Ochoa Qualifies For Hall of Fame

Little noticed in the wake of the Masters this past weekend was the fact that Lorena Ochoa qualified for the LPGA Hall of Fame. Fittingly, she did it in her home country of Mexico, winning the Corona Championship.

It was her third straight victory; her fourth in five starts this year; and her ninth in the last 14, including two majors.

Those numbers truly are Tiger-like.

Ochoa is the second youngest player to qualify for the Hall, at 26 years 4 months 29 days. Karrie Webb was the youngest, at 25 years 7 months 2 days.

Interestingly, Ochoa must wait until 2012 for her actual induction, since she has not yet been on the tour ten years.

Admission to the LPGA Hall of Fame is built on a points system. To be admitted, a player:

1. Must be/have been an “active” LPGA Tour member for 10 years:
2. Must have won/been awarded at least one of the following – an LPGA major championship, the Vare Trophy or Rolex Player of the Year honors; and
3. Must have accumulated a total of 27 points, which are awarded as follows – one point for each LPGA official tournament win, two points for each LPGA major tournament win and one point for each Vare Trophy or Rolex Player of the Year honor earned.

With her hot streak, Ochoa has raced through parts two and three and simply must wait for her turn.

I’ve been very impressed with the golf I’ve seen Ochoa play. Whereas a knock on her in the past was that she had trouble closing the deal, in recent tournaments, she has been relentless, actually increasing her lead in the final round.

It’s just a shame that the LPGA isn’t as easy to find on television as the PGA Tour.