Song Yi Choi gets mad and leads with

a 64 on first day of new Futures Tour


PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE DURAMED FUTURES TOUR
BY LISA MICKEY
WINTER HAVEN, Florida – Third-year professional Song Yi Choi came up two shots short of qualifying for this week’s LPGA Tour tournament in Mexico on Monday, but she was right where she wanted to be in today’s first round of the Duramed FUTURES Tour season-opening event. Choi fired an eight-under-par score of 64 today to take the lead at the $100,000 Florida’s Natural Growers Charity Classic.
“I was really mad when I didn’t qualify in Mexico earlier this week, so I was focused today,” said Choi, 23, of Seoul, South Korea. “I’m pretty tired, but I was also very comfortable in today’s round.”
Choi got it going quickly at Lake Region Yacht and Country Club, draining a 20-foot birdie on the third hole, and then running in a string of four birdies on holes 5, 6, 7 and 8 – all from within six feet, except for a 50-foot bomb on the seventh hole.
The par-72, 6,176-yard course was receptive to scoring today, even with wind kicking up this afternoon on the wind-blown holes bordering Lake Hamilton. But on this first day of spring with the smell of orange blossoms in the air, Choi was steady. She rolled in a 25-footer on the 10th and a 20-footer on the 12th hole. Her only bogey came on the 14th hole with three putts from 30 feet, but the unflappable player rallied back with birdies from 15 feet and six feet on her final two holes.
“I shot a 69 and I feel like I’m playing catch-up golf,” said Janell Howland of Boise, Idaho, who played in Choi’s group today. “She just hits it close and makes a lot of putts. She’s solid.”
Playing in the afternoon, Choi hit 16 greens and 12 fairways in regulation and needed only 26 putts in today’s opening round. After the round, she admitted that finishing No. 6 on the Tour’s 2008 money list – just out of the top priority LPGA cards – made her even more determined to finish in the top five this year.
She plans to play in more LPGA Monday Qualifying Tournaments and will fly to Phoenix next week for Monday’s qualifier. But for now, Choi has her mind set on getting a top-status LPGA card, one way or another.
“I’ll forget about my round today and start a brand new day tomorrow,” she said.
Tour veteran Stephanie George of Myerstown, Pennsylvinia, grabbed the morning’s low round with a 68 (-4), carding five birdies and one bogey. The ninth-year pro said she was able to make a move today because she spent the off-season “simplifying” her swing with golf teacher Martin Hall in West Palm Beach, Fla.
“My goal was to make it as simple as possible and to also be aggressive,” said George, 30, a two-time winner on the Duramed Futures Tour and a former LPGA Tour member.
Tour rookie Kristie Smith of Perth, Australia was the first player to climb the leaderboard this morning with a three-under-par score of 69 in her opening round as a Tour professional, but she was tied later by rookie Christine Song of Fullerton, California, amateur Hannah Yun of Bradenton, Florida, Jean Reynolds of Newnan, Ga., and Tour veteran Janell Howland.
A total of 19 players carded rounds under par with 37 players finishing at even-par 72 or better.
Weather: Sunny with temperatures in low-80s with wind around 10 mph.
Family Away From Home
Third-year Duramed Futures Tour member Anastasia Kostina of Nakhabino, Russia is enjoying the comforts of home this week with a Russian host family in Lakeland, Florida. Kostina met Michael and Julia Radivilov two years ago and stayed with them in private housing last year. The couple invited her back to stay in their home this year, even though the tournament moved across the county from Lakeland to Winter Haven. It’s a good 30-to-40min commute to the tournament site each day, but Kostina doesn’t mind.
“Staying with them really feels like home,” said Kostina. “They remind me of my parents so much. They’ve never met my parents, but they talk to them all the time on Skype [an international Internet provider].”
Her Russian host family serves up familiar food, such as a “white mushroom” Russian soup, crepes and a cabbage pastry. Thanks to a satellite dish, they even watch Russian TV shows. And away from the golf course, Kostina spends time with the family listening to Russian music and reading Russian books.
Sometimes a little comfort on the road goes a long way, Kostina said.

