Jason Day and The Australian Ladies Masters Fantasy Picks

By Elizabeth Bethel | Feb 11, 2015

Aug 15, 2014; Pittsford, NY, USA; Katherine Kirk hits a shot out of a sand trap on the 6th hole during the second round of the Wegman

Going into the first round at the LET’s RACV Australian Ladies Masters it’s tempting to fall back on Jason Day’s recent proclamation that only “very young, tall, big, strong-looking guys” have much of a chance to win golf tournaments these days to pick the players most likely to take a run at the top of the board at Royal Pines. But so far as the women are concerned, I think Day’s formula is flawed.

Aside from the fact that not one of them’s a guy, however, among those I see as most likely to be in contention some are young and some not so much, some are tall and others short. I’m struck more by the physical diversity of the field than the physical superiority of the likely Aussie Ladies Masters champion.

It’s just different seeing my face on the player badges and the billboards – Cheyenne Woods

Defending champion and LPGA rookie

Cheyenne Woods

says she’s ready to step up to the tee and defend her title, but back-to-back championships are relatively rare and while Woods is certainly a competent golfer, I’m not confident that she can outplay others in the field.

Still, Woods passed on last week’s LPGA event, the Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic, in order to be physically and mentally ready for this first title defense of her career so I’ll keep her in my picks, at least through the first and second rounds. For the record, the 24-year old Woods is 5’6″, about average height for an adult woman.

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Even though she’ll be playing at least the first round with borrowed clubs — the airlines lost her clubs and luggage — I’m looking for the 5’9″ Australian Katherine Kirk, who’s just celebrated her 33rd birthday, to be among those most likely to challenge Woods for the Ladies Masters victory this week.

Kirk, the 2009 Australian Ladies Masters champion, is no stranger to lost clubs. She finished runner-up at the 2005 Canadian Women’s Open after her clubs went missing. She has a solid game and she’s playing on home ground. Advantage to Kirk.

Holly Clyburn

I’m also looking for Holly Clyburn to take a run at the victory this week. The Curtis Cup standout is starting her 2nd year on the LET and she recorded her first victory in 2013 as a rookie at the Deloitte Ladies Open.

Clyburn, who’s 5’4″ and the same age as Cheyenne Woods — 24– was in close contention with Charley Hull for LET Rookie of the Year. Hull edged her out of contention in the final tournament of the season. Clyburn’s going to try and prevent that from happening again this week, and I’m looking for her to stay well ahead of Hull, who’s declared that she’s planning to divide her time between the golf course and the beach this week.

Clyburn is probably also hoping to get a look from Carin Koch for Europe’s Solheim Cup team. She had a strong 2014 season and if she could pick up an early win there’s a good chance she’ll have a shot at one of the captain’s picks slots for the 2015 Solheim Cup.

Rachel Hetherington

I’m looking for Rachel Hetherington to also take a run at the top of the Ladies Masters leaderboard, even though she lacks both the age — Hetherington’s 42 — and height factor — she 5’5″ — Jason Day seems to think figure heavily in the golf champion equation.

This will be Hetherington’s second appearance in two weeks coming out of a 4-year retirement. I’m thinking that Hetherington’s T4 finish at the ALPG’s Oates Victorian Open last week rekindled her appetite for competition and she’s going to come at the Ladies Masters flat-out and intent on the victory.

Media Coverage

Check your local listing for live television coverage of the Australian Ladies Masters. The LET YouTube channel will stream the weekend rounds live in some areas and you can also follow the tournament on the LET electronic leaderboard.

Next: Annabel Dimmock Debuts at RACV Ladies Masters