Golf Babes

Mrs. Tiger Woods. Hmmm, does she go by Elin Nordegren, Elin Woods, or Elin Nordegren-Woods? Anyone know? I'm not sure. But I am sure that it's nice to ring in the new year with her. Elin should be close to delivering the Woods' second child, guaranteeing golf's first couple a happy new year. And we wish all of you the happiest of times in 2009.

Hat tip to The Golf Girl for spotting this photo of Australian pro Nikki Garrett, a Ladies European Tour member and multiple winner. Why is she playing in a bee outfit? It's just a lark to help create buzz for the Jack Newton Celebrity Golf Classic, which was recently played to benefit the Jack Newton Junior Golf Foundation.

The Golf Channel hasn't released the names of the contestants for the next "Big Break" series, which will be "Big Break XI," but they did air a lengthy promo during the "Big Break X" finale. And that's good enough for us. So while the Golf Channel hasn't yet ID'd the women golfers featured on the next series, we will. "Big Break XI" will feature six men (we don't care about them) and six women playing on Prince Edward Island, Canada, for a $100,000 grand prize. Here are the six women who'll be competing: Kim Kouwabunpat : Kim "CanYouOnePutt" (above) was twice an all-PAC 10 conference selection while at Stanford, and was the MVP on the 2003-04 Stanford women's golf team. Since turning pro in 2004, Kim has played on the Futures Tour, Ladies Asian Golf Tour, Cactus Tour and the CN Canadian Women's Tour. She just launched her Web site a couple weeks ago at KimCanYouOnePutt.com . There'll you learn a lot

Jayvie Agojo is a senior on the Pepperdine University women's golf team. A native of the Philippines, Jayvie was three times named "Outstanding Women's Golfer of the Year" by the Philippines Sports Writers' Association, while still in high school. She won the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships in 2002 and 2003, was a member of the Philippines National Team, and was the No. 1-ranked junior golfer in her home country. After hitting Southern California, Jayvie earned All-West Coast Conference honors during a freshman season that culminated in her being named WCC Freshman of the Year. In her sophomore season, she posted five Top 10 finishes. In both her sophomore and junior years, she again earned all-conference honors. Her senior season is looking like more of the same. Jayvie helped lead Pepperdine to second-, tenth- and first-place finishes in the team's Winter season tournaments. Jayvie herself had a third-place and a sixth-place showing in those

Maria Verchenova is a pioneer in the world of Russian golf. Heck, five years ago there was no world of Russian golf! Now, Maria is the only Russian playing on the Ladies European Tour - or, for that matter, on any other non-feeder tour around the world (the Kostina sisters play on the Futures Tour). A couple weeks ago, she told the Times of London how she got started: "My dad took me to the Czech Republic when I was 12 and we went for a coffee at a golf club," Verchenova said. "The next day we went back and I tried hitting a few balls with a local coach. He said I had a talent for the game and I should play. When I got back we went to Moscow City Golf Club and that's how I started. "I didn’t even know what golf was when I was young because my family was poor and everybody in Russia is focused on tennis. But thanks to my parents I was given a chance." After several strong showings in European national amateur championships, Maria earned her LET card and 2

This photo of Anna Grzebien is another from her Wilhelmina 7 portfolio. The W7, you'll recall, is a group of seven LPGA players represented by the prestigious Wilhelmina Artist Management group. Anna's rookie season on the LPGA Tour in 2008 wasn't quite as good as she would have hoped for, partly because her non-exempt status allowed Anna to play in only 15 tournaments, and many weeks she wouldn't know until the last minute whether she was getting into the field. So she took care of that problem at Q-School last week. Grzebien finished third in the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament, earning full playing privileges for 2009. Anna closed the pressure-packed event with a 65, easily the best round of the day. Look for the former Duke All-American to have a much higher profile on tour next season.

What could Anna Rawson be meditating about? Perhaps about the fact that she's earned another year on the LPGA Tour. In Anna's rookie season of 2008, she got into 13 tournaments and posted on Top 10. But she didn't finish high enough on the money list to retain her card, so it was back to Q-School. And there she finished tied for 12th, plenty good enough to earn priority status for 2009.

