Stupid LPGA Rules Affect World’s Best Female Golfers, Lorena Ochoa and Jiyai Shin

Listed by increasing level of stupidity, here are three LPGA rules currently in place.

Stupid Rule #3 – Any earnings from an official LPGA event are considered unofficial if earned while playing on a sponsor’s exemption, even if the player is a current LPGA member. LPGA rookie Jiyai Shin won an unofficial $24,349 in the Honda LPGA Thailand event 2 weeks ago. If these earnings were counted she would be on top of the current Official Money List. While that may not seem very important now, it certainly could be at the end of the year.

Stupider Rule #2 – Any wins in official LPGA events by non-LPGA members are considered “unofficial” wins in the record book. In 2008 Jiyai Shin won 3 official events as a non-member, including a Major championship: the Women’s British Open, the Tour Championship and one other regular LPGA stop. Again, that may seem unimportant now, but when you look ahead, induction into the Hall of Fame could be decided on that very thing. It is also the same, silly reasoning that kept her from being an official invitee to the Thailand event above.

Stupidest Rule #1 – The LPGA takes great pride in claiming that induction into their Hall of Fame is based on results. While the numbers needed to get in are arbitrary, that is acceptable. But it is also based on years of active membership. Ten years, to be precise. What possible difference does that make? Lorena Ochoa passed the threshold for accomplishments last year. She qualified for the Hall of Fame BASED ON MERIT in April 2008 but can’t be inducted for another four years.