Golf Capsules: Eaton sisters look forward to Louisiana homecoming

They can already smell the crawfish cooking. And they will be wearing their purple-and-gold LSU colors this week when the Duramed FUTURES Tour rolls into Lafayette, La.

But while twin sisters Melissa and Nicola (Nikki) Eaton both have unmistakable Southern accents, they're not exactly from Cajun Country. The two former members of the LSU women's golf team arrived in Baton Rouge from Port Shepstone, South Africa, five years ago.

"It took us two years to fit in," said Nikki, who is five minutes older than her sister. "For a long time, people there couldn't understand us and we couldn't understand them."

"At first, it was a huge culture shock, but we loved the food and the people right away," added Melissa. "Now, this has become like home."

This week will be a homecoming for the 24-year-old sisters, who will play their last tournament together before Nikki leaves for Germany on April 20 to set up European residency with her boyfriend and play the SAS Masters Tour in Sweden through August. The couple has lived in Orlando, Fla., but will move to Europe to work with a German golf club company.

Melissa, who has made her U.S. home base in Houston, hopes to gain some local support this week through boyfriend, Billy Jackson, who lives in nearby New Iberia, La., and has family in Lafayette.

"I guess you could say that even though we're not originally from there, we want to make the Louisiana people proud," said Melissa, who, along with her sister, played for the LSU Tigers from 2004-2007.

Representing Russia

Last year, Duramed FUTURES Tour member Anastasia Kostina paired with sister Maria to finish sixth of 20 teams in the inaugural VCI European Ladies Golf Cup in Spain.

Anastasia will skip the next two weeks of competition on the Duramed FUTURES Tour to return to Europe to represent her country, albeit with another Russian pro, Maria Verchenova, who plays on the Ladies European Tour.

The Comunitat Valencia European Nations Cup will be held April 23-26 - the same week as the FUTURES Tour's Historic Brownsville Open - at La Sella Golf Resort in Allcante, Spain. And once again, 20 countries will be represented with two players per team in four days of no-cut competition for a purse of 325,000 euros. England is the event's defending champion.

"I hate missing events here, but this is a great opportunity," Anastasia said. "When I turned pro, I missed playing in those team tournaments. This is a chance to do that and to represent my country."

Unfinished Business

Ask FUTURES Tour rookie Kira Meixner of Richmond, British Columbia, why she's still hanging on to her amateur status after graduating from Kent State last year, and she will tell you there are still some things she wants to do as an amateur.

She has played in two tournaments on tour so far this season, finishing tied for 59th in the most recent event in Daytona Beach, Fla. She plans to play in two more professional tournaments as an amateur before fulfilling her commitments as a member of the Canadian National Amateur Team, beginning at the end of May.

On her itinerary this summer will be the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship, the Ladies British Amateur and the Canadian Women's Amateur.

She also hopes to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open and the CN Canadian Women's Open, and she hopes to defend her title at the British Columbia Women's Amateur Championship, which she won in 2007 and 2008.

Big Break

Fans of the FUTURES Tour will have a chance to watch tour members in action on the Golf Channel. The channel's "Big Break" series returns with "Big Break: Prince Edward Island," a series that will premiere April 20 and will feature FUTURES Tour members Caroline Larsson of Stockholm, Sweden; Brenda McLarnon of Belfast, Ireland; and Gerina Mendoza of Roswell, N.M.

Rookie Race

Rookie Mina Harigae of Monterey, Calif., continued her strong play with a runner-up finish at the FUTURES Tour's recent iMPACT Invitational in Daytona Beach, Fla. That pushed Harigae to the top of the 2009 Rookie of the Year race, one spot ahead of Paola Moreno of Cali, Colombia, who made her professional debut in Daytona and tied for third.

Ochoa aims for 4th straight win at Sybase in May

CLIFTON, N.J. - When it comes to the LPGA Sybase Classic, nothing seems to upstage Lorena Ochoa.

A year ago, Annika Sorenstam announced her retirement on the eve of the $2 million tournament at the Upper Montclair Country Club.