Here's a golfer we'll be seeing a lot of in years to come. Stacy Lewis will be part of a stellar 2009 class of rookies on the LPGA Tour after winning the tour's Final Qualifying Tournament by three strokes. Stacy completed her collegiate career at the University of Arkansas earlier in 2008, a career capped off by her inclusion on the American Curtis Cup team. While at Arkansas, she won the 2007 NCAA Championship, posted double-digit wins in other tournaments, and was a multiple All-American selection. Pretty amazing considering that she suffered from scoliosis as a child and missed her freshman season recovering from spinal fusion surgery. Lewis turned pro in mid-2008, and several weeks later finished third at the U.S. Women's Open. It was her second Top 5 finish in a major; in 2007, still an amateur, she finished fifth at the Kraft Nabisco Championship.

Jeanne Cho-Hunicke is probably best-known to date as one of the finalists on "Big Break V: Hawaii." But now you can call her a member of the LPGA Tour. Cho-Hunicke earned priority status by finishing 15th at the LPGA's 2008 Final Qualifying Tournament. Jeanne carded rounds of 71, 71, 69, 68 and 74, finishing 7-under par.

The LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament begins on Dec. 3, with 140 golfers trying to earn 2009 tour cards. And Beatriz Recari is among those 140 in the field. Bea, from Spain, has played the Ladies European Tour the past couple seasons. The image above is from the 2009 World Ladies Golf Calendar published by Golf Digest Japan . Bea is one of four golfers featured in the calendar.

Does this image of Shayna Miyajima, from her Play Golf Designs portfolio, give away her home state? Any guesses? Posing on a surfboard, with a flower in her hair. Yep, Shayna's from Hawaii. In fact, she won the 1998 high school state championship there, putting her in the vanguard of the flood of golf talent emerging from Hawaii over the past decade. Shayna went on to play collegiately at San Diego State University. She turned pro in 2005, and has played on the Futures Tour the past three seasons.

Here's another shot from the 2009 Paula Creamer calendar produced by Golf Digest Japan . Unfortunately, the calendar is only available for order in Japan, but some copies may show up eventually on eBay.

We already knew Courtney Erdman as a Futures Tour member and as a contestant on "Big Break Kaanapali." But she is also one of the newer members of the Play Golf Designs stable to golfers. Yes, you can play golf with Courtney (or book her for your corporate outing). Courtney is hoping to play in Europe in 2009. The Ladies European Tour has a two-stage qualifier in January, in Spain, with the first stage taking place Jan. 7-10 and the final stage Jan. 13-16. Check Courtney's page on the PGD Web site for more photos.

Morgan Pressel from the 2008 ADT photo shoot.

(Photo: twitter.com/@ThePCreamer) Yet more proof that Paula Creamer is well worth following on Twitter.

We've mentioned a couple times recently that some of our favorite golfers are included in the World's Hottest Athlete "contest" now taking place at the site called "In Game Now." They are down to the final four, and Blair O'Neal is one of those final four. She's matched up against Stacy Keibler in one of the semifinals, so go vote her . Blair also reveals that she is one of the cast members of the next "Big Break" series.

In the second-to-last tournament of the 2008 LPGA season, Angela Stanford won her second title of the year. Stanford held off Annika Sorenstam and others to win the inaugural Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Mexico. Stanford won in mid-September at the Bell Micro Classic. And that means over her five most recent tournaments, she finished first, third, second, fourth and first. That's good stuff.

It's an appropriate time to run this image, what with Lorena Ochoa's first tournament taking place right now in Mexico, the inaugural Lorena Ochoa Invitational. Ochoa posed for several glamour shots with photographer Nunu Principe that appeared in Hola Mexico . More from the LPGA .

Rachel Lubahn is one of the contestants on "Big Break X: Michigan," competing with her husband Casey. The two married in 2007 after meeting while playing golf at Michigan State University. Rachel won the 2007 Big Ten women's championship.

As noted last week, our friend Tina Miller is one of the "contestants" in the blog InGolfNow.com's "Hottest Athletes" bracket showdown . Tina "won" her first-round matchup against tennis player Ashley Harkleroad . Now she's into the round where she faces Anna Rawson . Another second-round matchup has Blair O'Neal "battling" Seema Sadekar . You can view the InGameNow golf matchups and vote here .

