emotion.
“There are a couple little secrets,” said Lopez, “but probably one of them is being very brave and positive out on the golf course when you are in such a pressure situation.”
Lorena Ochoa of Mexico tosses her ball marker on the 16th green during her second round match at the HSBC Women’s World Match Play Championship at Hamilton Farm Golf Club on July 7, 2006.
Ochoa, who won 27 times on the LPGA from 2004 to 2009, told Lopez the more nerves she felt, the better she played. Lopez has tried to copy that mindset.
“When you see Jin Young Ko, you see Nelly (Korda), you see all the top players are really embracing the moment,” said Lopez, “and for me it has been just linking a very good situation for me in the past with what I’m presenting in the moment.”
While the name and venue are different at this week’s Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club, Lopez can still draw on many of the intangibles from her victory two years ago. She likes to journal, and when she looks back on that week she remembers feeling very certain of her decisions in the heat of battle.
“When you’re under pressure, you hit it where you want to hit it instead of what you want to avoid,” said Lopez.
“It’s really easy to say, but when you’re in the moment and you have the wind and you have the lie that’s uncomfortable, being able to refocus and get yourself very centered to say, ‘Hey, that is exactly what I want to do,’ when you do it and it happens, it just brings so much inner fears and inner force that it just makes you much stronger.”
The Rolex Rankings launched in February 2006 with the greatest player in the modern era, Annika Sorenstam, occupying the top spot. Sorenstam remained No. 1 for 60 weeks before Lorena Ochoa overtook her. There wasn’t much turnover in those early days, with Ochoa maintaining her position – as Sorenstam retired in 2008 – for 158 weeks.
The initial top 10 when the rankings debuted included: 1. Annika Sorenstam, 2. Paula Creamer, 3. Michelle Wie West, 4. Yuri Fudoh, 5. Cristie Kerr, 6. Ai Miyazato, 7. Lorena Ochoa, 8. Jeong Jang, 9. Het-Won Han, 10. Juli Inkster.
Since Ochoa left the game in the spring of 2010, however, there have been 13 different players rise to No. 1. Five South Korean players have spent a combined 276 weeks atop the rankings. In all, players from nine different countries have been No. 1, with current No. 1 Nelly Korda becoming the third American in June 2021.
Four players who reached No. 1 in the past 15 years have since retired.
Here’s a complete list of players who have ascended to the top:
After years of debate, 2022 is promising to be much more lucrative on the women’s side.
After years of debate over the discrepancy between purses on the men’s and women’s professional golf tours, 2022 is promising to be much more lucrative on the women’s side.
The USGA announced on Friday that the first-place prize for the U.S. Women’s Open this year will climb to $1.8 million, up from $1 million in 2021. Also, the CME Group Tour Championship’s total purse will jump up by $2 million (to $7 million), and its $2 million first-place prize will become the largest in professional women’s golf history.
To put that in perspective, only 27 times in the history of the LPGA has a player amassed $2 million or more in a single season, let alone a standalone week.
Here’s a look at those who have made this sum for an entire year (heading into the 2022 campaign).
How can the women who laid the foundation for generations to come not be in the LPGA Hall of Fame?
Former LPGA commissioner Mike Whan used to call his annual round of golf at the Founders Cup with Shirley Spork the highlight of his year. Spork, 94, is one of 13 women who started the tour in 1950. Five years ago, as Spork addressed her pro-am group on the ninth tee at Phoenix’s Wildfire Golf Club, she said: “I’d just like to thank you all for inviting me to play.”
To which three-time major winner Anna Nordqvist replied: “We wouldn’t be here without you.”
Spork was on hand in New Jersey last week for the revamped Cognizant Founders Cup, which now boasts the richest purse on tour outside the majors and the CME Group Tour Championship. During Sunday’s telecast, Golf Channel’s Grant Boone noted that only five of the tour’s 13 founders are in the LPGA Hall of Fame.
Spork is not among them.
How can some of the women who laid the foundation for generations to come not be in the LPGA Hall of Fame? It’s as head-scratching as the fact that Lorena Ochoa isn’t in there either. Or Laura Davies for that matter.
