2025 LPGA Season Odds and Ends

[BadgerLin]

On 4/17/2025 at 10:32 AM, BadgerLin said:

Here’s a random complaint:  I think the LPGA could splurge - go all out- and spell out completely each golfer’s last name on the website leaderboard!  (Put that intern to work). 

I’m glad to see the LPGA did splurge on an update so that now golfers’ names are FULLY spelled out on the website leaderboard!! Good to see they’re paying attention to us on our wrx forum. 😂

[JungleJimbo]

3 hours ago, BadgerLin said:

I’m glad to see the LPGA did splurge on an update so that now golfers’ names are FULLY spelled out on the website leaderboard!! Good to see they’re paying attention to us on our wrx forum. 😂

 

@Argonne69's connection with "friends in High Places" e.g. Lisa Cornwell might've helped to alert the LPGA powers-that-be, to the new App/ website's deficiencies / gremlins.

 

 

[ChronicSlicer]

On 4/14/2025 at 3:43 AM, JungleJimbo said:

 

 

 

 

Sorry, but the comments on Asterisk didn't age well given her last two showings out there. The vultures clearly have their eyes out for this young lady. Hope she can handle the pecking.

[JungleJimbo]

 

JYK has just uploaded this VLOG video... saying she is going home to Korea "for a few weeks" 

 

... Not sure the exact duration, but presumably means she will miss at least the next 2-3 tournaments (and will then come back straight into USWO??).

Here's the LPGA website Link for upcoming tournaments schedule.  https://www.lpga.com/tournaments 

 

Looks like she isn't entered at Mayakoba either (the tournament immediately preceding USWO). https://www.lpga.com/tournaments/riviera-maya-open-at-mayakoba/entries 

(side note: Mayakoba looks like a weak field, even many erstwhile LPGA (and now Epson Tour) players have confirmed entry

e.g. Kelly Tan, Hee Young "The Rocket" Park; Natalie Gulbis(!), Christina Kim, Sandra Gal, Annie Park, Matilda Castren... looks like a Listing from 2015?)

 

My guess = JYK is going to find "Jedi master Yoda on Dagobah" again, to boost her motivation ahead of the peak-Majors period (namely ... JiYai Shin)... with Jiyai also her "mukbang" (eating vlog) companion & golf confidante.

 

Edited April 28 by JungleJimbo

[18majors]

Rolex rankings as of today 04/28/25:

1.   Nelly Korda                     10.64          372.29           35
2.   Jeeno Thitikul                 7.49            307.28           41
3.   Lydia Ko                          6.76            304.32           45

Jeeno can overtake Nelly as world #1 if she wins both Mizuho and USWO.

[Lobby]

JYK looked “off” at the Chevron. Frustrated, maybe?  I thought she was playing well enough

 

 

[ChronicSlicer]

14 hours ago, JungleJimbo said:

 

 

(side note: Mayakoba looks like a weak field, even many erstwhile LPGA (and now Epson Tour) players have confirmed entry

e.g. Kelly Tan, Hee Young "The Rocket" Park; Natalie Gulbis(!), Christina Kim, Sandra Gal, Annie Park, Matilda Castren... looks like a Listing from 2015?)

 

 

They should invite Morgan to play, so nobody has to listen to her and Christina in the booth. That field does look less than stellar. Can Fassi make the cut on home soil?

[18majors]

 

Lydia is such a wholesome person:

 

 

[JungleJimbo]

3 minutes ago, 18majors said:

 

Lydia is such a wholesome person:

 

 

Danielle shot 147 (74-73) ... quite a distance behind the 2 medalists/qualifiers (who shared honours with 139).

thanks @18majors for sharing.

 

[iBanesto]

15 hours ago, Lobby said:

JYK looked “off” at the Chevron. Frustrated, maybe?  I thought she was playing well enough

 

 

 

Looks like she is sleeping in that photo.

 

[18majors]

 

She's won a major; she'll be a future captain:

 

[Treats]

6 hours ago, JungleJimbo said:

Danielle shot 147 (74-73) ... quite a distance behind the 2 medalists/qualifiers (who shared honours with 139).

thanks @18majors for sharing.

 

Lyds maybe bored, hubby likely has a M-F job at Hyundai in SF.

I hope Kang bought Lyds a BurgerDog & Pepsi at the Turn, even though it likely got charged to Lyds account.

 

I believe Lyds & hubby are either honorary members or members at Olympic Club.

I believe a WRX member has posted and has seen & chatted with Lyds & hubby at the range at Olympic Club.