We ran a photo of Danielle Montgomery last week - the one in which she's submerged in a bathtub full of golf balls - but didn't tell you anything about her. So we'll correct that oversight today. This is Danielle's photo from the 2009 Australian Women of Professional Golf Calendar, which benefits the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Danielle's amateur career got started in Australia, but she was born in England and has dual citizenship. That's why she was able to compete as a member of the England Women's Golf Association national teams in 2006 and 2007. She turned pro in 2007 and played on the ALPG circuit, with two Top 10 finishes. Danielle also plays on the Ladies Asian Golf Tour, where she finished second earlier this year at the Binhai Open in China. Danielle is currently going through the long Q-School process of the LPGA of Japan, attempting to qualify for that tour's 2009 schedule. Her sister, Nicole, also plays on the ALPG and LAGT circuits.

Let's hear it for the lovely and talented Candie Kung, who won the LPGA Hana Bank Kolon Championship in Korea on Sunday. It's the fourth LPGA victory for Kung, but her first since 2003. Originally from Taiwan, Kung was the 1999 AJGA Player of the Year, she was a two-time All-American at Southern Cal, and she won the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links championship twice. And Candie's LPGA career started fast; she posted five Top 10s in her rookie year of 2002, then won three times in 2003. She finished 17th on the money list in 2004 and 11th in 2005, but then kind of stalled out. In 2007, injuries limited her to just 15 starts and she fell to 78th on the money list. But 2008 has been a comeback year for Candie. She had five Top 10s before heading to Korea, and now she has another victory.

Here's a shot of Ladies European Tour golf Stefanie Michl from the 2009 World Ladies Golf Calendar published by Golf Digest Japan . The calendar has been published in 1975, but available only in Japan. Stefanie is an Austrian golfer who earned her spot on the LET with a fourth-place finish at Q-School last year. Her best finish on tour this year is a 23rd, but she's posted Top 10 finishes in previous years and has performed well on the SAS Masters Tour (formerly known at the Telia Tour), too.

This is Kristie Smith's debut in the calendar world (as well as on Golf Babes), but you'll probably be seeing much more of her. She's a very accomplished Australian golfer with some big amateur wins on her resume, and who is now embarking on a professional career. Kristie, who turned 20 earlier this year, plays in the Futures Tour qualifying tournament next week. But she has also made it into the LPGA's Q-School finals for the second straight year, and will attempt in December to earn a spot on the 2009 LPGA Tour. Kristie grew up in a golf family; her father is a golf professional in Australia who played on the Oz pro tour circuit back in the day. The year 2005 was Kristie's "coming out" on the Australian golf scene. She won several junior tournaments that year, and set a couple course records. She also become the youngest-ever winner of the Western Australia State Amateur Championship. Prior to turning pro earlier this year, Kristie made 2008 her greatest

Sunny Park is Miss July, so to speak, in the 2009 Australian Women of Professional Golf Calendar, which features Australian golfers who play on the ALPG. Sunny was born in Korea but moved with her family to Australia at a very young age. She didn't take up golf until age 14, but quickly became one of Oz's top juniors. Her amateur career culminated in 2007 when she won the Australian Ladies Amateur Championship. Sunny turned pro later that year and played her first tour events on the ALPG, starting fast: a tie for fifth at the Angostura Castle Hill Pro-Am and again at the St. Michaels ALPG Classic; followed by her first professional victory at the Peugeot Kangaroo Valley ALPG Classic. Coming up, Sunny will be playing in the Futures Tour Qualifying Tournament Nov. 4-7.

Folks, there's an election going on, and it's supposed important to vote. No, not the U.S. Presidential election (although I suppose that's important, too). I'm talking about the World's Hottest Athlete "tournament" taking place at the In Game Now blog . Golf Babes friend Tina Miller is, today, facing off against tennis player Ashley Harkleroad in a first-round matchup. Go here to vote for Tina . Be sure to check out the other matchups in the Wildcard category, because Seema Sadekar, Perry Swenson and Blair O'Neal also need your votes. Vote early, vote often. Do it for your country. The Golf Babes nation.

