Riikka Hakkarainen (born 23 May 1977) is a Finnish

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who played on the

Ladies European Tour The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. Most of the players on the tour are European, with members from more than 40 countries internationally. Despite its name, the tour also has tournaments in A ...

between 1998 and 2011. She won the 2006 Tenerife Ladies Open.

Amateur career

Hakkarainen was born in

Espoo Espoo (, ; ) is a city in Finland. It is located to the west of the capital, Helsinki, in southern Uusimaa. The population is approximately . It is the most populous Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. Espoo is part of the Helsi ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, and played for the Finnish National Ladies Team from the age of 15. She won the Nordic Girls Championship twice, in 1995 and 1996, and the Scottish Girls Strokeplay Championship and the Greece Women's Amateur in 1996. She also finished 3rd in the British Girls Amateur Championship in 1995, and represented Finland in the 1994 and 1996

Espirito Santo Trophy The Espirito Santo Trophy (World Women's Amateur Team Championships) is a biennial world amateur team golf championship for women organised by the International Golf Federation. The inaugural event was held in 1964. It was instituted by the Fren ...

, the World Amateur Golf Team Championships. In 1995, a few days before her 18th birthday, Hakkarainen was runner-up in the Rörstrand Ladies Open on the

Swedish Golf Tour The Swedish Golf Tour, currently titled as the Cutter & Buck Tour for sponsorship reasons, is a developmental professional golf which was formerly operated by Svenska Golftourerna AB, as well as being owned equally by the Swedish Golf Federatio ...

, one stroke behind winner Sara Eklund.

Professional career

Hakkarainen turned professional in 1997, at only 19 years old, and joined the

. In her rookie season her best result was as runner-up at the Swedish PGA Championship, one of six top-10 finishes. In 1998, she also joined the

, where she made the cut at the

Weetabix Women's British Open The Women's Open (originally known as the Women's British Open, and still widely referred to by that name outside the UK) is a major championship in women's professional golf. It is recognised by both the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tou ...

, and had a best finish of 15th at the Donegal Irish Ladies Open. She lost a playoff at the Hook Ladies Open in Sweden. Hakkarainen was runner-up at the 1999 Ladies Italian Open, one stroke behind England's Samantha Head. The next year she had a season best finish of 14th at The Daily Telegraph Ladies British Masters, and she lost a playoff at the Gefle Ladies Open in Sweden. In 2002, she claimed her maiden professional victory at the Telkom Women's Classic on the Nedbank Women's Golf Tour in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. She finished 3rd at the

Biarritz Ladies Classic The Biarritz Ladies Classic was a women's professional golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour that took place in Biarritz, France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, ...

, one stroke away from joining the playoff, and won the Swedish Golf Tour Order of Merit after she was runner-up at the Felix Finnish Ladies Open and at the Körunda Ladies Open, and won the

Swedish Matchplay Championship The Swedish Match Play Championship is a golf tournament played since 1904, held for both men and women. It is the oldest and most traditional golf tournament in Sweden. The name SM is a Swedish abbreviation for ''Svenska Mästerskapet'' 'Swedish ...

. Hakkarainen won her second title in Sweden, the Österåker Ladies Masters, in 2004, and in 2005 she was again runner-up at the Felix Finnish Ladies Open. She teamed up with

Minea Blomqvist Minea "Minni" Blomqvist, (born 12 March 1985 in Espoo, Finland) is a professional golfer who played on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour in the early 2000s. She won twice on the Ladies European Tour. Amateur career Blomqvist was a member of the Finnish N ...

to represent Finland at the inaugural

Women's World Cup of Golf The Women's World Cup of Golf was a professional golf tournament contested by teams of two female golfers representing their respective countries. The tournament was played in several incarnations, first in 1992 as the Sunrise Cup World Team Ch ...

in 2005, and again in 2006. In 2006, she won her only LET title, the Tenerife Ladies Open. She also finished 3rd at the Ladies Central European Open, and 6th at the Finnair Masters, to end the season a career best 9th on the

LET Order of Merit The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. Most of the players on the tour are European, with members from more than 40 countries internationally. Despite its name, the tour also has tournaments in A ...

. Hakkarainen started experiencing balance problems during her best season, and in the middle of 2007 she was forced to take a 2 year hiatus from competitive tournament golf. She made a comeback to the LET in 2009, and her best finish port-return was a tie for 5th at the 2010

Open De España Femenino Open or OPEN may refer to: Music * Open (band), Australian pop/rock band * The Open (band), English indie rock band * ''Open'' (Blues Image album), 1969 * ''Open'' (Gerd Dudek, Buschi Niebergall, and Edward Vesala album), 1979 * ''Open'' (Got ...

. Hakkarainen retired from tour following the 2011 season.

Personal life

Hakkarainen is considered a "Pioneer of Finnish golf" after a long and successful career. She moved to London, UK, in 2010 and still plays a few tournaments a year. She owns and runs Golf Performance, a personal training and coaching business in Mayfair, London; and Helsinki, Finland.

Professional wins (4)

Ladies European Tour (1)

Swedish Golf Tour wins (2)

Nedbank South Africa Women's Golf Tour (1)

*2002 Telkom Ladies Classic

Team appearances

Amateur * European Girls' Team Championship (representing Finland): 1993 *

(representing Finland):

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

Professional *

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

(representing Finland): 2005, 2006

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hakkarainen, Riikka Finnish female golfers Ladies European Tour golfers Golfers from Espoo 1977 births Living people