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Despite Park not playing in the LPGA Tour's
TOTO Japan Classic at Ibaraki, Japan, this past week, the points
difference were so tight that Ryu needed a tie for sixth or
better to hold her position on top.
Ryu, who held the No. 1 ranking for 19 consecutive weeks,
finished tied for 33rd in Japan after a final-round 73. She
plans to take this week off in order to rehab her still-injured
shoulder as she makes a push for LPGA Player of the Year honors.
Park, 24, becomes the first LPGA Tour rookie in the history of
the rankings to reach the top position. She is the fourth South
Korean to sit atop the rankings, joining Ryu, Inbee Park (92
weeks) and Jiyai Shin (25 weeks).
"It is a great honor to me and my family," Park said from Hainan
Island in China, where she is competing in this week's Blue Bay
LPGA. "There won't be any changes because of the ranking. I
believe my future play is more important than the fact that I
moved up in the ranking."
Park became a first-time winner and first-time major champion by
capturing the U.S. Women's Open Championship in July. She
followed that in August with a victory at the Canadian Pacific
Women's Open.
Since becoming a full-time LPGA member at the start of the 2017
season, Park has nine top-10 finishes, including her two
victories. She also finished in the top 20 at four of the
season's five majors, and has never missed the cut in her 29
career LPGA Tour starts.
Ryu plans to return at the season-ending CME Group Tour
Championship starting Nov. 16 in Naples, Fla.
Shanshan Feng of China, who fired a 4-under 68 on Sunday to
defend her Japan Classic title by two strokes, moved up one spot
to No. 3.
American Lexi Thompson dropped one spot to No. 4, followed by
Anna Nordqvist of Sweden. South Koreans In Gee Chun and In-Kyung
Kim are next, followed by Lydia Ko of New Zealand, Ariya
Jutanugarn of Thailand and American Cristie Kerr to round out
the top 10.
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