13.12 LET:
Neste års program er klart
Hvor mange norske spillere får vi på LET neste år?

Marianne Skarpnord, Tonje Daffinrud og Caroline Martens er klare for damenes europa tour i 2016.

Det kan bli flere. Marita Engzelius og Rachel Raastad har begge godt nok spill til å klare kvalifiseringen 18. - 22. desember.

Dette skriver LET om neste år:

DUBAI, 12th December 2015 — The Ladies European Tour on Saturday announced the 2016 season schedule, reinforcing the tour’s global footprint.
Starting with the ISPS Handa New Zealand Women’s Open at Clearwater Golf Club in Harewood on 12-15 February, the golfing odyssey will culminate with the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters on 7-10 December.

With the Olympic Games on the horizon, the ranking points available from tournaments will be highly sought after in 2016, as players from a multitude of different countries aim to qualify when golf returns to the programme after a 104-year absence, with the women’s tournament taking place at Reserva da Marapendi in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from August 15-18.

Ivan Khodabakhsh, CEO of the Ladies European Tour, said: “This is the confirmed schedule and we have more exciting tournaments soon to be announced but we want to provide these tournaments with dedicated press conferences and they will be announced in January.”

The 2016 schedule places a premium on quality events with improved purses and a significantly increased number of live television broadcast hours, with a consistent on-screen presence on five continents globally.

“These tournaments invest in live television,” Khodabakhsh continued. “We need to showcase to the world women's golf, and this year we have I believe 11 or 12 tournaments, and next year we will have 16 tournaments live. That's what will make the difference.”

The LET will also continue the work of its recently created Development Department, which will strengthen the organisation’s bonds with golf’s governing bodies and tournament promoters who share its vision to grow the game in all parts of the world.


ShanshanFeng mottar sjekken etter at hun vant Order of Merit i 2015

Første kinesiske seier på LET Order of Merit

Shanshan Feng has become the first player from China to win the Ladies European Tour’s Order of Merit after her season-ending victory at the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters.

The world No 6’s record third win in the event crowned a tremendous season, which featured a victory at the Buick Championship in Shanghai and two further top three finishes, at the Evian Championship and Sanya Ladies Open, from six starts on the Ladies European Tour in 2015.

The 26-year-old from Guangzhou teed up in Dubai with an unassailable lead and, after collecting a first prize cheque for €75,000, took her season’s earnings to 399,213.41 euros, 150,062.84 euros ahead of second placed Melissa Reid from England. Feng now boasts 15 career wins, including five on the Ladies European Tour, since turning professional in 2007.

The only golfer from mainland China, man of woman, to win a major, at the Women’s PGA Championship in 2012, Feng is a figurehead for golf in her native China, where she is inspiring a new generation of golfers to play the sport. As the winner of the Order of Merit, she joins a prestigious list of former champions including Dame Laura Davies, Annika Sorenstam and Ai Miyazato who have all had a significant impact on the growth of the game.

“Overall I think I did well this year on the European Tour,” said Feng. “I always love this tour because it’s good prize money, good players, good sponsors. I think the Tour is getting better and better, because I’m in the player meeting every year here, so actually I can tell the tour is growing. I’m happy to see that change. If I have more chances to support this tour, I would love to.”

The “Ladies European Tour Order of Merit” is a listing of Ladies European Tour Members in order of priority according to money won in Ladies European Tour Ranking Tournaments in the current season. It is used to determine certain categories of exempt status for the following year. In order to qualify to appear on the Order of Merit a Member must have played in a minimum of six (6) Ranking Tournaments in the current season. The winner of the 2015 Order of Merit receives a cheque for 20,000 euros and a seven (7) year exemption to play on the Ladies European Tour, valid until 31st December, 2022.

Winners of the LET Order of Merit:
1979 Catherine Panton-Lewis
1980 Muriel Thomson
1981 Jenny Lee Smith
1982 Jenny Lee Smith
1983 Muriel Thomson
1984 Dale Reid
1985 Laura Davies
1986 Laura Davies
1987 Dale Reid
1988 Marie-Laure Taya
1989 Marie-Laure de Lorenzi
1990 Trish Johnson
1991 Corinne Dibnah
1992 Laura Davies
1993 Karen Lunn
1994 Liselotte Neumann
1995 Annika Sorenstam
1996 Laura Davies
1997 Alison Nicholas
1998 Helen Alfredsson
1999 Laura Davies
2000 Sophie Gustafson
2001 Raquel Carriedo
2002 Paula Marti
2003 Sophie Gustafson
2004 Laura Davies
2005 Iben Tinning
2006 Laura Davies
2007 Sophie Gustafson
2008 Gwladys Nocera
2009 Sophie Gustafson
2010 Lee-Anne Pace
2011 Ai Miyazato
2012 Carlota Ciganda
2013 Suzann Pettersen
2014 Charley Hull
2015 Shanshan Feng


Emily Kristine Pedersen ble Rookie of the Year i 2015 på LET

Emily Kristine Pedersen Wins LET 2015 Rookie of the Year Award

(DUBAI, 12th December 2015)

Denmark’s Emily Kristine Pedersen was awarded with an OMEGA Speedmaster Chronograph watch as the winner of the Ladies European Tour’s 2015 Rookie of the Year Award.

The 19-year-old from Smoerum capped an incredible first year on the Ladies European Tour with a tie for 17th place at the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters, which saw her end in sixth position on the LET Order of Merit, with season’s earnings of €171,688.41 from 14 tournaments.

She finished 36,919.12 euros ahead of her long-time rival and compatriot Nanna Koertz Madsen, who played in 16 tournaments in her first year on tour.

The highlight of Pedersen’s year was her maiden victory at the Hero Women’s Indian Open in October, where she led from start to finish to master the newly opened Gary Player Course at DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurgaon.

The win came shortly after she finished second at the Lacoste Ladies Open de France at Golf de Chantaco, where she was narrowly edged by Frenchwoman Celine Herbin in a play-off and she showed immense character to bounce back from the heart wrenching loss.

“The win in India came at a great time with only two tournaments left. It's been an amazing year and I'm very happy,” said Pedersen.

She also tied for second at the Deloitte Ladies Open at The International in Amsterdam earlier in the year before completing her school studies, with further top 10 finishes at the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open, where she tied for seventh place, and the Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies Scottish Open, where she tied for eighth.

“I am very happy about my first year on the LET. I knew my first year would be quite tough as I had to finish high school in June.”

On her great Danish rivalry with Madsen, which has driven both players on to finish in the top 10 on the order of merit in their rookie season, she added: “I think it will always be there, because we are from the same club from the same place. I think it's always going to be there. I just think I don't think about it that much anymore. Like when we were kids, it was all about her and it's not that now because there's so many good players out here. It's been a great year, and I've kind of shown that I can be here and I'm good enough to play out here, which is really nice.

“It would be great if I can do as Charley (Hull) did (and follow up by winning the order of merit) but it's tough. There's so many great players out here and I have to play really good again. Hopefully I do, but it's hard to say that it's a goal. Of course it's a goal but it's more like a dream goal.”

She will now take a break before heading to a training camp in Florida with the Danish National Team on December 26th.