Nasa Hataoka was disqualified from the ShopRite LPGA Classic for taking too much time to find her ball on her last hole of the first round and signing an incorrect scorecard.
Hinson-Tolchard has held off turning professional so that she could complete her university degree and also compete in the 2024 Augusta Women’s Invitational tournament, but the time has arrived.
As the final round looms, one of the three main contenders is a two-time major winner who seems to have ice running through her veins, another is a child star whose success on the professional circuit seems inevitable, and the last is a 31-year-old who had so little confidence in her game that she expected to shoot 80 and miss the cut, hates pressure and doesn’t think she handles it very well, seems dead tired from the hard walk at Lancaster Country Club, and has been coping with the fear of a ghost.
Having course awareness and taking the extra step of thinking through a strategy before your shot will help you manage wind that feels like it’s coming from a different direction on every hole.
Thompson may be only 29 years old, but she’s been playing competitive professional golf since she was 15 and has the equivalent of what would be a full career in many other sports under her belt before her 30th birthday. What seemed clear, as she explained her decision, is that the lifestyle has worn on her.
Perhaps that’s not the best example to set for impressionable young fans, but Hull is just following in the footsteps of John Daly, Arnold Palmer and Ben Hogan. That’s mighty fine company to be in.
Australian Golf Digest