Professional golfer and co-founder of the LPGA Tour, Shirley Spork stands on the first tee box during competition rounds of the Solheim Cup golf tournament at Inverness Club. (Photo: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports)
The LPGA’s Hall of Fame is the toughest to get into in all of sports. To date, there are 25 entrants. Players must amass 27 points and play 10 years to gain entry. Ochoa amassed 37 points in seven years before retiring in 2010. She’s the epitome of greatness in every imaginable way, and yet remains locked out of the tour’s greatest honor because she didn’t put in the required time.
“It just, to me, defies logic,” said 26-time winner Judy Rankin, “that you don’t take every possible avenue to celebrate our sport and the people who have been important to it.”
Dinah Shore, a Hollywood celebrity who helped grow the tour and ensure its survival, is the only honorary member. Rankin became the first player inducted through the Veteran’s Category in 2000. Donna Caponi followed in 2001, and founder Marlene Hagge in 2002.
For a player to be considered for the Veteran’s category, she should, among other things, have been an active member for 10 years and retired or inactive for five consecutive years before nomination.
The Veteran’s Committee hadn’t met for several years when Ochoa passed the five-year mark. In 2016, the tour formed an LPGA Hall of Fame Committee to review the Hall’s qualifications. It has now been several years since that committee has met, and so far, no decisions or changes have been made.
Both Ochoa and Davies have since been inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Davies, of course, remains active on the LPGA, competing in 11 events so far this season.
British Women’s Open champion Laura Davies of West Byfleet, England, cheers after winning the U.S. Women’s Open at the Plainfield Country Club in Edison, N.J., on July 28, 1987. Davies beat Ayako Okamoto of Japan and JoAnne Carner in a 18-hole playoff.
Beth Daniel, who went into the LPGA Hall of Fame in 1999, serves on the Hall committee and said a lot of important research was done several years ago, including talking to older players who put some of the regulations in place.
The 10-year rule was originally instituted, Daniel said, because players felt they needed their stars to survive. Some players today still believe that kind of commitment is important.
Daniel, however, looks at the fact that the LPGA lost Annika Sorenstam and Ochoa to retirement in the span of two years and, while the tour certainly took a hit, the LPGA marched on. She believes it’s time to retire the 10-year rule, but not everyone on that committee – and in the overall membership – agrees.
“Members are very proud of their hall,” Whan told Golfweek last spring. “There’s no judgement. These are the facts. You knew when you teed it up that this is what it takes to get in.”
To that end, Whan said he could make recommendations, but ultimately, he felt the players needed to make the call.
Chief Tour Operations Officer Heather Daly-Donofrio said the Hall of Fame Committee would reconvene sometime after the 2021 season to continue its review. This is the committee that would nominate a player. For a nominee from the committee to be accepted into the hall, 75 percent of LPGA membership must vote her in.
Earlier this year, the International Tennis Hall of Fame enshrined its first group with the “Original 9,” 50 years after nine women took a stand against inequality and signed $1 contracts that changed the face of tennis and paved the way for the WTA Tour.
Three of the women, including Billie Jean King, were already in the Hall and became the first to be inducted twice.
Left to right; Patty Berg, Betty Jameson, Jean Hopkins, and Louise Suggs, before the start of the Western Women’s Golf tournament, June 1946. (Copyright Unknown/USGA Museum)
The LPGA should consider something similar for its 13 founders next year. Spork and Hagge, the only two living founders, could accept on behalf of the group. Patty Berg, Betty Jameson, Louise Suggs, Babe Zaharias and Hagge are the five founders who are already in the LPGA Hall of Fame.
Perhaps the newly named Chevron Championship in Rancho Mirage, California, would be a good site to celebrate, given that the two founders reside nearby in the desert. The 2022 Chevron should be a who’s who gathering of all the greats next year as it wraps up 51 years at the Dinah Shore Tournament Course.
Put Ochoa in the Hall then, too, along with Davies, and make it a grand affair. Why should it matter that the legendary Englishwoman hasn’t retired?
As Boone says, the LPGA Hall of Fame tells the story of the 71-year-old tour. Can the story of the LPGA be told without the Founders? Without Ochoa? Without Davies?
Certainly not.
“We’re supposed to be about you can have it all,” said Rankin. “You can be every woman, every girl and still strive to be one of the best players in the world. A lot of people have done a lot of good for the LPGA tour and didn’t spend their life there.”
