week Ive been staying in contact with my wife on social media, Aphibarnrat said. She teaches in Thailand, so unfortunately she cant come this week because her stu

By nearly all accounts, the LPGA had its best season to date and there are certainly plenty of points to be praised, but also some areas for improvement. So as weve done for the past three years, lets take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly of one of the longest running womens professional sports associations in the world.The Good1. Yearlong competition. At Thursday nights annual awards dinner, the only major competitive award decided was the Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year award, won in convincing style by Koreas In Gee Chun. Still in play were the Player of the Year and Vare Trophy, awarded to the player with the lowest stroke average.Player of the Year was not locked up until the 15th hole of the final round of the final tournament when Thailands Ariya Jutanugarn holed a bomb for birdie, eliminating any chance Lydia Ko, the world No. 1, could win the tournament and capture the year-end title.Even closer was the race for the scoring title, which came down to Ko and Chun. The two golfers played a total of 11,552 shots in 2016 and Chun birdied the last three holes to win by .001 strokes. Thanks for our ace golf researcher, Zach Jones, we had these numbers updated by the minute, stroke-by-stroke throughout the final round telecast. Chun also joined LPGA and World Golf Hall of Fame member Nancy Lopez as the only player to win Rookie of the Year and the Vare trophy in the same year (1978).2. Youth is served. There were 24 wins by players 24 or younger, including 20-year-old Charley Hulls first LPGA title at the season finale. There wasnt a winner who could rent a car -- the age minimum is usually 25 -- until Anna Nordqvist won the ShopRite LPGA Classic in June. The oldest champion was a whopping 30 years old when Brittany Lang captured the U.S. Womens Open.3. Rio Olympics. You can make the argument that it was more important for the womens competition to be successful in Rio than for the mens simply because of the worldwide audience exposure that they do not have on a regular basis.Inbee Parks gold medal performance, when many in her own country urged her to give up her spot on the team due to a chronic thumb/wrist injury, was absolutely phenomenal. Ko took home the silver and Shanshan Feng won bronze, knowing she was bringing the game to millions in her homeland of China and the importance of that exposure. No LPGA-generated television deal can come close to having the impact that week did on an international level.4. Solheim Cup returns to U.S. soil in 2017. Des Moines Golf and CC hosted arguably the most successful and well-attended U.S. Senior Open in 1999 and will host the biennial matches next summer. Juli Inkster will again captain the American squad as they look for back-to-back wins. Strong ticket sales, corporate sales and volunteer signups are all signs pointing to a terrific week, one that is vitally important to both the LPGA and Ladies European Tour.Early momentum points to the Euros being favorites with wins by Nordqvist, Hull and two late victories by Spains Carlota Ciganda this year. The American players, despite a team win in the UL International Crown, accounted for only two individual wins all year.5. Venue change. The KPMG Womens PGA Championships move from Westchester CC in suburban New York to Sahalee CC outside Seattle was brilliant. The anemic support by the New York club and the golf fans in the area made the 2015 event feel like it was on life support when in fact both the LPGA, PGA of America and KPMG had poured enormous resources into the championship. Sahalee and the Northwest supported the event in the manner deserved for the LPGAs second-longest running event and when the championship goes to Olympia Fields near Chicago next year, expect more of the same.6. Expanding horizons. The LPGA has been loosely involved in retail sales through its online pro shop for some time, but it has recently opened its first retail store in Seoul. There are plans to have 100 more in South Korea by 2018 when the UL International Crown will be played at Jack Nicklaus GC in Incheon, site of the 2015 Presidents Cup and the most recent Asia Pacific Amateur Championship. The superstars of South Korea have changed the landscape of the LPGA and its business where nearly half of its tournaments have ties to Asian companies. What an opportunity to grow your retail operations with fans who are enamored with womens golf and the LPGA.7. The 2017 schedule. Well use this topic to transition from good to bad because there are a lot of positive things going on with next years schedule, which will be rolled out in the next couple of weeks. Officials say the gain will likely be a net increase of one event above the 33 in 2016 and a gain of 11 since 2011.New domestic events added to the schedule will be in Indianapolis and Green Bay. The Ladies Scottish Open will be added as a co-sanctioned event with the LET, creating back-to-back weeks in Scotland as the Womens British Open will be at Kingsbarns. The second international addition will be the New Zealand Open near the beginning of the LPGAs