Ochoa: Not done competing?

So much for Lorena Ochoa's retirement. The 28-year-old hasn't played in an LPGA tournament since May, but now says she might "play some tournaments for fun."

The golf world was stunned when she announced her retirement on April 20, but Ochoa reiterates now what she said six months ago: "I just achieved what I wanted to achieve [on the LPGA Tour] and I wanted to retire the No. 1 in the world."

Jaime Diaz, senior writer for Golf Digest, disapproved of her going-out-on-top mentality.

"When I first heard that Lorena Ochoa was retiring at 28, I had two unkind thoughts about this exceedingly kind person," Diaz wrote, in the July issue of Golf Digest. "First, that she was chickening out on the hard part of being No. 1. Second, that she would be sorry.

While it's not entirely clear whether Ochoa is, indeed, sorry about her decision, it does seem as though she's had to convince herself that she made the right choice.

"I would be lying if I said (I don't miss competitive golf)," Ochoa said on Wednesday. "I'm also super happy. It's just nice to be home. Every day it appears more to me I've made the right decision at the right time."

Bill Fields, senior editor for Golf World, wrote this column soon after Ochoa's announcement, recounting several athletes who "depart[ed] on their terms, before they reach[ed] the autumn of their skills."

And Ron Sirak, executive editor of Golf World, wrote this column on the day of Ochoa's retirement, delving into the complicated reasons a young woman would bow out on top of her game.

"Lorena Ochoa is a woman who has her priorities straight," Sirak wrote. "Right now, for whatever reason, golf does not fit into the picture. Perhaps it will again someday. And if she does return, it will be for the right reasons."

--Ashley Mayo