[Treats]

2 hours ago, 18majors said:

 

She's won a major; she'll be a future captain:

 

In the future, will Creamer's assistant captains be relegated to shop for hair ribbons, face paint and nail salons for USA pedicures & manicures?🤪

 

I assume Wie could captain in the future if she was elected and said yes.

I don't get the impression that Lincicome would step up to captain if elected.

[ChronicSlicer]

3 hours ago, Treats said:

In the future, will Creamer's assistant captains be relegated to shop for hair ribbons, face paint and nail salons for USA pedicures & manicures?🤪

 

Hopefully not, but probably 😅 

[18majors]

 

This is a great show, both of them were genuinely happy for each other:

 

 

[18majors]

 

The Nelly Invitational is a No. 1 Junior event:

As Nelly Korda hosts on AJGA, she tells kids not to compare: 'I wasn’t even a top junior'

 

"Chevron’s commitment in 2025 enabled The Nelly to give the highest travel stipends in tour history of $2,000 for U.S. players and $2,500 for international players. The Nelly also strengthened its field in 2025 by extending invitations to the top-10 eligible international players that may not be AJGA members and/or didn't previously qualify for the event through the Rolex AJGA Rankings.

 

Korda oversaw and insisted on small details this week, like allowing parents to come eat with their kids in the clubhouse, to big things, like extending a major championship invitation to the winner. After playing in the junior-am, Chevron Championship executive director Glenn Weckerlin was getting a printed invitation to the 2026 event ready for Sunday’s winner.

 

The Nelly offers perks not often seen at this level. The TaylorMade tour truck, for example, was parked on the range on Wednesday. Korda plans to return to the club on Friday for Nike Night from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., where players will enjoy a host of Nike goodies and design their own shoes. The Nelly has quickly gained a reputation for having the best swag on the junior circuit.

 

“No. 1 by far,” said 15-year-old Honorine Nobuta Ferry. “By far.”

 

Players this week might need an extra carry-on for all their gifts, including two dozen TaylorMade balls, hats and a tournament-logoed head cover, a mini Tumi backpack, Stanley water bottles that are personalized and logoed, a Flye1+ wireless audio transmitter and receiver for the plane and a pin flag signed by the host. The Nike products players will receive include the Nike Free golf shoes Korda helped design, along with a tech fleece hoodie, leggings, slides, a duffle bag and custom off-the-course shoes they’ll create on their phones."

 

 

 

 

Edited May 2 by 18majors

[JungleJimbo]

 

 

[JungleJimbo]

6 hours ago, 18majors said:

The Nelly has quickly gained a reputation for having the best swag on the junior circuit.

 

“No. 1 by far,” said 15-year-old Honorine Nobuta Ferry. “By far.”

 

thanks @18majors ... your article gave some context to Beth Ann Nichols tweet i.e. i wasn't sure what "The Nelly" was referring to, until i saw that article.

 

 

[Treats]

7 hours ago, 18majors said:

 

The Nelly Invitational is a No. 1 Junior event:

As Nelly Korda hosts on AJGA, she tells kids not to compare: 'I wasn’t even a top junior'

 

"Chevron’s commitment in 2025 enabled The Nelly to give the highest travel stipends in tour history of $2,000 for U.S. players and $2,500 for international players. The Nelly also strengthened its field in 2025 by extending invitations to the top-10 eligible international players that may not be AJGA members and/or didn't previously qualify for the event through the Rolex AJGA Rankings.

 

Korda oversaw and insisted on small details this week, like allowing parents to come eat with their kids in the clubhouse, to big things, like extending a major championship invitation to the winner. After playing in the junior-am, Chevron Championship executive director Glenn Weckerlin was getting a printed invitation to the 2026 event ready for Sunday’s winner.

 

The Nelly offers perks not often seen at this level. The TaylorMade tour truck, for example, was parked on the range on Wednesday. Korda plans to return to the club on Friday for Nike Night from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., where players will enjoy a host of Nike goodies and design their own shoes. The Nelly has quickly gained a reputation for having the best swag on the junior circuit.

 

“No. 1 by far,” said 15-year-old Honorine Nobuta Ferry. “By far.”

 

Players this week might need an extra carry-on for all their gifts, including two dozen TaylorMade balls, hats and a tournament-logoed head cover, a mini Tumi backpack, Stanley water bottles that are personalized and logoed, a Flye1+ wireless audio transmitter and receiver for the plane and a pin flag signed by the host. The Nike products players will receive include the Nike Free golf shoes Korda helped design, along with a tech fleece hoodie, leggings, slides, a duffle bag and custom off-the-course shoes they’ll create on their phones."

