A new era has officially begun for the Chevron Championship.
After 51 years at the Mission Hills Country Club in the California desert, the LPGA Tour has migrated south to The Woodlands, Texas for the first major of the season. Players got their first taste of competition at the new venue Thursday morning when they teed off at The Club at Carlton Woods.
“I was like, ‘We’re not in Palm Springs anymore,’” Megan Khang said with a laugh after carding a 2-under par first round. “It’s a huge property. I joke around, I don’t carry the golf bag, but I’m like, ‘It’s a long walk.’”
The course is already proving to be a challenge, even for the best in the world. Though there was little weather to contend with early, the lowest card of the morning was Peiyun Chien’s 5-under. Marina Alex was the only one to follow with a 4-under.
“We’ve never been here before, and that’s kind of the beauty of a brand-new venue,” Alex said. “You can play practice rounds, and everyone can speculate on what the course might be, but you don’t know until we’re all out there, kind of out there playing.
“There were some tough pins. The greens are not that easy, so if you’re in the wrong section or if you’re chipping from the wrong area, you have a lot of slope to work with. The greens are pretty quick in certain places. It doesn’t surprise me that there aren’t more low scores."
With 6,824 yards to cover – and, in reality, the course plays longer than that - the par-72 Jack Nicklaus Signature Course favors strong ball-strikers. Angel Yin was hitting 288 yards off the tee and hit 12 of 14 fairways enroute to a 3-under first round. Ally Ewing shot 2-under and averaged 275 yards off the tee.
“I think you definitely have to have control of your golf ball,” Ewing said. “Some of these pins are really tough to get to. Some pins, I don’t think many people will challenge. I think it takes a lot of precision, a lot of really good shot-making, and there is no doubt if you strike the ball well it should give you a good chance.”
But the challenges don’t end at the tee box. The course features small, undulating greens that leave little room for error and the grainy Bermudagrass presents a unique putting challenge.
“Coming into Houston, I for sure thought the greens were going to be big – kind of like U.S. Women's Open a few years back in Houston – and this was not at all what I expected,” Khang said. “These small greens, the undulations and the run outs are definitely what caught my eye, and that’s what I definitely thought was going to be the hard part about playing this course.”
The course is proving to be a trial from end to end, and par is beginning to look like a good score in Texas. A polished game, from tee to pin, will be the only way to walk off the 18th green with a trophy in hand.
“It’s a course I have to hit pretty much every club in my bag,” 2-time LPGA Tour winner Carlota Ciganda – who also shot 2-under – said. “The par-3s – they are great par-3s – you have to be very precise with the numbers, otherwise you have bunkers and it’s quite narrow on the greens. The Par-5s are long. I can reach two or three of them, so that’s good for me, but the course is playing like a major. It’s a tough test, and I think the scoring won’t be too low.”
In just one round, The Club at Carlton Woods has already shown its major caliber and given everyone watch a glimpse of what’s to come in this new era at the Chevron Championship.
)
)
)
)
