Brooke Henderson leads Canadian trio into 1st LPGA major of season
Chevron Championship comes with new look, moving to Texas for 1st time
The Chevron Championship has left the California desert for the woods of suburban Houston, and that means top-ranked Lydia Ko has dealt with some new challenges while preparing for the LPGA's first major of the year.
"I was sneezing so much. I told that to my husband. 'I was like, I broke the course record in sneezing,"' Ko said. "But he only heard the course record, and he was like, 'You must have played great.' And I was like, 'No, I meant in sneezing,' because there's a lot of pine trees here and I have allergies."
Ko picked up some allergy medication after her practice round in hopes it'll keep the sneezing at bay when the tournament begins Thursday. The 132-player field features nine past champions, including Jennifer Kupcho, last year's winner.
The event will be held at The Club at Carlton Woods for the first time after its long run at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif., since 1972 — and as a major since 1983. Known informally as the Dinah Shore after its actress founder, Chevron took over the tournament sponsorship and moved it to the Houston area, where Chevron has a huge presence downtown with some 8,000 employees.
Henderson leads Canadian trio
Canada's Brooke Henderson, ranked seventh in the world, will tee it up looking for her third career major victory.
The 25-year-old said that she tries to stick to her usual preparation routines while being mindful of playing on some of the biggest stages in women's golf.
"Everyone has these weeks circled on their calendar and they're trying to peak for these events, but at the same time, you can't go too far outside of what you're comfortable with and what you're used to," said Henderson, while seeking shelter from the rain at The Club at Carlton Woods. "We play almost every week out here on tour, so we know what works and what doesn't.
"I think sometimes you can put a little bit too much pressure on these weeks but at the same time you have to elevate."
WATCH | Henderson wins season-opening event in Florida:
Henderson certainly elevated her game at majors last season, arguably having her best-ever season at the biggest five tournament's on the women's golf calendar, including winning The Evian Championship on July 24. She also tied for 13th at last year's Chevron Championship, tied for 15th at the U.S. Open Women's, tied for 16th at the Women's PGA Championship, and tied for seventh at the Women's British Open.
"I don't think it will ever get old," she said about playing in a major. "You walk in here and the atmosphere is just different. Everybody's super excited and really focused and it's just the next level.
"These weeks are just next level and you have to really bring your A game if you want to compete."
Henderson will be joined by Maude-Aimée Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., and Maddie Szeryk of London, Ont. It will be the 26-year-old Szeryk's first appearance at a major as professional, having played in the U.S. Women's Open as an amateur in 2017.
Splashy tradition
Tournament organizers are trying to maintain some of the history of the tournament. The Dinah Shore was highlighted by Poppie's Pond, which surrounded the 18th green at Mission Hills. Winners had been jumping into it since 1988.
The Club at Carlton Woods also has water at the 18th hole where the tradition could be continued, and they named the hospitality area near the hole "Dinah's Place."
"In Chevron's perspective, I think they're very respectful and understanding of all the history that we've had [and] for them to be understanding of how people remember this championship and having the jump to Poppie's Pond and for them to kind of bring that back and give players opportunities and their team opportunity to do that I think is really cool," Ko said.
But unlike the pristine blue water of Poppie's Pond, the Texas water is murkier, leading to debate about whether jumping in would be a good idea. Ko and world No. 2 Nelly Korda said they'd take the leap, while Kupcho seemed less inclined.
"I guess we'll see what comes down to it," she said. "I'm not really sure. I think there might be snakes in the water here, so might be a little interesting."
Deep field
Stacy Lewis has a leg up on preparations for the majors. She grew up in The Woodlands, about 5-½ kilometres from the club, and was on the players' advisory committee that helped with the move.
Ko returned to No. 1 in the world and will try to win a major for the first time since 2016. Korda is fully healthy after missing four months and a lot of momentum last year with a blood clot in her arm that required surgery.
Another player to watch this week is Georgia Hall, the winner of the 2018 Women's British Open who has finished second in two of her last three tournaments.
"It obviously gives me a lot of confidence," Hall said. "I've been in contention most of the weeks that I've played in an event, so really comfortable with being in that position. I think that every golf course every week is very different, as well, and this one — and the greens are especially quite tricky, so I think I can rely on my short game this week, but hopefully I can be in that final group again come Sunday."
With files from The Canadian Press