Don’t Mess With Dan’s Little Sister
Duramed Futures Tour rookie Selanee Henderson of Apple Valley, California, can pretty much hold her own anywhere, thanks to being the little sister of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) mixed martial artist Dan Henderson.
Her big brother was a college wrestler at Arizona State University, then a two-time Greco-Roman U.S. Olympic Team wrestler in the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games before he got into the pay-per-view fighting sensation that combines martial arts, kickboxing, traditional boxing and ju jitsu.
“It’s not the fake stuff,” said Selanee. “He’s never been knocked out and he has his own Wikipedia page.”
Her brother also has endorsements in his sport and he has his own clothing brand. When asked if she is involved in his brand, little sister laughed.
“Why would I wear fighting clothes?” she said. “We’re in two different worlds. He makes a lot on endorsements and he sponsors me, but he’s keeping a tab on it.”
Strength and tenacity seems to run in the family. Selanee’s father wrestled at Long Beach State and her oldest brother wrestled at San Diego State. Growing up in a house with two brothers, the golfer said she learned to fight back whenever they “would hold me upside down and tickle me.”
Brother Dan’s next big fight is in July in Las Vegas, but Selanee admits that she hopes she’ll have to miss that one.
“It’s during the same week as the U.S. Women’s Open and I hope I’m there, instead of Vegas.”
Sorry, Dan. No harm intended.

Futures Tour Scoreboard
FLORIDA'S NATURAL GROWERS CHARITY CLASSIC
LAKE REGION YACHT & COUNTRY CLUB
FIRST ROUND SCORES
Par 72 (36-36). 6166yd.
1 Song Yi Choi (Seoul, South Korea) 31-33 - 64
2 Stephanie George (Myerstown, Pa.) 34-34 - 68
3 Kristie Smith (Perth, Australia) 35-34 - 69
3 Christine Song (Fullerton, Calif.) 36-33 - 69
3 Hannah Yun (a) (Bradenton, Fla.) 35-34 - 69
3 Jean Reynolds (Newnan, Ga.) 36-33 - 69
3 Janell Howland (Boise, Idaho) 35-34 - 69
8 Tzu-Chi Lin (Beaumont, Calif.) 36-34 - 70
8 Samantha Richdale (Kelowna, British Columbia) 37-33 - 70
8 Nicole Hage (Coral Springs, Fla.) 33-37 - 70
8 Seo-Jae Lee (Seoul, South Korea) 34-36 - 70
8 Mo Martin (Altadena, Calif.) 33-37 - 70 13
13 Melissa Eaton (Port Shepstone, South Africa) 36-35 - 71
13 Angela Oh (Maple Shade, N.J.) 36-35 - 71
13 Alejandra Shaw (Vina Del Mar, Chile) 35-36 - 71
13 Selanee Henderson (Apple Valley, Calif.) 34-37 - 71
13 Andrea Vander Lende (Longwood, Fla. 35-36 - 71
13 Hwanhee Lee (Las Vegas, Nev.) 37-34 - 71
13 Lisa Ferrero (Lodi, Calif.) 35-36 - 71
20 Jessica Shepley (Oakville, Ontario) 37-35 - 72
20 Bing Lim (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) 37-35 - 72
20 Jenny Gleason (Clearwater, Fla.) 36-36 - 72
20 Kylene Pulley (Kokomo, Ind.) 37-35 - 72
20 Benedikte Grotvedt (Nesbru, Norway) 34-38 - 72
20 Tiffany Prats (Williston, Fla.) 34-38 - 72
