LIZ, MICHELE AND RACHEL FIGURE
IN GOLFWEEK'S LADIES'
WORLD AMATEUR RANKINGS

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
The good performances of Ladies Golf Union Elite Squad members Liz Bennett, Michele Thomson and Rachel Jennings on the Orange Blossom Tour in Florida earlier this month earned them points and placings in the Golfweek website's Ladies' world amateur rankings.
Liz Bennett, who won the South Atlantic Ladies Amateur (Sally) championship, is in 15th position in the current table with 85pt.
Michele Thomson - some confusion about the spelling of her surname on the table - is 28th with 55pt and Rachel Jennings is 45th with 35pt.
The top placings are dominated by members of the United States Curtis Cup team selected for the match against GB&I over the Old Course at the end of May.
Stacy Lewis is No 1 with 260pt. College ace Amanda Blumenherst is second with 215 and Meghan Bolger third with 190.
However, to call them WORLD women's amateur rankings is stretching it a bit. Golfweek lists all the designated events in 2008 in which players can earn qualifying points. There are only TWO competitions on this side of the Atlantic - the British women's amateur championship at North Berwick in June and the British women's open amateur stroke-play in the autumn.
Points are also being awarded for wins/halved matches in the Curtis Cup.
Sooner or later the R&A backroom team will get a women's world amateur ranking system, comparable with their excellent men's world amateur rankings, up and running.
Last I heard they were trying to draw up a worldwide list of women's amateur tournaments so that everyone - not just Americans - has a fair chance to gain points.
It's not an easy task but when it comes to thoroughness and equity, the R&A are in a class of their own.