Lorena Ochoa

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Template:Short description Template:Family name hatnote Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Script error: No such module "infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Lorena Ochoa Reyes (Script error: No such module "IPA".; born 15 November 1981) is a Mexican former professional golfer who played on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour from 2003 to 2010. She was the top-ranked female golfer in the world for 158 consecutive and total weeks (both are LPGA Tour records), from 23 April 2007 to her retirement on 2 May 2010, at the age of 28 years old. As the first Mexican golfer of either gender to be ranked number one in the world,[1] because of her record, she is considered the best female golfer of all time.[2][3] Ochoa was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2017.[4]

Childhood and amateur career

Born and raised in Guadalajara, Ochoa was the third of four children of a real estate developer and an artist.[5] She took up golf at the age of five, won her first state event at the age of six, and her first national event at seven.

An 11-year-old Ochoa approached the professional Rafael Alarcón, 1979 winner of the Canadian Amateur Championship, as he worked on his game at Guadalajara Country Club, where her family lived near the 10th tee.[6] She asked him if he would help her with her game. Alarcon asked her what her goal was, "She said she wanted to be the best player in the world."

As a junior, she captured 22 state events in Guadalajara and 44 national events in Mexico. She won five consecutive titles at the Junior World Golf Championships[7][8][9][10][11] and in 2000 she enrolled at the University of Arizona in the U.S. on a golf scholarship, where she was a teammate of fellow freshman Natalie Gulbis.[12] While a student in Tucson, Ochoa received regular tutoring and greatly improved her English by watching movies and reading magazines between practice and tournaments.[13]

She was very successful in women's collegiate golf in the next two years, winning the NCAA Player of the Year Awards for 2001 and 2002, finishing runner-up at both the 2001 and 2002 NCAA National Championship[14] and being named to the National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) 2001 All-America First team.[15] She won the 2001 Pac-10 Women's Golf Championships,[16] was named Pac-10 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year 2001 and was All-Pac-10 First team in 2001 and 2002.[17]

In her second year she had eight tournament wins in ten events she entered[1] and set an NCAA record with seven consecutive victories in her first seven events.[6] She won the Golfstat Cup in both 2001 and 2002. The Cup is given to the player who has the best scoring average versus par with at least 20 full rounds played during a season.[18] setting the single-season NCAA scoring average record as a freshman at 71.33 and beating her own record the next year by just over a stroke per round with a 70.13 average.[14]

In November 2001, Ochoa was presented with Mexico's National Sports Award by Mexican President Vicente Fox. She was the youngest person and first golfer to receive Mexico's highest sporting accolade.[6] In 2006, she was named NCAA Division I Women's Golf Most Outstanding Student Athlete, an award which was bestowed as part of the 25th Anniversary of Women's Championships celebration, taking into account outstanding performances over the past 25 years.[14] She was the recipient of the 2003 Nancy Lopez Award, which is presented annually to the world's most outstanding female amateur golfer.[19]

Nancy Lopez describes Ochoa off the golf course: "When you meet her for the second time [...] she remembers not only your name, but also the slightest detail from the last time you spoke."[20]

Professional career

File:2007 LPGA Championship - Lorena Ochoa (1).jpg
Ochoa hitting an iron shot at the 2007 LPGA Championship

Ochoa left college after her second year to turn professional, then won three of ten events played on the 2002 Futures Tour, and topped its money list to earn membership on the LPGA Tour for the 2003 season.[21] She was also Duramed FUTURES Tour Player of the Year.[22]

In her rookie season on the LPGA Tour in 2003, she had eight top-10 finishes, including runner-up finishes at the Wegmans Rochester and Michelob Light Open at Kingsmill, ending the season as the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year[23] and ninth on the LPGA official money list. In 2004, she won her first two LPGA Tour titles: the Franklin American Mortgage Championship (where she became the first Mexican born player to win on the LPGA Tour) and the Wachovia LPGA Classic.[19] That same year she placed in the top ten in three of the four major championships.

In 2005, Ochoa won the Wegmans Rochester LPGA. In 2006, her first round score of 62 in the Kraft Nabisco Championship tied the record for lowest score ever by a golfer, male or female, in any major tournament. Her playoff loss to Karrie Webb marked her best finish until 2007 in an LPGA major. By the end of the year she won six tournaments, topped the money list and claimed her first LPGA Tour Player of the Year award which goes to the player who gains the most points throughout the season based on a formula in which points are awarded for top-10 finishes and are doubled at the LPGA's four major championships and at the season-ending ADT Championship.[24] She also won the LPGA Vare Trophy for lowest scoring average on the LPGA Tour.[25]

Her achievements were recognized outside the sport of golf when Ochoa won the 2006 Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year award and received the National Sports Prize for the second time.[26]

In April 2007, Ochoa overtook Annika Sörenstam to become the world number one ranked golfer.[27]

File:2008 LPGA Championship - Lorena Ochoa putting 1.jpg
Lorena Ochoa (MEX) during pro-am before 2008 LPGA Championship held at Bulle Rock Golf Course, on 3 June 2008 in Havre de Grace, Maryland.

