Inbee Park will have week off to enjoy major triumph, No. 1 ranking

Inbee Park of South Korea plays her tee shot at the par 3, 1st hole during the final round of the 2015 KPMG Women's PGA Championship on the West Course at Westchester Country Club in Harrison, New York.

Photo Credit: David Cannon/Getty Images

  By: Neal Reid

No one in professional golf had a bigger week than Inbee Park.
Not only did she become just the third woman in LPGA history – along with Annika Sorenstam and Patty Berg – to complete a major trifecta and win the same major championship three consecutive years, but she wrestled away the world’s No. 1 ranking from Lydia Ko in the process. 
Park’s five-stroke triumph at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in Harrison, New York State, also put her atop the 2015 LPGA money list and into the top spot in the Rolex Player of the Year points standings.
Park now has 15 career Tour victories and six majors at the ripe age of 26, and she also became the LPGA’s first three-time winner of the season. Many consider Park a no-brainer for the LPGA Tour and World Golf Halls of Fame, and she is certainly well on her way to reaching those heights the way she is playing.
She will have a week to reflect and bask in the glow of another victory as the LPGA Tour takes another break, and there’s no doubt she will enjoy her immense achievement. Perhaps she will buy something nice with the $525,000 first-place prize.
The $3.5 million tournament closed out a great three-week stretch for the LPGA that also included victories by Europeans Anna Nordqvist and Suzann Pettersen and brought the association to the 15-event mark of the season.
 Park and runner-up Sei Young Kim each crossed the $1 million mark in season earnings, and Park is now 13-for-13 on cuts made.
Some players will use this week to work on their games, while others will play in charity events, enjoy some R and R time or simply take a few days to catch their breath in the comfort of their own homes. 
Tour life is a constant grind, so weeks off like this can be crucial for a player’s physical and mental stamina going forward.
Next week, the LPGA returns to action at the Walmart NW Arkansas Presented by PandG in Rogers, Arkansas, where Stacy Lewis is the defending champion. Park won the event in 2013, and Yani Tseng has won it twice in the past at Pinnacle Country Club, so they should be players to watch in the $2 million event.
First though, it’s time for a pause, to regroup and game plan for the coming weeks as the train that is the LPGA chugs along. Considering Park’s unwavering dedication to her craft, chances are she won’t dwell too long on her triumph before turning her eyes to the next opportunity to shine.

SCROLL DOWN TO READ LEADING TOTALS
 Other scores included:
T26 Charley Hull      68 74 75 73 290
T34 Felicity Johnson 73 74 75 70 292
T41 Becky Morgan   72 73 78 70 293
T53 Laura Davies      72 74 74 75 295

MISSED CUT (147 and better qualified)
148 Lydia Ko                 72 76
153 Cheyenne Woods    76 77
153 Jodi Ewart Shadoff 78 75
158 Stephanie Meadow  76 82

FINAL TOTALS  par 292 (4x73) Pos Name 1 2 3 4 1 Inbee Park 71 68   66   68   273 2 Sei-Young Kim 70    68   69 71 278 3 Lexi Thompson 70 72   72  66 280 4 Brittany Lincicome 70 74   69   68 281 T5 Morgan Pressel 73 70    69 70 282 T5 Brooke Henderson 67 73 71 71 282 T7 Karrie Webb 68 71 72 72 283 T7 Suzann Pettersen 74 66 71 72 283 T9 Gerina Piller 72 70 73 69 284 T9 Anna Nordqvist 71 73 70 70 284 T9 Hyo-Joo Kim 70 74 69 71 284 12 Sandra Gal 70 74 75 66 285 T13 Minjee Lee 72 74 73 67 286 T13 Karine Icher 69 75 72 70 286 T13 So Yeon Ryu 72 72 71 71 286 T13 Stacy Lewis 70 71 73 72 286 T13 Sakura Yokomine 74 71 69 72 286 T13 Shanshan Feng 73 72 68 73 286 T19 Lizette Salas 74 71 73 69 287 T19 Cristie Kerr 70 72 73 72 287 21 Wei-Ling Hsu 74 71 72 71 288 T22 Sadena Parks 74 73 75 67 289 T22 Jenny Shin 66 75 76 72 289 T22  Catriona Matthew 73 72 72 72 289 T22 Julieta Granada 72 71 71 75 289 T26 Amy Yang 73 73 75 69 290 T26 Sydnee Michaels 71 74 75 70 290
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