EVENTS

8 things to know right now at the 2019 KPMG Women's PGA Championship

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8 things to know right now at the 2019 KPMG Women's PGA Championship

Here are 8 things to know right now about the 2019 KPMG Women's PGA Championship, set for this week at Hazeltine National Golf Club.

99/100 IS GOOD FOR AN A+

The 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship will again deliver one of the strongest fields in women’s golf, as 99 of the top 100 active members on the LPGA Official Money List are scheduled to play this week at Hazeltine (as of Tuesday, June 18). In each of the three previous years (Kemper Lakes/2018, Olympia Fields/2017, Sahalee/2016), the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship included the top 100 players on the LPGA Official Money List.

Mo Martin (No. 97), of Naples, Florida, withdrew from the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship over the weekend due to injury.

YOUTH IS SERVED HERE

Dating to the ISPS Handa Vic Open in early February, 14 consecutive LPGA tournaments have been won by players in their 20s.

Eun-Hee Ji is the only player outside her 20s to win this year. Ji won the season’s first tournament, the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions Presented by IOA, in mid-January. She was 32 at the time (and is now 33).

TOP 10 AGAIN

Jessica Korda plays the 2018 KPMG Women's PGA Championship.

Four players — Jessica Korda (above), Jeongeun Lee6, Ally McDonald, Lexi Thompson — have posted top-10 finishes in both of the LPGA’s first two major championships of the year: the ANA Inspiration and U.S. Women’s Open. A closer look at their performances:

Player 2019 ANA Inspiration 2019 U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN
Jessica Korda T-6 T-10
Jeongeun Lee6 T-6 Winner
Ally McDonald T-6 T-10
Lexi Thompson 3rd T-2

 

SPREADING THE WEALTH

Dating to the 2017 Ricoh British Women’s Open, nine different players have won the LPGA’s nine major championships played. Six of the nine were first-time major champions.

  MAJOR CHAMPION MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Jeongeun Lee6 2019 U.S. Women's Open
2 Jin Young Ko 2019 ANA Inspiration
3 Angela Stanford 2018 The Evian Championship
4 Georgia Hall 2018 Ricoh Women's British Open
5 Sung Hyun Park 2018 KPMG Women's PGA Championship
6 Ariya Jutanugarn 2018 U.S. Women's Open
7 Pernilla Lindberg 2018 ANA Inspiration
8 Anna Nordqvist 2017 The Evian Championship
9 In-Kyung Kim 2017 Ricoh Women's British Open

 

 

MAJOR CHAMPIONS GALORE

The 156-player field for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship includes 29 different major champions that have combined on 52 major titles. Inbee Park and Karrie Webb lead the pack with seven majors apiece.

THESE NINE ARE DIVINE

Nine former KPMG Women’s PGA Champions are in the field this week in the Twin Cities. Laura Davies (1994, 1996), Shanshan Feng (2012), Brooke Henderson (2016), Danielle Kang (2017), Cristie Kerr (2010), Inbee Park (2013, ’14, ‘15), Sung Hyun Park (2018), Anna Nordqvist (2009) and Karrie Webb (2001).

NEW BULLET POINT ON HAZELTINE’S RESUME

Patrick Reed hits off the first tee during the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine.

This is the first KPMG Women’s PGA Championship to be played in Minnesota and it bolsters Hazeltine’s impressive golf heritage, which includes a Ryder Cup victory in 2016 (above), multiple PGA Championships (2002, '09), multiple U.S. Opens (1970, 1991), multiple U.S. Women’s Opens (1966, 1977), as well as a U.S. Senior Open (1983), a U.S. Amateur Championship (2006), a U.S. Mid-Amateur (1994) and a NCAA Division I Men’s Championship (1999).

In the coming years, Hazeltine will host the 2020 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, 2024 U.S. Amateur Championship and the 2028 Ryder Cup. Hazeltine will become the first American venue to host a second Ryder Cup.

THE VIEW FROM THE SUMMIT

Enhancing Championship Week is Wednesday’s 5th Annual KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit, which will be hosted on-site at Hazeltine. The event brings together highly accomplished leaders in business, politics, sports and the media to inspire the next generation of women leaders. KPMG U.S. Chairman and CEO Lynne Doughtie, 66th U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice and two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup Champion Mia Hamm will serve as keynote speakers. They will be joined by a group of accomplished leaders from the worlds of business, sports, and the media, including: Cathy Bessant – Chief Operations and Technology Officer, Bank of America; Brian Cornell - Chairman & CEO, Target; Peter Grauer – Chairman, Bloomberg; Alison Levine – New York Times Bestselling Author & Leadership Advisor and Suzy Whaley – President, PGA of America.

Net proceeds from the Championship and Summit fund the KPMG Future Leaders Program. This Program affords top female high school seniors across the country the opportunity to enhance their personal growth through college scholarships, a leadership development retreat at Stanford University, a mentoring relationship with a woman business leader, and an introduction to golf.