Oboh connects with idol Webb at LPGA Classic
In a career that produced amazing success, World Golf Hall of Famer Lorena Ochoa tossed many golf balls to adoring young girls standing outside the ropes.
One gifted ball may have delivered reconfiguration for a professional golf universe that has produced no dark stars.
When Ochoa played the 2008 Women’s British Open at Sunningdale Golf Club, England, a ball flip delivered wild-eyed excitement for a 6-yearold.
“I was standing in the crowd and she somehow managed to pick me out and that was the moment I decided I’m going to be the world number one. That was it for me,” recalled Georgia Oboh, a competitor in the ShopRite LPGA Classic at Seaview Golf Club.
Oboh, lurks as easily recognizable with multicolored hair braids, plus, knee-high socks that slip into shoes that look like gloves for feet.
Oh, she’s black Nigerian, a visage never seen before on the LPGA Tour. Founded in 1950, few U.S. black women have earned status on these playing fields. Even less international black players have reached professional ranks.
Golf historians require only the webbed feet of Oboh to count out the number of black women who have claimed LPGA excellence.
Oboh wants that recognition, prays that destiny or fate dovetails her dreams. While talent and technique play major roles in golf success, Oboh employs prayer in her daily regimen. An invite to the 2020 Saudi Arabia Ladies Golf Tournament
produced these offerings on her podcast.
“I give God all the Glory and feel very honoured to have been invited to such a prestigious event which is set to host the very top of the Ladies on the Ladies European Tour and members of the LPGA too,” she said…..
“I would like to take this opportunity to give God all the glory and acknowledging my family and friends who are doing all they can to make this trip possible as you already know that I have no Corporate sponsor yet but God has been so faithful through all of the challenges this year and I am sure He is the best corporate partner that I can have moving forward,” she stated.
Oboh, a 2015 U.S. Kids Golf Teen World champion, earned her position at the ShopRite LPGA Classic during a Monday qualifier on Seaview’s Bay Course.
The 21-year-old figured a birdie on the par-5 18th might gain a playoff. Drivers off tee and fairway eventually produced a 30-yard pitch that ended up four feet from the hole. Her birdie for 2-over 73 finished one shot back of medalist Vicky Hurst (1-over 72).
Both secured the two available qualifying spots.
Oboh turned pro at 17, joining the Ladies European Tour as the first Nigerian.
Since that Ochoa toss and catch by Oboh, her dreams have moved far above shots from her towering drives that arched against the blue skies above Seaview Golf Club.
Godfrey Oboh arrived from London on Thursday then hustled to Seaview GC for his daughter’s 2:15 p.m. tee time. His wife, Evelyn, stayed on the bag as caddie.
While Georgia Oboh has performed admirably on world stages, her father beamed about his daughter in the ShopRite LPGA Classic.
“The great thing is that Georgia did not get here by invitation, she qualified for this prestigious event,” Oboh said just after Georgia blasted her first drive down the middle of Seaview Golf Club’s No. 1 hole.
Of course, Georgia Oboh arrived here with hard work and heroes like Ochoa and Seri Pak, another former No. 1 star.
Ochoa, Mexican, dominated the LPGA Tour from 2003 to 2010. She held the top-ranked female golfer position in the world for 158 consecutive and total weeks, from 23 April 2007 to her retirement on 2 May 2010, at the age of 28 years old.
Pak, South Korean, won 25 times on the LPGA Tour. Her celebrity includes a World Golf Hall of Fame membership.
Oboh has praised Pak and Ochoa for their domination and ability to influence the next generation of golfers in their respective countries and elsewhere.
A Ladies European Tour article posted these Oboh quotes in March 2021.
(My heroes are Ochoa, Pak) and “also Karrie Webb because of what she was able to do for Australian golf. Bringing girls all the way from Australia to the United States so that they could see professional golf in a different light. I think it made such a difference to Australian golf and I would like to do something similar for Nigeria and Africa. Anything I can do to help grow the game of golf in my country and around the world is one of the reasons that I play.”
Wednesday allowed a private conversation with Webb in a remote hallway of
Seaview Hotel. The discussion included talk about the lack of Black women in golf.
Webb listened and admitted to having no knowledge about Georgia Oboh. In that moment, the Nigerian, lost, walked around the corner.
“Is that her?,” a Webb friend asked. Yep. Webb did not make a ball toss but she did give Oboh her contact information.
Oboh scored consecutive 4-over 75s for a 8-over par 150 total, way down the list of players. The Nigerian departed undaunted.
“It’s been great….As always with golf, I’m still learning. But what an experience. Not my best performance but I leave knowing that I can compete at this level,” Oboh said.