The Evian Championship: Here Come The Youngsters!

The Evian Championship will be played for the 19th time this year. Helen Alfredsson (Sweden), the first Evian champion, announced her retirement from pro golf last weekend at the Helsingborg Open. She says the life of a touring pro doesn’t appeal any more Annika Sorenstam, who beat Aussie Karrie Webb in a playoff to win the 2000 Evian Championship has already retired, for much the same reason. Still, golf is a kind sport and it’s the nature of the game that pro golfers enjoy a longer career than athletes in other sports. Evian champs Laura Davies (England) and Julie Inkster (USA) are looking 50 in the eye, a time in life when tennis, football, basketball, and hockey players have turned to coaching, managing, and sports commentary. Davies and Inkster play on, loved, admired, embraced by a younger generation.

There’s a crop of wicked golfers among the 20/30-something cohort who are leading the LET and LPGA Tours. Rebecca Artis, who just won the Helsingborg Open and got her ticket punched for The Evian is 24. Inbee Park is 25, Stacy Lewis 28, and Suzann Pettersen and Lee-Anne Pace are 32. Gwladys Nocera is 38. They’re definitely on the top of the pile and they’re probably going to stay there for a while.

Then there are the eager, aggressive teenagers who have already established themselves as serious contenders for the top of the leaderboard. Five of them are playing in The Evian. Let’s take a look.

Seventeen-year old Charley Hull (England) turned pro in January 2013 after an impressive 7-year amateur career. She’s the youngest person ever to play for either team in the Solheim Cup, she outplayed Paula Creamer in their singles match, and she brought 2 1/2 points to Team Europe’s winning game.

Hull has entered 8 LET events since she turned pro, recorded 5 top-10 finishes, and missed the cut once, at the Women’s British Open. Is she ready for The Evian? Most certainly. She’s an aggressive and fearless player and she intends to give Inbee Park and everybody else some fierce competition.

Kiwi Lydia Ko, also 17, is the only amateur playing in The Evian and she’s the only one of the teenagers ranked in the top 10 by Rolex. Ko also holds the honor of having defeated Inbee Park at the 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open in a playoff. Ko knows Park’s game strategy very well, and she has her own willing style.

Ko won the New Zealand Women’s Open in February 2013 and was low amateur at the 2013 Kraft Nabisco , LPGA Championship, and Women’s British Open. She’s an amateur with more experience playing in major pro tournaments than many pro golfers. I’m looking forward to some competition between Ko and Hull! Where Ko is systematic and precise, Hull is aggressive and fearless.

American Lexi Thompson, at 18, is the only one of the teenagers with prior Evian experience. She played in The Evian Masters as a 15-year old and finished runner-up! Thompson, who’s ranked 27th by Rolex, is having a good year. She’s piled up 4 top-10 finishes, but she’s also had some trouble with her flat stick. She just couldn’t deliver the putts at the Solheim and she’s been averaging 30 putts/event, enough for a few birdies but not enough to get to the top of the board.

Like Charley Hull, nineteen-year old Moyira Jutanugarn (Thailand), turned pro this year. Jutanugarm finished 4th in the Women’s Australian Open in February, her only top-10 finish since she turned pro, and she’s still looking for a victory. Seventeen-year old Xi Yu Lin (China), like Hull and Jutanugarn, turned pro this year. Lin, who plays on the LET, is a sponsor invitee to The Evian. She’s entered 8 LET events this year, has no top-10s and has missed 4 cuts. For both Jutanugarm and Lin, The Evian will provide an opportunity to get some experience, but their records don’t indicate that they’ll play in league with Hull, Ko, and Thompson.

Hull, Ko, and Thompson all have a good chance to claim a top-10 finish at The Evian. Let’s wish them well in their quest!

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