Orient Ningbo Championship: Li Celebrates 'Perfect' Maiden Win


Ningbo (July 31): Li Wei posted her maiden professional win with a dominant performance in the US$50,000 Orient Ningbo Championship in Zhejiang Province. The former China national team standout carded her second consecutive round of 68 for a three-stroke victory at the Orient (Ningbo) Sports and Country Club. The 27-year-old Beijing native finished with an aggregate of four-under 212 over 54 holes. She received US$7,500 for her triumph in what was the fourth leg of the China LPGA Tour's inaugural season.

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Wie And Stupples Predict Tough Going At Royal Lytham


Manchester (July 30): Michelle Wie and Karen Stupples have agreed that they would be happy to shoot even-par in the RICOH Women’s British Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club this week. The championship links has been set up to present its greatest ever challenge to the leading women professionals, with the introduction of nine new bunkers over the par-72 course. The weather has played a major part, with the heavy rain and heat of the last few months providing ideal conditions for growing the rough. Fairways are soft with less roll than in the three previous editions at Royal Lytham in 1998, 2003 and 2006.

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Confidence Flooding Back For 'Rock Star' Miyazato


Lytham St Annes (July 29): Two years ago a Japanese reporter gave me a newspaper that featured an up-close picture of Ai Miyazato on its front page. Everything in the Sports Nippon was written in Japanese, but no translation was necessary. Miyazato’s story was written all over her face. She had just lost to Lee Seon-hwa in the final of the 2007 HSBC Women’s World Match Play Championship, and her larger-than-life cheeks were stained with tears. Last week in France, there were more tears. These tears, however, were happy ones, for they signalled the end of a drought that had dominated the past 3 1/2 years of her life.

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After The Coup: LPGA Eases Tensions


Orlando (July 28): The LPGA’s new leadership is reaching out to its tournaments – and may be willing to reconsider the controversial raising of event fees – to help preserve the Tour’s schedule, according to a tournament owner. Many event organisers have complained that they can’t afford higher fees, especially when they are struggling with declining revenue during a recession. But the issue was non-negotiable for former commissioner Carolyn Bivens, who insisted tournaments needed to pay their fair share of staging costs. The stand-off escalated LPGA players’ fears of additional event cancellations and led some of them to revolt against the commissioner, eventually forcing Bivens’ resignation on July 13.

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Senior Open Championship: Roberts Rules The Roost At Sunningdale


London (July 26): American Loren Roberts has been crowned Senior Open Championship winner for the second time in four years. The smooth-putting American repelled the challenges of compatriot Fred Funk and naturalised Irishman Mark McNulty in a thrilling sudden-death play-off. Funk dropped out at the first extra hole, failing to match the birdies of Roberts and McNulty. At the second extra hole, Roberts narrowly missed a 15-foot birdie putt for victory. At the third time of asking, though, he prevailed after McNulty pushed his drive into a bush at the 18th. He took a penalty drop and made a bogey-five. Roberts on the green in two, safely two-putted for the win.

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Nagashima Shigeo Invitational: Fujita's Last-Hole Heroics Sink Idoki


Tokyo (July 26): Hiroyuki Fujita snared a dramatic final-hole birdie to deny veteran Kouki Idoki what would have been a sentimental victory in the 130 million yen (about US$1.3 million) Nagashima Shigeo Invitational Saga Sammy Cup. Three shots clear at the top at the start of the day, Idoki fired a solid closing two-under-par 70 over the 7,115-yard North Country Golf Club layout in Hokkaido Prefecture. But his hopes of ending a 16-year victory drought on the Japan Golf Tour were shattered by Fujita, who birdied three of the last four holes en route to a bogey-free six-under 66.

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