The season’s third major championship showcased a newly transformed Blue Course at Congressional Country Club in what was a series of firsts - the first time the club hosted a women’s major; the first time the redesigned course had hosted a major competition; and the first time Congressional welcomed the top players in the world since the U.S. Open in 2011.
Congressional made its comeback to competition to rave reviews as it produced a long, and difficult test that challenged every club in the bag. It won’t be long before the world’s best descend once again on Congressional as the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship marked the beginning of a nine-event partnership between the PGA of America and the club, which will host the PGA Championship, the Ryder Cup, and see the return of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in the years to come.
For much of the week, it was In Gee Chun who looked poised to make her return to the top of the women’s game. She had suffered back pain and a bout with depression and had gone without a win on the LPGA Tour since 2018. And, it had been six years since the two-time major champion had captured one of the biggest trophies in the women’s game. But when Chun opened with a dazzling 8-under par 64 at Congressional which left the rest of the field in awe, it looked as though she may be on the return. But Lexi Thompson was seeking a comeback of her own.
Thompson, who has dealt with her fair share of heartbreak on the golf course, recently suffered heartache away from the game with the recent loss of her grandmother, Mimi. At Congressional, Thompson tried to use that loss as a motivation and her grandmother’s passing provided her with a renewed perspective as she tried to be less critical of her mistakes and sought to look at her time competing as a blessing.
On Sunday, Thompson mounted a final-round charge to take a two-stroke lead midway through the final round, but her short game failed her on the closing stretch to allow Chun to retake a one-stroke lead heading to the 72nd hole. Chun rolled in a final par putt at the last to cement her comeback status and earn her third major title and fourth win on the LPGA Tour. Thompson finished runner up for her sixth top 10 of the season.
The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship caps a five-week stretch that saw more than one comeback as some of the biggest names in the women’s game returned to the winner’s circle on the LPGA Tour.
Eun Hee Ji captured the five-day gauntlet known as the Bank of Hope Match Play to win for the first time since 2019.
The following week, the Tour descended on Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club for the U.S. Women’s Open. It was there that the Tour welcomed the return of Nelly Korda to competition for the first time since February as she had stepped away from the game to have surgery to remove a blood clot in her arm. And it was Minjee Lee who came away victorious as just the third player from Australia to win the U.S. Women’s Open.
The following week, Brooke Henderson captured her first win of the season at the ShopRite LPGA Classic, where she came from four strokes back to win on Sunday.
Then, the Tour returned to the Meijer LPGA Classic where a three-way playoff ensued between Korda, Jennifer Kupcho, and Leona Maguire. It was Kupcho who emerged victorious on the second playoff hole to capture her second victory in as many months.
The LPGA Tour takes a two-week break before returning to competition for one of the most fun events on the schedule, the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational where the Jutanugarn sisters seek to defend their title. Then the final march to the final two majors of the season begins with the Amundi Evian Championship and AIG Women’s Open on the horizon.
Everyone loves a good comeback story and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship produced one of the best as Congressional rejoined the major championship rota and In Gee Chun cemented her place, once more, at the top of the women’s game.
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