In August 2007, Ochoa won her first major championship at the historic home of golf, the Old Course at St Andrews, with a wire-to-wire win by four shots at the Women's British Open.[28] She won the next two LPGA events, the CN Canadian Women's Open and the Safeway Classic, the first to win three consecutive events since Sörenstam in 2005.[29]

Also in 2007, Ochoa became the first woman ever to earn more than $4,000,000 in a single season, surpassing Sörenstam's previous record of $2,863,904.

In April 2008, Ochoa won her second major championship, this time at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, becoming the first golfer to win consecutive LPGA majors since Sörenstam in 2005. She celebrated this victory in the traditional fashion for the Kraft Nabisco by jumping into the pond on the 18th green.[30] The following week, she won the Corona Championship in her home country by 11 strokes. This gave her the final tournament win she needed to qualify for the World Golf Hall of Fame, although she cannot be inducted until she completes ten seasons on the LPGA Tour.[31]

Ochoa was coached by Rafael Alarcon, a Mexican professional. Alarcon finished second in the 1976 Canadian Amateur Championship, won that title in 1979, then turned professional.[32]

Retirement

File:2009 Women's British Open - Lorena Ochoa (5).jpg
Lorena Ochoa of Mexico on the 18th fairway during last practice round before 2009 Ricoh Women's British Open held at Royal Lytham & St Annes on 29 July 2009 in Lytham St Annes, England

On 20 April 2010, Ochoa released a statement indicating her intent to retire from professional golf.[33] At a press conference held in Mexico City on 23 April 2010, Ochoa said her last tournament would be the 2010 Tres Marias Championship to be played from 29 April through 2 May. She said that her career plan had always been to play for "around ten years" and to be the number 1 ranked player in the world. She also said:

I just want to be honest with all of you. I went to Asia, and after two or three days of being in Thailand, it was really easy to me – it was really clear to see that I didn't want to be out there, you know. I just was thinking of other things. I wanted to get home. I wanted to start working on the foundation. I wanted to be here close to my family.

Ochoa said she would still maintain her membership in the LPGA and would play in the Lorena Ochoa Invitational and "I'm going to leave the door open in case I want to come back in one or two years to play a U.S. Open or a Kraft Nabisco."[34]

Ochoa made a limited return to competitive golf in 2012, having been invited by her sponsor, Lacoste, to compete in the Lacoste Ladies Open de France, an event on the Ladies European Tour.[35] Ochoa finished the event in T22, 13 shots behind the winner Stacey Keating. Ochoa also announced she would compete in the 2012 edition of her own event, the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

Tournament host

In November 2008, she became the host of a new annual LPGA event, the Lorena Ochoa Invitational, held at her original home course, Guadalajara Country Club.[36] Proceeds from the tournament help support the Lorena Ochoa Foundation.

Personal life

File:LorenaOchoa2.JPG
Ochoa golf swing in 2004

Lorena Ochoa's successes fuel the family business, the Ochoa Group in Guadalajara, managed by her brother Alejandro Ochoa.

Lorena Ochoa is represented by the Ochoa Sports Management, along with Alarcon and Sophia Sheridan, a Mexican golfer who plays on the LPGA's developmental tour. The Ochoas are confident the list will expand as they attempt to grow the game in Mexico through Ochoa Golf Academies, created by Lorena, Alejandro and Alarcon.

Ochoa Sports Management also operates the LPGA Corona Championship, an annual tour stop in Morelia, Mexico; and the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

The Lorena Ochoa Foundation operates La Barranca, a primary school in Guadalajara with 250 underprivileged students and an innovative curriculum. In 2008, the foundation opened a high school with 21 freshmen students. The plan, according to foundation director Carmen Bolio, is to add a new class each year and then construct a high school building that's separate from the primary school.[20] She became engaged to her boyfriend Andrés Conesa Labastida, CEO of Aeroméxico,[37] and they married in December 2009. In April 2011, Ochoa announced she was pregnant with the couple's first child.[38] As of mid-2017, she has 3 children.[39]

Professional wins (30)

LPGA Tour (27)