20 Alison Walshe (Westford, Mass.) 38-34 - 72
20 Lisa Meldrum (Montreal, Quebec) 38-34 - 72
20 Michelle Jarman (Wilmington, N.C.) 38-34 - 72
20 Yeon Joo Lee (Seoul, South Korea) 36-36 - 72
20 Mina Harigae (Monterey, Calif.) 37-35 - 72
20 Caroline Larsson (Stockholm, Sweden) 38-34 - 72
20 Dana Je (Orlando, Fla.) 37-35 - 72
20 Christi Cano (San Antonio, Texas) 37-35 - 72
20 Yoora Kim (Seoul, South Korea) 38-34 - 72
20 Dewi Claire Schreefel (Diepenveen, Netherlands) 38-34 - 72
20 Violeta Retamoza (Aguascalientes, Mexico) 38-34 - 72
20 Charlotte Campbell (Heathrow, Fla.) 36-36 - 72
38 Elisa Serramia (Barcelona, Spain) 38-35 - 73
38 Sarah Olsen (Grosse Ile, Mich.) 36-37 - 73
38 Hannah Jun (San Diego, Calif.) 36-37 - 73
38 Tiffany Tavee (Tempe, Ariz.) 38-35 - 73
38 Sohi Moon (Seoul, South Korea) 37-36 - 73
38 Kelly Lagedrost (Brooksville, Fla.) 37-36 - 73
38 Angela Buzminski (Oshawa, Ontario) 38-35 - 73
38 Katie Allison (Little River, S.C.) 39-34 - 73
38 Mary J. Kim (Seoul, South Korea) 36-37 - 73
38 Sara Brown (Tucson, Ariz.) 37-36 - 73
38 Liz Janangelo (West Hartford, Conn.) 35-38 - 73
38 Janice Olivencia (Caguas, Puerto Rico) 37-36 - 73
38 Lili Alvarez (Durango, Mexico) 38-35 - 73
38 Lindsey Bergeon (Sarasota, Fla.) 35-38 - 73
38 Sofie Andersson (Angelholm, Sweden) 38-35 - 73
38 Sookhee Baek (Altamonte Springs, Fla.) 37-36 - 73
38 Ashley Prange (Noblesville, Ind.) 37-36 - 73
38 Sae Hee Son (Seoul, South Korea) 39-34 - 73
38 Maru Martinez (Maracaibo, Venezuela) 37-36 - 73
38 Rachel Bailey (Faulconbridge, Australia) 37-36 - 73
38 Marcela Leon (Monterrey, Mexico) 40-33 - 73
38 Misun Cho (Cheongju, South Korea) 38-35 - 73
38 Emily Bastel (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 36-37 - 73
38 Danah Ford (Indianapolis, Ind.) 38-35 - 73
62 Christina Jones (Jensen Beach, Fla.) 38-36 - 74
62 Rak Kyung Oh (Seoul, South Korea) 37-37 - 74
62 Kimberly Goedecke (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) 38-36 - 74
62 Vicki Goetze-Ackerman (Cartersville, Ga.) 36-38 - 74
62 Lori Atsedes (Ithaca, N.Y.) 40-34 - 74
62 Su A Kim (Seoul, South Korea) 37-37 - 74
62 Ashli Bunch (Morristown, Tenn.) 38-36 - 74
62 Angela Jerman (Columbus, Ga.) 36-38 - 74
62 Briana Vega (Andover, Mass.) 38-36 - 74
62 Michaela Cavener (Ponca City, Okla.) 39-35 - 74
62 Kim Welch (Sacramento, Calif.) 36-38 - 74
62 Lorraine Ballerano (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) 35-39 - 74
62 Carol Robertson (Virginia Beach, Va.) 40-34 - 74
62 Onnarin Sattayabanphot (Bangkok, Thailand) 35-39 - 74
62 Whitney Wade (Glasgow, Ky.) 39-35 - 74
62 Y. J. Jin (Seoul, South Korea) 38-36 - 74
62 Lehua Wise (Kauai, Hawaii) 36-38 - 74
62 Libby Smith (Essex Junction, Vt.) 36-38 - 74
62 Chris Brady (Charlotte, N.C.) 37-37 - 74
81 Esther Choe (Scottsdale, Ariz.) 39-36 - 75
81 Jasi Acharya (Columbus, Mont.) 40-35 - 75
81 Sophia Sheridan (Guadalajara, Mexico) 37-38 - 75
81 Rebecka Heinmert (Hassleholm, Sweden) 36-39 - 75
