1998

Some huge events occurred in 1998 – the year in which Royal Lytham & St Annes first hosted the AIG Women’s Open.

It was the year Nelly Korda [above] and Hinako Shibuno were born, and the year that Google was founded.

Se Ri Pak won two majors while, in tennis, Venus Williams lifted the first of her 49 singles titles.

We were still three years away from the AIG Women’s Open being awarded major status, with that year’s Championship being won by Sherri Steinhauer, the first of her three successes.

Here, we take a look back at what else was happening in 1998.

Women’s major winners

Chevron Championship: Pat Hurst

PGA Women’s Championship: Se Ri Pak

Evian Championship: Helen Alfredsson

US Women’s Open: Se Ri Pak

Canadian Women's Open: Brandie Burton

Sport in 1998

Golf: Mark O’Meara [above] won The Open at Royal Birkdale, his second major of the year following his victory at the Masters three months earlier. Sergio Garcia won The Amateur Championship at Muirfield.

Tennis: Nelly Korda’s father Petr defeated Marcelo Rios in the final to win the Australian Open, the only major title of his career. Lindsay Davenport won the US Open and Jana Novotná was the Wimbledon singles champion.

Football: Zinedine Zidane scored twice in the final as France defeated Brazil 3-0 to win the FIFA World Cup on home soil.

American Football: Running back Terrell Davis scored the decisive touchdown as the Denver Broncos defeated the Green Bay Packers 31-24 in Super Bowl XXXII. Meanwhile, Peyton Manning was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts.

NBA: Michael Jordan landed ‘The Last Shot’ as the Chicago Bulls overcame Utah Jazz 4-2 in the NBA Finals to complete their second three–peat of the decade.

Baseball: The New York Yankees won the World Series, sweeping the San Diego Padres in four games.

Swimming: Ian Thorpe became the youngest male world swimming champion, when he triumphed in the 400m freestyle, aged 15 years and 3 months.

Notable births:

Nelly Korda
Hinako Shibuno
Angel Yin
Allisen Corpuz [above]
Min Woo Lee
Marco Penge
Aryna Sabalenka
Kylian Mbappe
Chloe Kelly
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Quincy Hall
Chappell Roan
Brent Rivera
MrBeast

News and entertainment:

6 January: Lunar Prospector was launched on a 19-month mission, ultimately finding evidence of ice on the moon.

20 January: Dawson’s Creek first aired in the US.

6 February: Washington National Airport was renamed Ronald Reagan National Airport.

15 February: The Angel of the North, a 20m-high steel sculpture, was installed in Gateshead, north-east England.

23 March: Titanic won 11 Oscars while Helen Hunt (Best Actress) and Jack Nicholson (Best Actor) were acknowledged for their starring roles in As Good as It Gets.

10 April: The Good Friday Agreement was signed in Belfast.

14 May: 76 million viewers tuned in to watch the final two-part episode of Seinfield.

15 June: The £2 coin entered circulation in the UK.

2 July: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was published in the UK.

25 August: Multi award-winning album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was released.

4 September: Google was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

29 September: Britney Spears [above] released … Baby One More Time, one of the biggest-selling singles of all time.