fall swing.There will likely be a loss of three domestic events: Ocala, Florida; Prattville, Alabama; and suburban San Francisco. There is also open dialogue between the LPGA and the PGA Tour as officials try to work out the details of bringing back the very popular mixed-team event, an exciting benefit of the organizations new alliance.The Bad1. Addition and subtraction. The new international events are not really new but rather acquisitions, and the domestic growth is not keeping up with international expansion. Commissioner Mike Whan fully expects the loss in Ocala to be replaced by another Florida event in 2018.While the LPGAs schedule reflects its international membership, it is still an American-based association. Televising many of those international events in the middle of the night for what amounts to nearly three months of the total schedule really hurts the momentum that is built up during the bulk of the year.The LPGA left North America for seven events beginning in mid-September, not returning until the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in early November, an event that was not even televised.2. American performance (or lack thereof). Only two Americans won official events in 2016, Lexi Thompson and Brittany Lang. This cannot make the growth prospects of Whans business as commissioner any easier. I am repeatedly asked why the American output is so much below expectation and my opinion remains that U.S. players are out-motivated, out-focused and outdriven by their foreign counterparts, particularly those from the Asia where competition is one thing, but winning is really all that is rewarded.The discipline of those players is jaw-dropping, even to someone who reached the pinnacle as I did. I watch many of the LPGA players on social media and the number of posts of Americans vs. others really is astounding. Everyone has their best way to prepare and connect, but efficiency and focus for U.S. golfers seems to be compromised.Chan-Goog Yang, head pro at Seouls Sky 72 club recently said no matter what form of competition, you are either a champion or nothing. It may seem harsh, but that is the stark reality of this successful mindset. No participation medals. You must win.This isnt the only reason for the American drought and this certainly is not the first time there has been a significant dry spell. In 2011 Americans accounted for just four wins. In 2009 there were just five and only six in 2002. Those entities invested in the growth and excellence of the game in the U.S., while each believing they were helping people fall in love and stick with the game, have diluted each others efforts by not communicating, being extremely territorial and not really acknowledging that the rest of the world was not only catching up, but passing us.Finally we are seeing cooperation between the LPGA, USGA, PGA of America, Augusta National, the AJGA and others that is driving participation numbers, especially among young girls. The PGA Junior League, modeled on Little League baseball, is open to both boys and girls and is playing its national finals this week.A total of 36,000 kids participated this year, up from 9,000 just four years ago. Six years ago there were 5,000 girls in LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs. Today there are nearly 60,000. There is certainly no guarantee these initiatives will churn out champions, but at least now the conversation has begun to create an American developmental model such as Canada, South Korea, Australia and others have had for many years.Drive, Chip and Putt has been a gigantic success as a partnership between the Masters, USGA and PGA of America and has already produced a significant champion since its formation in 2013 when Lucy Li, a 2014 age group winner, became the 2016 Junior Girls PGA Champion.Operating in silos, regardless of good intention, can only take American development so far. Time to keep talking and doing -- together -- to make American junior golf and, hopefully, female professional golf, rise in a big way again.The Ugly1. Hands off, players. Only one and this one came to my attention last week in Naples, Florida, while walking the course on Friday morning and questioning an LPGA official about why the par-5 17th hole was only 485 yards.Watching the telecast the day prior, I had noticed nearly every player had been able to reach the green in two shots and Jutanugarn even reached it with just two irons. The officials explanation was this: they are trying to create some drama toward the end of the round, but there is also a committee of players who have passed along the directive that at least one par-5 be reachable for everyone each day.I totally get the drama part, but the latter? Really? Players dictating setup philosophy? Now while the CME is not a major championship, it is clearly one of the most important events on the LPGA schedule and the players are telling the officials how to set up the course?While I applaud the players for taking ownership of their tour, what do they really know about set up and bringing architectural features (plus strategy into play on various holes two of which were virtually eliminated on this particular hole) or the setup of an equitable competition? Many dont even