Open offers Woods more room to grow

Golf Correspondent

Thursday 5 July 2012

We are all used to the spotlight shining on a Woods during a major golf tournament.

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Nick Rodger

This week's US Women's Open won't be any different.

With her uncle Tiger in the midst of a renaissance, having racked up his third win of the season on the PGA Tour last Sunday, Cheyenne Woods will be eager to feed off the family feel-good factor and make her own mark on the professional stage. The 21-year-old rookie, who made the switch into the paid ranks back in May after graduating from Wake University, clearly relishes a challenge. Her debut as a pro was in the Wegmans LPGA Championship, the second major on the calendar, last month. Her second start promises to be even more daunting.

The robust Blackwolf Run course in Wisconsin, host venue to this week's $3.25m event, provides one of the sternest examinations on the LPGA circuit. Woods made the grade in the sectional qualifier but now it's time for the real test."I couldn't have asked for a better start to my professional career, to play two majors in a month," said Woods, who has got used to living with the expectations that come with her surname. "The most difficult thing is dealing with the pressure, but I have dealt with it a long time and I have somehow been able to play my own game. I try not to worry about what others are thinking."It's been 14 years since the US Women's Open was last held at Blackwolf Run and that 1998 contest still holds considerable significance in the history and development of the women's game. A young Korean by the name of Se Ri Pak, who had already signalled her intent by winning the LPGA Championship barely two months earlier, claimed an epic play-off triumph and sparked an Asian invasion that continues to conquer all to this day. Last season, at the Broadmoor club in Colorado Springs, So Yeon Ryu defeated compatriot Hee Kyung Seo in a play-off to become the fourth South Korean in seven years to plunder the US crown.In the wider picture, the emergence of Taiwan's Yani Tseng, the world No.1 who has squirreled away five major titles in just four seasons since 2008, and Shanshan Feng, who became the first Chinese player to win one of the grand slam in last month's LPGA Championship, have all added to the Far Eastern promise."It's already been 14 years but it feels like yesterday," said five-time major champion Pak, as she reflected on a US Open success that had such a colossal impact in her homeland. "I have the greatest memories, the greatest happiness from here. It all happened in Wisconsin, in the best city and the best golf course ever. I feel like Se Ri Pak was born in '98 at Blackwolf Run."That generation inspired by her feats will join Pak in the field this week for a contest that will demonstrate just what a melting pot the LPGA circuit has become. In total, there will be 25 different countries represented but, in this week of Independence Day celebrations, the American golfers will be keen to add to the flag waving.Stacy Lewis, the world No.2 who has two wins on the tour this season, will carry the Stars and Stripes and will be ably supported by the likes of Paula Creamer and Cristie Kerr.On the home front, the ever-dependable Catriona Matthew, a major winner in 2009 at the Women's British Open, will join the gathering. Matthew, who was tied fourth in the 2001 US Open, is relishing the challenge."What I do like about the US Open is that scoring is difficult," said the 42-year-old from North Berwick. "It's never a birdie-fest. I like it when par is a good score, that's my kind of golf."

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Open offers Woods more room to grow

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