Morgan Pressel was having a solid 2008, with four Top 10 finishes, a couple near-misses at wins, Top 30 on the money list. But no victories since her first one at the 2007 Kraft Nabisco Championship. Until Sunday. Pressel sank a 22-foot birdie putt from off the green on the final hole to win the Kapalua LPGA Classic.

Andrea VanderLende is one of the contestants on "Big Break X: Michigan." A native of Michigan herself, Andrea played college golf at the University of Florida, where she captained the team in 2003-04. She was the runner-up at the 2003 NCAA golf championship. Andrea turned pro in 2006, but didn't immediately pursue a tour career, opting to become a golf professional at a North Carolina club. Her rookie year on the Futures Tour was 2008. While she made only a handful of cuts this year, when she did she played well through the weekend: three Top 25s in four opportunities, including an 11th-place finish and a fifth.

Those of you out there hoping and hoping for a Paula Creamer bikini calendar (you know who you are!) will have to be satisfied - for now, anyway - with this watermark-obscured sample from Creamer's 2009 calendar for Golf Digest Japan . This is the third year that Creamer has done a calendar for GDJ (click her name in the labels below to see examples from prior years), which, alas, is available only in Japan.

LPGA career win No. 1 came for In-Kyung Kim on Sunday at the Longs Drugs Challenge, where she bested runner-up Angela Stanford by three strokes. IK is in her second season on the LPGA. In 2007, she got as high as a second-place finish and wound up 31st on the money list. Heading into the Longs Drugs, IK had a best finish of tied for third this year, with four other Top 10s, and hadn't finished outside the Top 20 in her previous five tournaments.

Random fact about Bernie Luse: Her dad calls her "Monkey." Bernadette is a cast member on "Big Break X: Michigan," which premiered on the Golf Channel last night (Oct. 7). Despite not picking up the game until age 15, she got good enough fast enough to win the Florida girls high school state championship. She went on to play collegiately at Mississippi, graduating in 2003 after majoring in psychology (which probably helps her deal with the fact that her dad calls her "Monkey"). After turning pro in 2003, Bernie won a tournament on the Next Generation Women's Tour and then played the Futures Tour in 2004. She made it through Q-School later that year and was a rookie on the LPGA Tour in 2005. Luse was the first player ever from Ole Miss to earn LPGA membership. She had non-exempt status on the LPGA in 2006 and then, the Golf Channel says, her sponsorship money ran dry. Now, competing in "The Big Break," Bernie is looking to jump-start her pro c

There's already been one "Big Break" champion in the Prange family - Ashley Prange won "Big Break V: Hawaii." Can little sister Amber make it two championships for the Prange girls? The Golf Channel says that Amber "lost the desire to play golf and eventually took a nine-month sabbatical from the game following graduation." That would be graduation from the University of Washington. But Amber is now playing competitively again, getting into some Futures Tour events later in the season.

Beatriz Recari is from Spain. Pamplona to be exact. And when you're from a city that sets bulls loose to run through its streets, how scary can a 3-foot, downhill, left-to-right-breaking putt be? Bea is a member of the Ladies European Tour, but she's eyeing a spot on the LPGA in 2009. Recari played in the LPGA Qualifying Tournament sectional in Florida last week and finished tied for second after rounds of 69-69-71-71. And that means she'll be playing in the LPGA Q-School finals Dec. 3-7 in Daytona Beach, Fla. Check out Bea's Web site .

