By: Max Bechtoldt
On the newest Olympic Power Ranking, meet the first member from Team USA alongside two other young LPGA Tour superstars. Each player on this list has been on the Tour for three years or less, and yet are representing some of the strongest nations in women’s golf. Here are today’s Olympians:
16. Maja Stark – Sweden – Early in the season, Maja Stark seemed like a good bet to reach the medal stand in Paris, with three top-three finishes. Recently, Stark’s game has cooled a bit on a very light schedule. Stark’s last top-15 finish was in Los Angeles in April, but the game is getting better. She has improved her position in the last three events, including posting a top 20 at the Dana Open. The 24-year-old already has six LET wins and one LPGA Tour win.
15. Rose Zhang – USA – For the last few years kind of considered the future face of United States Women’s Golf has accelerated that process through her two wins in about the equivalent of a season and a half on tour. The 21-year-old from Stanford put together one of the all-time great college careers with two Annika Awards and two individual national championships. Zhang’s dramatic rise in the Rolex Rankings following her Founder’s Cup win got her on this team and she hit immediate struggles. In her next five events her best finish was a T29. But, last week at the CPKC Women’s Open, she got her fourth top-10 of the season, finishing sixth.
14. Ruoning Yin – China – Ruoning Yin was 13-years-old when Shanshan Feng won the Bronze Medal at the Rio Olympic Games. Now, she is a prodigy, with some of the highest upside of any women’s golfer in the world. When the health is of zero concern, Yin is top-10 on this list easily, but there was a wrist injury in the middle of the season. Yin has finished her last three events in the top-25, including a win in the team event, but hasn’t played the last few LPGA Tour events, including the fourth major of the season, the Evian Championship. After her breakout season where she won her first career major in 2023, Yin has just one individual top-five finish. When she is at her best though, the ball-striking is as good as anyone in this field.