Legend
LPGA Tour major championships (2)
Other LPGA Tour (25)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 16 May 2004 Franklin American Mortgage Championship −16 (70-67-67-68=272) 1 stroke Template:Flagicon Wendy Ward
2 29 Aug 2004 Wachovia LPGA Classic −19 (67-68-69-65=269) 2 strokes Template:Flagicon Grace Park
3 19 Jun 2005 Wegmans Rochester LPGA −15 (67-69-72-65=273) 4 strokes Template:Flagicon Paula Creamer
4 15 Apr 2006 LPGA Takefuji Classic −19 (63-68-66=197) 3 strokes Template:Flagicon Seon Hwa Lee
5 21 May 2006 Sybase Classic −5 (71-71-66=208) 2 strokes Template:Flagicon Kyeong Bae
Template:Flagicon Hee-Won Han
6 27 Aug 2006 Wendy's Championship for Children −24 (67-68-64-65=264) 3 strokes Template:Flagicon Jee Young Lee
Template:Flagicon Stacy Prammanasudh
7 8 Oct 2006 Corona Morelia Championship −20 (71-64-68-69=272) 5 strokes Template:Flagicon Julieta Granada
8 15 Oct 2006 Samsung World Championship −16 (67-73-67-65=272) 2 strokes Template:Flagicon Annika Sörenstam
9 12 Nov 2006 The Mitchell Company Tournament of Champions −21 (66-73-63-65=267) 10 strokes Template:Flagicon Paula Creamer
Template:Flagicon Juli Inkster
10 25 Mar 2007 Safeway International −18 (69-64-69-68=270) 2 strokes Template:Flagicon Suzann Pettersen
11 20 May 2007 Sybase Classic −18 (68-67-67-68=270) 3 strokes Template:Flagicon Sarah Lee
12 24 Jun 2007 Wegmans LPGA −8 (69-71-67-73=280) Playoff Template:Flagicon In-Kyung Kim
13 5 Aug 2007 Ricoh Women's British Open −5 (67-73-73-74=287) 4 strokes Template:Flagicon Maria Hjorth
Template:Flagicon Jee Young Lee
14 19 Aug 2007 CN Canadian Women's Open −16 (70-65-64-69=268) 3 strokes Template:Flagicon Paula Creamer
15 26 Aug 2007 Safeway Classic −12 (67-66-71=204) 5 strokes Template:Flagicon Sophie Gustafson
Template:Flagicon Christina Kim
Template:Flagicon Mhairi McKay
Template:Flagicon Inbee Park
16 14 Oct 2007 Samsung World Championship −18 (68-67-69-66=270) 4 strokes Template:Flagicon Mi-Hyun Kim
17 18 Nov 2007 ADT Championship −4 (70-70-66-68) 2 strokes Template:Flagicon Natalie Gulbis
18 2 Mar 2008 HSBC Women's Champions −20 (66-65-69-68=268) 11 strokes Template:Flagicon Annika Sörenstam
19 30 Mar 2008 Safeway International −22 (65-67-68-66=266) 7 strokes Template:Flagicon Jee Young Lee
20 6 Apr 2008 Kraft Nabisco Championship −11 (68-71-71-67=277) 5 strokes Template:Flagicon Suzann Pettersen
Template:Flagicon Annika Sörenstam
21 13 Apr 2008 Corona Championship −25 (66-66-66-69=267) 11 strokes Template:Flagicon Song-Hee Kim
22 20 Apr 2008 Ginn Open −18 (68-67-65-69=269) 3 strokes Template:Flagicon Yani Tseng
23 18 May 2008 Sybase Classic −10 (68-67-71=206) 1 stroke Template:Flagicon Na Yeon Choi
Template:Flagicon Sophie Gustafson
Template:Flagicon Brittany Lang
Template:Flagicon Catriona Matthew
Template:Flagicon Morgan Pressel
24 28 Sep 2008 Navistar LPGA Classic −15 (67-67-69-70=273) Playoff Template:Flagicon Cristie Kerr
Template:Flagicon Candie Kung
25 1 Mar 2009 Honda LPGA Thailand −14 (71-69-68-66=274) 3 strokes Template:Flagicon Hee Young Park
26 26 Apr 2009 Corona Championship −25 (65-65-69-68=267) 1 stroke Template:Flagicon Suzann Pettersen
27 4 Oct 2009 Navistar LPGA Classic −18 (66-68-66-70=270) 4 strokes Template:Flagicon Brittany Lang
Template:Flagicon Michelle Wie