know the rules!Further exacerbating Saturdays setup where the par-5 sixth hole was reachable by most, in addition to No. 17, was the par-4 13th being moved up from 350 yards to 212. (No, that was not a typo.) The golf course overall played at less than 6,300 yards for the third round. As best as TV could tell, only one player even used a driver on the 13th!Imagine other sports doing this: Were going to use a shorter rim in the NBA Finals for the shorter team if they are trailing in the final minutes; the ninth player in the lineup in the World Series gets to use an aluminum bat; the final row of Indianapolis 500 qualifiers get to use a bigger engine; if a player is trailing after two sets at Wimbledon, they get to use the margins of both the singles and doubles court.This was more like a made-for-TV celebrity ski competition or a net handicap tournament. The LPGA has terrific officials. Hand off this particular wheel, players, and let them do their jobs.Ah, one last good -- even great in closing.A real offseason for the LPGA.Unlike the PGA Tours wraparound schedule, just about two months will pass before another official shot is struck, giving everyone a chance to rest, rehab, enjoy the holidays and have a true reset before the new season starts. ?I look forward to those two months off before the start of a new year that promises to be even better than the last. Discount Adidas Shoes Online . 1, meaning problems for the doping controls at both major international sports events next year. The World Anti-Doping Agency provisionally suspended the Moscow Antidoping Center on Sunday, saying its operations must improve or a six-month ban on the facilitys accreditation will be imposed. Cheap Adidas Shoes For Sale . Marincin has played in two NHL games so far this season with two penalty minutes. The 21-year-old has three goals, four assists and a plus-5 rating in 24 games with the American Hockey Leagues Oklahoma City Barons this season. http://www.wholesaleshoesadidas.com/ Adidas Factory Outlet Online .Y. -- Bills receiver Stevie Johnson has a bone to pick with the NFL schedule maker. Wholesale Adidas Shoes Authentic . In the response filed Wednesday to the complaint by 30-year-old Alexander Bradley, attorneys say the former University of Florida player is invoking his Fifth Amendment right that protects people from incriminating themselves.Martin Kaymer hopes a clear head can help him secure a first victory for almost two years in the inaugural Maybank Championship Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. The former world No 1 has not won since claiming the second of his major titles in the 2014 US Open at Pinehurst, where he led from start to finish just five weeks after doing the same in the Players Championship at Sawgrass.Kaymer squandered a 10-shot lead in the final round of the Abu Dhabi Championship in 2015 and lost a play-off in the Italian Open later the same season. The 31-year-old also lost his full playing privileges on the PGA Tour, after failure to qualify for the FedEx Cup play-offs meant he could not play enough events to fulfil the membership criteria.That at least means more appearances in European Tour events and the world No 36 is hoping to make up for a missed cut in the Dubai Desert Classic with a strong performance at Royal Selangor.Ive played many times in Malaysia, but this has to be my favourite course here, the Ryder Cup star told a pre-tournament press conference on Wednesday. Its definitely my kind of course.I grew up playing tree-lined courses, so in some ways this place reminds me of home - although its a little bit warmer here. Kaymer spoke to the media ahead of the Maybank Championship Malaysia The golf course suits me. I have no reason not to relax and feel happy. You always expect a lot from yourself, but hopefully I can handle that this week.I practised hard over the winter, sometimees it pays off straight away and other times it takes longer.ddddddddddddThe last few years Ive managed to get off to a fast start, especially in Abu Dhabi, but this time Ive struggled to find my rhythm so I took time off last week and went on holiday and it really helped to clear my head. Eight of the worlds top 50 feature in this weeks field, with top seed Danny Willett making his first appearance winning last months Dubai Desert Classic.Kiradech Aphibarnrat should be on his honeymoon after marrying his partner Tunyatorn Chaiyarat on Valentines Day, but instead makes an immediate return to action and tees off alongside Matt Fitzpatrick and Darren Clarke. Kiradech Aphibarnrat plays his first tournament as a married man this week Ive been staying in contact with my wife on social media, Aphibarnrat said. She teaches in Thailand, so unfortunately she cant come this week because her students have exams next week.I dont want to keep reminding my wife about the fact that we were meant to be on honeymoon this week, because she will get angry with me, but she also understands my work.Watch the Maybank Championship Malaysia throughout the week live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf. Or watch from £6.99 without a contract, on NOW TV Also See: Malaysia betting preview Louis wants Malaysia repeat European Tour Season Pass Golf live on Sky Sports 4 ' ' '