 

 

 

 

I know a few junior golfers. Some AJGA events are hard to qualify for and some have long waitlists.

 

Yes, I don't recall seeing Nelly at or near the top of the WAGR rankings or maybe I'm wrong.

 

I think Whelan used to be Creamer's coach too.

[Seamus_McDuff]

7 hours ago, JungleJimbo said:

 

 

Article doesn’t say why they’re moving for two years but I’ve always thought LPGA should do more of this. Find an area where the fans come out and rotate the tournament amongst two or three clubs. Membership might be more inclined to sign on if they’re not losing their course for two weeks every year. 

[JungleJimbo]

 

The LET social media intern saw that the LPGA counterpart has upped their game

... and said "Hold my Beer!" (imperial tripel / quadrupel stout pls)

 

... Yes, silly stuff... but made me smile.

 

 

Edited May 4 by JungleJimbo

[18majors]

 

Basically it's a tournament sponsored by all twelve of Nelly's sponsors, it's a win-win proposition:

 

 

[18majors]

 

She is one of the youngest Americans (born 2006 or 2007?) to win on either the Epson Tour or LPGA Tour.  She's 8 years younger than Nelly Korda; she'll carry American flag for a long time.

 

Yana Wilson won Epson tour this week in her hometown (Las Vegas); she'll compete at LPGA's Mizuho Americas Open next week:

 

 

Edited May 4 by 18majors

[MagicClassic407]

YANI TSENG is currently in a 5-way playoff to secure a spot in the USWO!!!

 

[NorthTexasGlfr]

13 hours ago, MagicClassic407 said:

YANI TSENG is currently in a 5-way playoff to secure a spot in the USWO!!!

 

 

And...........YANI TSENG wins the playoff!!!!!!!!

 

https://golfweek.usatoday.com/story/sports/golf/lpga/2025/05/06/five-time-major-champ-qualified-for-first-u-s-womens-open-since-2016/83471081007/

Edited May 6 by NorthTexasGlfr

[18majors]

47 minutes ago, NorthTexasGlfr said:

And...........YANI TSENG wins the playoff!!!!!!!!

 

 

 

[18majors]

 

Lydia's is my pick:

 

[JungleJimbo]

On 5/6/2025 at 9:58 AM, MagicClassic407 said:

YANI TSENG is currently in a 5-way playoff to secure a spot in the USWO!!!

 

 

13 hours ago, NorthTexasGlfr said:

 

And...........YANI TSENG wins the playoff!!!!!!!!

 

https://golfweek.usatoday.com/story/sports/golf/lpga/2025/05/06/five-time-major-champ-qualified-for-first-u-s-womens-open-since-2016/83471081007/

 

Admiration for Yani Tseng, via Grant Boone (tweet Linked below)

 

 

... Here's the Link to the Qualifying results at Arizona GC (to save folks a google-search): 

https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/5082409 (noted some recognisable names in the field e.g. Pornanong Phatlum).

 

36 holes in one day = sounds like it was a long day!

 

From the article linked by @NorthTexasGlfr:

"Five-time major champion Yani Tseng will make her first U.S. Women's Open appearance since 2016. The former No. 1 advanced out of a five-for-one playoff at Arizona Country Club on May 5 along with former Wildcat golfer Yusang Hou, who took medalist honors at 4-under 140.

Tseng, who recently switched to putting left-handed to combat the yips, shot 70-71 in the 36-hole qualifier to finish at 3 under along with Ryann O'Toole, Hira Naveed, Dottie Ardina and Laetitia Beck."

 

 

 

 

Edited May 7 by JungleJimbo

[aabcuue]

On 5/3/2025 at 6:52 AM, Seamus_McDuff said:

Article doesn’t say why they’re moving for two years but I’ve always thought LPGA should do more of this. Find an area where the fans come out and rotate the tournament amongst two or three clubs. Membership might be more inclined to sign on if they’re not losing their course for two weeks every year. 

Maybe because Liberty is hosting the PGA FedEx Cup BMW playoffs in 2027.

 

For most clubs one major tournament is enough.

[18majors]

 

Good news for Ladies European Tour:

Saudi sovereign wealth fund deepens investment in women’s professional golf

 

"As part of this latest deal, the tour will revamp the five events, which will be collectively rebranded as the PIF Global Series. The events take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Seoul, South Korea; London; Houston; and Shenzhen, China.

 

The Saudis are also injecting additional money into the prize pools, with a collective purse of $13 million across the five events."