No sweat. Ochoa offered Sorenstam her own little goodbye, taking command over the final two days to win the 72-hole event for the third straight year.

With the course reminding her of one she plays at home in Mexico, Ochoa said Tuesday she has a shot at winning a fourth straight year. That's something she has never done since joining the LPGA Tour.

"I've never been in that situation, but like I said before, it's more than pressure. It's motivation," Ochoa said in a conference call from Guadalajara. "I have the opportunity to do something special.

"So, I'm just going to enjoy it. I'm going to get there with a smile on my face. I know that if I play the way I played, I can be there on Sunday."

While Sorenstam won't be around to challenge Ochoa, the field for the May 14-17 event already includes Michelle Wie and 23-year-old Korean sensation Jiyai Shin, who currently leads the LPGA earnings.

Ochoa, who has replaced Sorenstam as the face of the LPGA, admits she misses the Swede. However, she believes the competition is not lacking.

"I think we are in a great place because there are so many good players, more Americans this year, which I think is good for the LPGA, for the media," Ochoa said. "Michelle Wie is back and everybody likes that. Hopefully, she plays better in the next few tournaments. She's struggled a bit the last couple of weeks.

"I don't feel pressure at all. Like I said, I'm very motivated, I am at the top and I'm going to do whatever it takes to stay there."

Staying on top at the Upper Montclair Country Club has not been hard for Ochoa. The tournament moved here two years ago from Wykagyl Country Club in the northern suburbs of New York City, and Ochoa has owned it.

"I feel like home," she said. "I love the Northeast golf courses, just old, traditional with a lot of trees. I like the small greens, poa annua greens, the same type of greens that I play here in Guadalajara. It just makes me feel comfortable."

Ochoa has played in five events this year, winning her first start in Thailand and posting three Top 10s. Her 70.16 scoring average is the best on the tour, and her earning of $430,205 is second to Shin's $470,895. She is also second to Brittany Lincicome in the race for player of the year.

"I can see good things about my game," said the 27-year-old, who has won 25 LPGA Tour events. "I've been practicing hard this season trying to make changes and make a stronger break with my left hand and change a little bit my putting stroke. I'm really excited to see that I'm going in the right direction."

If there is a concern for Ochoa, it's the economy. The LPGA tour lost a couple of events this season. There are only two events in April.

"We are looking to get a couple of new sponsors, but it's not easy," Ochoa said. "I think what we can do is just to really spend more time with our sponsors, trying to support as much as we can.

"I believe that the LPGA is very strong, and that we should be in good shape. We are working together and for sure spend more time with the sponsors, that's one of our responsibilities and it's going to help our tour."

Ochoa plans to defend her title April 23-26 in the Corona Championship in Mexico. The week before the Sybase event, she intends to play in Michelob ULTRA Open at Kingsmill in Williamsburg, Va.

-- Tom Canavan

Cabrera given hero's welcome in Argentina

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Masters winner Angel Cabrera showed off the newest addition to his wardrobe for the admiring hometown crowd that welcomed him back to Argentina.

"Green suits me," Cabrera said on Tuesday, smiling and sporting the Masters jacket he earned as the first champion from South America.

Two days after winning the Masters on the second hole of a three-way playoff at Augusta, Georgia, the man nicknamed El Pato (The Duck) arrived in his hometown of Villa Allende in the province of Cordoba in north-central Argentina to a rousing welcome.

Cabrera also won the 2007 U.S. Open, joining South Africa's Gary Player as the only non-American players to win both. Cabrera vowed there was more to come.

"With sacrifice and work, anything can be done," the 39-year-old Cabrera said.

"Now I'm going for the third major and I'm not going to stop until I win at least five."

Thirty years ago, he was introduced to golf as a caddie at the exclusive Cordoba Golf Club in Villa Allende. From a humble background, Cabrera was raised by his grandmother and started playing at 15 with borrowed clubs.

Club member Eduardo Romero financially supported Cabrera, allowing him to compete in tournaments in Argentina and abroad and at 20 he turned pro.

Both majors are his only wins on the U.S. PGA Tour, and he has three other wins on the European Tour.