LPGA Tour playoff record (2–5)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 2005 Safeway International Template:Flagicon Annika Sörenstam Lost with par on first extra hole
2 2006 SBS Open at Turtle Bay Template:Flagicon Joo Mi Kim
Template:Flagicon Soo Young Moon 		Kim won with birdie on second extra hole
Ochoa eliminated by birdie on first hole
3 2006 Kraft Nabisco Championship Template:Flagicon Karrie Webb Lost to birdie on first extra hole
4 2007 Ginn Tribute Hosted by Annika Template:Flagicon Nicole Castrale Lost to par on first extra hole
5 2007 Wegmans LPGA Template:Flagicon In-Kyung Kim Won with par on second extra hole
6 2007 Longs Drugs Challenge Template:Flagicon Suzann Pettersen Lost to birdie on second extra hole
7 2008 Navistar LPGA Classic Template:Flagicon Cristie Kerr
Template:Flagicon Candie Kung 		Won with par on second extra hole
Kerr eliminated by par on first hole

Futures Tour (3)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 16 Jun 2002 JWA/Michelob Light FUTURES Charity Golf Classic −9 (201) 4 strokes Template:Flagicon Amy Dahle
2 30 Jun 2002 Ann Arbor FUTURES Classic −8 (68-72-68=208) 1 stroke[40] Template:Flagicon Christina Kim
3 11 Aug 2002 Betty Puskar Futures Golf Classic −9 (70-68-69=207) 2 strokes[41] Template:Flagicon Erika Wicoff

Futures Tour playoff record (0–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 2002 Hewlett-Packard Garden State FUTURES Summer Classic Template:Flagicon Christina Kim Lost to birdie on sixth extra hole[42][43]

Major championships

Wins (2)

Year Championship Winning score Margin Runners-up
2007 Ricoh Women's British Open −5 (67-73-73-74=287) 4 strokes Template:Flagicon Maria Hjorth, Template:Flagicon Jee Young Lee
2008 Kraft Nabisco Championship −11 (68-71-71-67=277) 5 strokes Template:Flagicon Suzann Pettersen, Template:Flagicon Annika Sörenstam

Results timeline

Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Kraft Nabisco Championship T21LA 8 LA 3 T8 T35 2 T10 1 T12 4
LPGA Championship T20 T8 T5 T9 T6 T3 T23
U.S. Women's Open CUT WD T13 T44 T6 T20 T2 T31 T26
Women's British Open T24 4 CUT T4 1 T7 T28

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  Win

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  Top 10

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  Did not play

LA = low amateur
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" = tied

Summary

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Kraft Nabisco Championship 1 1 1 4 7 9 10 10
LPGA Championship 0 0 1 2 5 7 7 7
U.S. Women's Open 0 1 0 1 2 4 9 7
Women's British Open 1 0 0 3 4 5 7 6
Totals 2 2 2 10 18 25 33 30
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 17 (2006 Kraft Nabisco – 2010 Kraft Nabisco)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 7 (2006 British Open - 2008 LPGA)

LPGA Tour career summary

Year Tournaments
played		 Cuts
made		 Wins 2nd 3rd Top 10s Best
finish		 Earnings
($)		 Money
list rank		 Scoring
average		 Scoring
rank
2000 1 0 0 0 0 0 CUT n/a 76.50
2001 2 2 0 0 0 1 T7 70.75
20021 5 4 0 0 0 2 T5 19,080 n/a (142) 71.00 n/a (10)
2003 24 23 0 2 3 8 2 823,740 9 70.97 12
2004 27 27 2 1 5 18 1 1,450,824 3 70.02 3
2005 23 20 1 4 0 12 1 1,201,786 4 71.39 9
2006 25 25 6 6 2 21 1 2,592,872 1 69.24 1
2007 25 25 8 5 2 18 1 4,364,994 1 69.68 1
2008 22 22 7 0 2 17 1 2,763,193 1 69.70 1
2009 22 22 3 4 0 14 1 1,489,395 4 70.16 1
2010 6 6 0 0 0 2 4 176,527 53 71.92 n/a2(30)
2012 1 1 0 0 0 0 T18 13,158 141 71.00 n/a
Totals 183 177 27 22 14 113 1 14,863,331 4

1 The first three events of 2002 were played as an amateur; missed cut was an injury withdrawal (neck) prior to second round of the 2002 U.S. Women's Open.[44][45]
2 Ochoa was not included in the final 2010 scoring average rankings; her final event was in early May.

Futures Tour summary

Year Tournaments
played		 Cuts
made		 Wins 2nd 3rd Top 10s Best
finish		 Earnings
($)		 Money
list rank		 Scoring
average		 Scoring
rank
2002 10 10 3 4 0 8 1 53,702 1 69.27 1

Honors and awards

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Team appearances

Amateur

Professional

See also

Notes and references

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  34. ↑ Lorena Ochoa Retirement Transcript
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External links

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