RACHEL HETHERINGTON
Birthdate: April 23, 1972
Birthplace: Port Macquarie, Queensland, Australia
Age: 33
Ht: 5’5"
Home: Sunnybank Hills, Queensland, Australia
Turned Professional: 1994
LPGA Tour Wins: 8 - 1998 First Union Betsy King Classic. 1999 Chick-fil-A Charity Championship, City of Hope Myrtle Beach Classic. 2001 Evian Masters. 2002 PING Banner Health, Jamie Farr Kroger Classic. 2003 Giant Eagle LPGA Classic, Wegmans Rochester LPGA.
Other Wins:2000 Women's World Cup of Golf (with Karrie Webb)
Player Notes:
Professional
2004 Highlights
• Posted her season-best finish at the Weetabix Women's British Open, where she was runner up, posted a season-low 65 during the third round and crossed the $4 million mark in career earnings.
• Recorded a total of five top-10 finishes: Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic Presented by Kroger (4); Chick-fil-A Charity Championship hosted by Nancy Lopez (T7); ADT Championship (T7); and U.S. Women's Open conducted by the USGA (T10).
• Matched her season-low 65 during the first round of the Longs Drugs Challenge.
2004 Stats (Rank)
Rds under par: 46/90 (21) Rds in the 60s: 21/90 (34)
Birdies: 283 (24)
Eagles:6 (27)
Greens in reg: 68.5% (30)
Driving accuracy: 73.3% (49)
Sand saves: 43.1% (20)
Putts per GIR: 1.83 (72)
Driving avg: 254.8 (49)
2003 Highlights
• Won back-to-back titles for the second time in her career at the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic, where she defeated Annika Sorenstam, Jennifer Rosales, and Lorie Kane on the third hole of a sudden-death playoff, and at the Wegmans Rochester LPGA, where she fired a season-low 65 in the second round.
• Posted back-to-back runner-up finishes at the Longs Drugs Challenge and Samsung World Championship (tied for second at both).
• Also carded season-low 65s during second rounds of the Sybase Big Apple Classic presented by Lincoln Mercury, where she tied for sixth, and the Mizuno Classic, where she finished sixth.
• Tied for third at the McDonald's LPGA Championship Presented by AIG and tied for fourth at the Mobile LPGA Tournament of Champions.
• Crossed the $3 million mark in career earnings with her win at the Wegmans Rochester LPGA.
2003 Stats (Rank)
Rds under par: 58/96 (5) Rds in the 60s: 24/96 (25) Birdies: 348 (5)
Eagles: 11 (3)
Greens in reg: 68.7% (19) Driving accuracy: 75.1% (29)
Sand saves: 42.9% (29) Putts per GIR: 1.77 (6)
Driving avg: 254.3 (53)
2002 Highlights
• Won her first event of the season in a two-hole, sudden-death playoff with Annika Sorenstam at the PING Banner Health; Teske came from five strokes back and birdied the second hole of sudden death to claim her second playoff victory over Sorenstam (who has only lost four of 15 playoffs).
• Won her sixth career title at the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic Presented by ALLTEL, where she tied her career-low score of 64 in the third round.
• Posted seven additional top-10 finishes: second at the ADT Championship; tied for sixth at the Chick-fil-A Charity Championship hosted by Nancy Lopez and the Samsung World Championship; tied for eighth at the First Union Betsy King Classic and Sports Today CJ Nine Bridges Classic; ninth at the Wegmans Rochester LPGA; and tied for ninth at the CISCO World Ladies Match Play Championship.
2002 Stats (rank):
Rds under par: 38/88 (26)Rds in the 60s: 23/88 (22)Birdies: 311 (6)
Eagles: 3 (56)Greens in reg: 66.8% (28)Driving accuracy: 74.1% (43)
Sand saves: 36.8% (72)Putting avg: 29.54 (31)Driving avg: 255.7 (45)
2001 Highlights
• Won her fourth career LPGA title at the Evian Masters and also tied for second at the Nabisco Championship, her career-best finish in a major championship.
• Carded a career-low 64 during the final round of the Sybase Big Apple Classic Presented by GOLF MAGAZINE, thanks in part to her first career hole-in-one; she tied for fifth.
• Crossed the $2 million mark in career earnings after finishing tied for fifth at the CISCO World Ladies Match Play Championship.
• Had a career-best season in scoring average (71.45) and total earnings ($713,129).
2001 Stats (rank):
Rds under par: 42/88 (21) Rds in the 60s: 22/88 (26) Birdies: 296 (15)
Eagles: 5 (32) Greens in reg: 68.6% (26) Driving accuracy: 73.4% (46)
Sand saves: 54.1% (4) Putting avg: 29.59 (22) Driving avg: 249.00 (40)
Career Highlights
• In 2000, recorded seven top-10 finishes, including second place at both the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic and season-ending Arch Wireless Championship; lost to Annika Sorenstam on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff at the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic; crossed the $1 million mark in career earnings after the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic; won the inaugural Women’s World Cup Golf with Karrie Webb.
• In 1999, recorded back-to back wins, Chick-fil-A Charity Championship and the City of Hope Myrtle Beach Classic; won the Chick-fil-A Charity Championship when she defeated Lorie Kane on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff.
In 1998, despite suffering a rib injury (strained left intercostal muscle) at the ShopRite LPGA Classic, competed in 24 tournaments and earned $200,455, surpassing her rookie earnings by more than $60,000; became a Rolex First-Time Winner at the First Union Betsy King Classic, when she defeated Annika Sorenstam on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff, marking the first time Sorenstam was defeated in a playoff (she was 4-0 up to that point).
• In 1997, best finish of the season was a tie for fifth at the Welch’s Championship.
• In 1996, finished in a tie for 11th at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament to gain exempt status for 1997.
• In 1995, captured the Ladies German Open and the Spanish Open titles.
• In 1994, finished as the runner-up in the Australian Open.
Amateur
Won the New South Wales Junior from 1989-92. She captured both the NSW Amateur Open and the Tasmanian Amateur Open titles in 1992. That same year she finished as the runner-up in the New Zealand Amateur. Hetherington was a three-time member of the Australian Tasman Cup Team in 1989, 1991 and 1993. . .Started playing golf at the age of 14...Credits her mother, her coach Ian Triggs and Pam Langford as the individuals most influencing her career...Competed as Rachel Teske from 2001-04... Played as Rachel Hetherington from 1997-2000...Hobbies include music, movies, relaxing on the beach and hiking.