 We took the top 20 players off the 2009 Official Money List and picked the 10 ladies we thought were the hottest. (Note, Anna Rawson, to the left, is not in the official top 10, but she was too hot to pass on) We're using 2009 stats since they show the latest full year's worth of income.
I'm probably in the minority when it comes to men who enjoy watching the LPGA. I watch the women's tour for three basic reasons:
1. They are great golfers. Have you ever watched an LPGA tournament? Their names aren't as well known as the average PGA player, but the skill is there.
2. I can relate to their game better than I can to the PGA players. The distance comparison between what the LPGA players hit and what I personally hit is pretty close compared to the absolute bombs you see being hit by the likes of Daly, Woods, and Couples.
3. There are some very beautiful players on the LPGA tour, and the eye candy part of the equation makes it a much more enjoyable tour to watch. (Yes I'm a typical male)
With that said, there is an obvious, and somewhat disappointing aspect to the differences between an LPGA and PGA player, namely the money. The difference in tournament winnings based on the 2009 money list rankings is staggering. I realize that the LPGA is hurting for sponsors and that there isn't as much a draw to see Jiyai Shin play when compared to Tiger Woods, but the gap in income between the two is huge. Why is this? Whatever the reason, it's not fair. What's also interesting about these numbers is that the higher the standing, the bigger the gap.....
Top 10 Hottest LPGA stars (rank based on 2009 money list rankings):
#10
Hee Young Park 
HEIGHT: 5'6"
BIRTH PLACE: South Korea
ROOKIE YEAR: 2008
2009 Money List Ranking: 20th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $666,305.00
PGA Counterpart
Padraig Harrington
HEIGHT: 6'1"
BIRTH PLACE: Dublin, Ireland
ROOKIE YEAR: 2005
2009 Money List Ranking: 20th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $2,628,377
Difference in income: $1,962,072
#9
Brittany Lang
HEIGHT: 5'8"
BIRTH PLACE: United States
ROOKIE YEAR: 2006
2009 Money List Ranking: 19th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $675,065.00
PGA Counterpart:
Kevin Na
HEIGHT: 5'11"
BIRTH PLACE: Seoul, South Korea
ROOKIE YEAR: 2006
2009 Money List Ranking: 19th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $2,724,825
Difference in income: $2,049,760
(click on the read more button to jump to the rest of the post)
#8
Kristy McPherson
HEIGHT: 5'6"
BIRTH PLACE: Conway, SC
ROOKIE YEAR: 2007
2009 Money List Ranking: 16th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $816,182.00
PGA Counterpart:
Hunter Mayhan
HEIGHT: 5'11"
BIRTH PLACE: Orange, CA
ROOKIE YEAR: 2003
2009 Money List Ranking: 16th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $2,941,349
Difference in income: $2,125,167
#7
Michelle Wie
HEIGHT: 6'0"
BIRTH PLACE: United States
ROOKIE YEAR: 2009
2009 Money List Ranking: 14th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $918,659.00
PGA Counterpart:
David Toms
HEIGHT: 5'10"
BIRTH PLACE: Monroe, LA
ROOKIE YEAR: 1989
2009 Money List Ranking: 14th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $3,047,198
Difference in income: $2,128,539
#6
Paula Creamer
HEIGHT: 5'9"
BIRTH PLACE: Mountain View, CA
ROOKIE YEAR: 2005
2009 Money List Ranking: 9th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $1,151,864.00
PGA Counterpart:
Lucas Glover
HEIGHT: 6'2"
BIRTH PLACE: Greenville, SC
ROOKIE YEAR: 2001
2009 Money List Ranking: 9th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $3,692,580
Difference in income: $2,540,716
#5
In Kyung Kim
HEIGHT: 5'3"
BIRTH PLACE: South Korea
ROOKIE YEAR: 2007
2009 Money List Ranking: 8th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $1,238,396.00
PGA Counterpart:
Geoff Ogilvy
HEIGHT: 6'2"
BIRTH PLACE: Australia
ROOKIE YEAR: 1998
2009 Money List Ranking: 8th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $3,866,270
Difference in income: $2,627,874
#4
Suzann Pettersen
HEIGHT: 5'7"
BIRTH PLACE: Norway
ROOKIE YEAR: 2003
2009 Money List Ranking: 5th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $1,369,717.00
PGA Counterpart:
Kenny Perry
HEIGHT: 6'2"
BIRTH PLACE: Australia
ROOKIE YEAR: 1982
2009 Money List Ranking: 5th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $4,445,562
Difference in income: $3,075,845
#3
Lorena Ochoa
HEIGHT: 5'6"
BIRTH PLACE: Mexico
ROOKIE YEAR: 2003
2009 Money List Ranking: 4th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $1,489,395.00
PGA Counterpart:
Zach Johnson
HEIGHT: 5'11"
BIRTH PLACE: Cedar Rapids, IA
ROOKIE YEAR: 1998
2009 Money List Ranking: 4th Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $4,714,813
Difference in income: $3,225,418
#2
Ai Miyazato
HEIGHT: 5'2"
BIRTH PLACE: Japan
ROOKIE YEAR: 2006
2009 Money List Ranking: 3rd Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $1,517,149.00
PGA Counterpart:
Phil Mickelson
HEIGHT: 5'11"
BIRTH PLACE: Cedar Rapids, IA
ROOKIE YEAR: 1998
2009 Money List Ranking: 3rd Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $5,332,755
Difference in income: $3,815,606
#1
Cristie Kerr
HEIGHT: 5'2"
BIRTH PLACE: Miami, FL
ROOKIE YEAR: 1997
2009 Money List Ranking: 2nd Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $1,519,722.00
PGA Counterpart:
Steve Stricker
HEIGHT: 5'11"
BIRTH PLACE: Edgerton, WI
ROOKIE YEAR: 1990
2009 Money List Ranking: 2nd Place
2009 Money List Earnings: $6,332,636
Difference in income: $4,812,914
The difference between being #1 on the PGA and #1 on the LPGA: 
Tour Rank Player Money
PGA 1 Tiger Woods $10,508,163
LPGA 1 Jiyai Shin $ 1,807,334
Difference in income: $ 8,700,829
First place money wise in the LPGA is equal to 45th place in the PGA
Tour Rank Player Money
LPGA 1 Jiyai Shin $ 1,807,334
PGA 45 Camilo Vilegas $ 1,804,981
20th place money in the LPGA is equal to 125th place in the PGA
Tour Rank Player Money
LPGA 20 Hee Young Park $666,305
PGA 125 Jimmy Walker $662,683
Who the heck is Jimmy Walker?????
Equal pay for equal work obviously never made it to professional sports and probably never will.
Kevin
Roseville, CA |
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