A native of Chile, Camila Mori played college golf at Campbell and the University of South Carolina. Now she is a cast member on "Big Break X: Michigan," partnered with fellow Chilean - and boyfriend - Hugo Leon. The Golf Channel describes the pair thusly: It's hard to watch Hugo Leon and Camila Mori on golf course and not feel good. One look at the playful couple and you instantly know that they are in serious love and playing golf together makes them happy. They chat in Spanish, get serious to hit a shot and then it’s back to smiling. It looks too easy, too cutie, but it’s not an act, it’s merely natural. Awwwwwwwwwwww .... Mori won the Chilean National Amateur Championship in 2003 before beginning her college life at Campbell University, where she was the freshman of the year in 2004 and team MVP in 2005. She then transferred to South Carolina. Mori turned pro earlier in 2008 and got into three tournaments on the Futures Tour as the beginning of her professional career

Rachel Melendez is one of the cast members on "Big Break X: Michigan," which debuts on Oct. 7, 2008, on the Golf Channel. Originally from Puerto Rico, Melendez now lives in Atlanta where she is an instructor in the First Tee program. "I want my kids to see that they can do it and that someone who looks like them can accomplish things in golf," said Melendez. "Every shot I hit and every action I take I am always thinking about my kids. I do that because I want to set a good example for them." Melendez played collegiate golf at Penn State and Georgia, but left the golf team while at Georgia to focus on studies. She graduated with honors and was enjoying a successful career in corporate America when the golf bug struck again. She re-entered the game as an instructor, but now has her eye on returning to competitive golf. "I enjoy the teaching aspect, but with my game getting better and my confidence growing, that competitive drive is getting awakened,&quo

Anja Monke is a German golfer who turned professional in 2003 and has played on the Ladies European Tour since. She has finished as high as 14th (in 2006) on the LET money list, but not yet with any victory. Scratch that - Anja claimed her first LET win on Sunday at the Vediorbis Open de France Dames (the Women's French Open), closing with a 68 for the 2-stroke victory. The photo above is from a 2006 shoot for the Swedish golf magazine Red Tee .

Stina Sternberg returns to the Golf Channel's "Big Break" franchise as co-host of "Big Break X: Michigan." The series debuts on Oct. 7.

Elena Kurokawa is a native of Tokyo now living in California. She played college golf for UNLV, where she had 12 Top 10 finishes, was named to the all-conference team twice (2005-06) and was the Mountain West Player of the Year in 2005. And where she also majored in psychology, something that should come in handy for any golfer. Elena turned pro in 2006 and played the Futures Tour in 2007 and 2008. She's also part of the Play Golf Designs team that we write about from time to time here at Golf Babes. Check 'em out, you might even be able to schedule a match with Elena! Oh, and an inside source tells me that she's koo-koo for Camilo.

Cheyenne Woods - the niece of you-know-who - has started her collegiate golf career at Wake Forest University. She did pretty well in her first tournament, too, making the playing roster as a freshman and contributing some solid scores. Wake Forest finished ninth in the 2008 Fall Season opener, the NCAA Preview, and Cheyenne's 74 lead the team in the final round. Woods posted 75-76-74--225 and finished just outside the Top 25. The Associated Press released an article about Cheyenne's college debut today. She'll always draw attention because of who her uncle is, and the fact that she is pretty good at the same sport in which he is the all-time best. But here's hoping Cheyenne isn't overburdened with outsized expectations, that she is allowed to grow and develop as a golfer and a person at her own pace, and to her own drummer. (Her nose and belly-button piercings might be indicators she's doing a good job of that already.) More Cheyenne Woods posts

Shiho Oyama is a Japanese player ranked No. 43 in the official world rankings as of this writing. She has played almost exclusively on the JLPGA up to now - although she did share the lead in the 2008 U.S. Women's Open at one point - but is in California this week taking part in the LPGA Q-School sectional.

I know nothing about fashion - golf or otherwise - but I know great golf pants when I see 'em. And those are great golf pants. Janell Howland was wearing them in Lafayette earlier this year, where she was defending champion in the Futures Tour tournament played there. Janell is heading to California next week to play in the LPGA Q-School sectional qualifier at Mission Hills Country Club (Dinah Shore Course) in Rancho Mirage. She'll be trying to get back to the LPGA Tour, of which she was a member in 2005. She also just launched her Web site. Check it out at janellhowland.com .

Amy Lepard is the wife of PGA Tour golfer and Ryder Cup team member Chad Campbell, and Chad and Amy are now the proud parents of their first child, son Dax Phillip Campbell. Amy is a singer/songwriter. You can check out some of her tunes on MySpace Music at myspace.com/amylepardmusic . Congrats to Chad and Amy!