Not the Headlines out of Mexico the LPGA was hoping for...

This week the LPGA tour is in Moreila, Mexico, at the Tres Marias Championship played at the Tres Marias Golf Club. If you aren’t up on your Mexican geography, Moreila is about 225 miles South East of Guadalajara right smack in the middle of South Central Mexico. While most of the cartel and drug related violence is centered among the border towns and states of Mexico the recent attempted assassination of the country’s Secretary of Public Safety (like a Deputy Director of the FBI) in Moreila must not have been welcome news in Daytona Beach (HQ of the LPGA).

The scene, described as something out of a Tom Clancy novel (Clear & Present Danger anyone?) with grenade launchers, automatic weapons (duh), and a .50cal sniper rifle (which can penetrate hardened surfaces) causes one to pause. Hopefully things will be cleared up before the pre-tournament events start on Monday. What Moreila has going for it, is that it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which is nice. Having lived in a similar place (albeit in Europe) Moreila most likely doesn’t have the Western style gated resorts the coastal resort towns have which might be a bit safer.  Hopefully the tournament organizers and the LPGA were smart enough to plan for a contingency similar to this (as dark and alarmist as it may sound) and help the players plan their flights in and out of the area so they can collect them in bulk at the airport and transport them to wherever they are staying. If they are lucky, they are all staying in the compound/community where the tourney is being competed.

While I don’t think there will be any problems this week, a news report like this does make you take notice. I don’t think this is how Mike Whan envisioned Lorena Ochoa's swan song…

Here’s hoping everything goes off without a hitch. Just in case, the LPGA higher-ups can stay at a Holiday Inn Express and get smarter. You know. Just to cover the bases.