With apologies to Tiger Woods, who first exclaimed "Hello World" prior to his PGA Tour professional debut in 1996, two-time NCAA Champion and former Stanford Cardinal standout Rose Zhang not only said hello on Sunday, but accomplished something that not even Tiger can lay claim to.
Zhang, the game’s most decorated women’s amateur golfer who is coming off her second NCAA individual women's title just 13 days ago and also won the Augusta National Women's Amateur in April, won the inaugural LPGA Mizuho Americas Open on the second playoff hole against Jennifer Kupcho at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City. In doing so, she became the first golfer to win in her pro LPGA Tour debut since Beverly Hanson in 1951, a span of 72 years.
Zhang is now 1-for-1 on the LPGA Tour.
With her earning an automatic LPGA Tour membership at 20 years old, BetCalifornia.com developed hypothetical odds of how many LPGA career wins Zhang will finish with.
While there is no California sports betting to get in on Rose's future just yet, here is what we predict.
Odds of Rose Zhang’s Total LPGA Career Wins
Great Expectations
Consensus is that Zhang will have 11-20 victories (28.6%) throughout her career, which is the favorite at +250 odds. Where would that land her in the record books? Zhang would be alongside two-time major winners Cristie Kerr (20 wins) and Lydia Ko (19 wins and counting) should she enter that bracket. Dottie Pepper, also a two-time major champ and longtime broadcaster on the PGA Tour, finished her career with 17 career titles.
While that would be rarified air for the super-talented Zhang, let's remember that nothing is guaranteed in the game of golf. Look no further than the now 26-year-old Ko.
Lydia won her first LPGA Tour event as a 15-year-old amateur, and notched another win before she actually turned pro in 2014. She went on to collect 15 wins in a six-year period, but was winless in both the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Ko, the most recent phenom before Zhang, is a good barometer for what the Stanford Cardinal can achieve early in her career, but also proves that tough times can always buck their head.
Next in line for Rose's odds are 6-10 wins (25%) at +300.
Interestingly, Zhang's second professional appearance will not be this week in the Garden State, where the 34th annual ShopRite LPGA Classic will tee off with first round action starting on Thursday at Dolce Seaview Resort in Galloway Township.
Why?
It is final exams week at Stanford and the Irvine, California native is moving out of her dormitory this weekend. Oh to be young again with the world at your fingertips and a first working check deposit of $412,500.
Keep it here for more coverage of Zhang's pro career, plus California sportsbook promos when betting does become legal.
