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Q: Do you think Laura Davies, a fan favorite, has that one elusive LPGA win in her to make it to the LPGA Hall of Fame? Deb, Harrisburg, PA

A: Oh, how fitting it would be if she did, because Laura Davies is a Hall of Fame personality with a Hall of Fame game and a Hall of Fame resume. Were she on the men’s side of the golf world, the credentials — 20 tour wins, including four majors, and 68 worldwide victories — would make her a landslide choice. But the women’s game has a points system in place and Davies, with 25, is two shy of the required minimum. That means she needs at least two LPGA Tour wins or one major and while I think she has the game to do it, the window of opportunity is closing quickly.

Now 44, her power still gets her by, but the short-game prowess and the putting skills have eroded. She’s recorded just two top-10 finishes in her last 16 major starts and the free-spirited Englishwoman invariably throws in one bad round to spoil her chances.

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She came close a handful of times in ’07 — third at the Ginn Open, with a closing 79; third at the Jamie Farr; second at the Honda in Thailand — so obviously the game is still good enough, but if she doesn’t do it next year, my fear is she will fall short of the required minimum of points and be left at the mercy of some sort of committee vote.

Q: Hi Jim, what about David Duval for 2008 . . . is he going to be a force again or just another journeyman? What happened to him anyway?Colin Finnie, Christchurch New Zealand

It is more than eight years since David Duval rose to No. 1 in the world and six since he triumphed at the British Open. But the slide from view? That is five years old, though I won’t waver from a prediction I made two years ago — he will return to a form that will serve as a reminder that he was a remarkable player.

No. 1 in the world? No, he will not make it that far, but I believe Duval can win again.

Ignore the 2003-05 stretch where he made just eight cuts in 49 starts; he was in a bad state of mind back then, tired of the PGA Tour travel, disillusioned by a life that had little in it beside golf.

He showed flashes of his old self in 2006 when he finished 172d on the money list and when he made the cut in three of his first four starts in 2007, there was reason to be optimistic. But Duval has embraced a family world and when his wife, Susie, faced a difficult pregnancy, he chose to spend months at home, which shows a firm grasp of perspective.

With everyone healthy, Duval at 36 seems happier than he’s ever been, a father to Susie’s three children by a previous marriage and the two they have together. He continues to work on his golf game with his trusted swing coach, Puggy Blackmon, and has said that it’s a goal of his to return to a level of play that his family hasn’t yet had the chance to witness. My guess is he’ll pull it off.

Jim McCabe writes regularly for msnbc.com and covers golf for The Boston Globe.


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