81 Marci Turner (Tompkinsville, Ky.) 41-34 - 75
81 Lee Ann Walker-Cooper (Southport, N.C.) 36-39 - 75
81 Amanda Mathis (Opelousas, La.) 39-36 - 75
81 Ashley Grier (Hagerstown, Md.) 38-37 - 75
81 Brenda McLarnon (Belfast, Ireland) 37-38 - 75
81 Jenna Pearson (Wheaton, Ill.) 41-34 - 75
81 Aimee Cho (Orlando, Fla.) 40-35 - 75
81 Jenny Suh (Fairfax, Va.) 37-38 - 75
81 Stephanie Kim (a) (Orlando, Fla.) 37-38 - 75
81 Juli Erekson (Mapleton, Utah) 37-38 - 75
81 Sin Ah Ham (Seoul, South Korea) 37-38 - 75
81 Carling Coffing (Middletown, Ohio) 36-39 - 75
81 Stella Lee (Seoul, South Korea) 38-37 - 75
81 Cindy Lee-Pridgen (Sabah, Malaysia) 36-39 - 75
81 Sue Ginter (Appleton, Wis.) 36-39 - 75
100 Sarah Beth Jacobs (Nashville, Tenn.) 39-37 - 76
100 Meghan Little (Sturgis, S.D.) 39-37 - 76
100 Min Seo Kwak (Seoul, South Korea ) 40-36 - 76
100 Nicole Jeray (Berwyn, Ill.) 40-36 - 76
100 Whitney Myers (York. Pa.) 39-37 - 76
100 Devan Andersen (Guadalajara, Mexico) 39-37 - 76
100 Kelly Schaub (Greeley, Colo.) 39-37 - 76
100 Perry Swenson (Charlotte, N.C.) 38-38 - 76
100 Garrett Phillips (St. Simons Island, Ga.) 38-38 - 76
100 Victoria Kiser (a) (Orlando, Fla.) 39-37 - 76
100 Wendi Patterson-Golden (a) (Bradenton, Fla.) 39-37 - 76
100 Laura Crawford (Lancaster, S.C.) 40-36 - 76
100 Kelly Froelich (Raizeux, France) 40-36 - 76
100 Sam White (Potomac, Md.) 40-36 - 76
114 Kira Meixner (a) (Richmond, British Columbia) 40-37 - 77
114 Jennifer Ackerson (Dallas, Texas) 41-36 - 77
114 Tracy Hanson (Coeur D'Alene, Idaho) 40-37 - 77
114 Maggie Simons (Raleigh, N.C.) 40-37 - 77
114 Madeleine Holmblad (Stockholm, Sweden) 40-37 - 77
114 Stacey Tate (Auckland, New Zealand) 37-40 - 77
114 Stephanie Oukeo (Paris, France) 38-39 - 77
114 Susan Nam (Edmonton, Alberta) 38-39 - 77
114 Tanya Dergal (Durango, Mexico) 39-38 - 77
114 Stephanie Otteson (Wilson, N.C.) 37-40 - 77
114 Jill Frantz (Iowa City, Iowa) 39-38 - 77
125 Christine Cho (Kent, Wash.) 38-40 - 78
125 Ashley Knoll (The Woodlands, Texas) 41-37 - 78
125 Eom Ji Park (Vancouver, BC) 38-40 - 78
125 Noon Huachai (Bangkok, Thailand) 41-37 - 78
125 Kim Augusta (Rumford, R.I.) 40-38 - 78
130 Carmen Bandea (Atlanta, Ga.) 37-42 - 79
130 Renee Skidmore (Everett, Wash.) 38-41 - 79
130 Anastasia Kostina (Nakhabino, Russia) 41-38 - 79
130 Nicola Eaton (Port Shepstone, South Africa) 38-41 - 79
130 Malinda Johnson (Eau Claire, Wis.) 41-38 - 79
130 Moah Chang (Los Angeles, Calif.) 40-39 - 79
130 Jieun Oh (Je Ju, South Korea) 41-38 - 79
130 Gerina Mendoza (Roswell, N.M.) 40-39 - 79
130 Kristina Tucker (Stockholm, Sweden) 41-38 - 79
139 Yoo Kyeong Kim (Incheon, South Korea) 39-41 - 80
139 Jessica Carafiello (Coral Springs, Fla.) 44-36 - 80
141 Taya Battistella (Bend, Oregon) 45-36 - 81
142 Cassandra Blaney (Champions Gate, Fla.) 40-42 - 82
143 Mary Moan (New Haven, Conn.) 41-42 - 83
144 Lilly Kobayashi (Santa Monica, Calif.) 41-43 - 84