Three Key Points to Watch in the First Major Chevron Championship

Koda's 5 Consecutive Tournament Wins
Major Champ Yoo So-yeon’s Retirement Match
Bang Shin-sil Challenges for First Korean Win This Year

There is a lot to see.

Nelly Korda

This is about the Chevron Championship, the first major tournament of the 2024 season on the U.S. Women's Professional Golf (LPGA) Tour. It will be held over four days starting on the 18th (local time) at The Club at Carlton Woods (par 72, 6,824 yards) in The Woodlands, Texas. All players ranked within the top 30 in the world are participating in this tournament. Here are three key points to watch in this year's Chevron Championship.

World No. 1 Nelly Korda (USA) is drawing attention. Following her victories last month at the Pure Hills Park Se-ri Championship and the Ford Championship, she also won the T-Mobile Match Play earlier this month. This marks three consecutive wins in LPGA Tour events. Including the Drive On Championship in January, she has claimed the top spot in all four tournaments she has entered.

Korda is leading the Player of the Year standings (120 points), the money list ($1,224,216), and CME Globe points (2,052 points). She ranks second in scoring average (69.316 strokes). If she wins this tournament, she will tie the record for five consecutive wins held by Nancy Lopez (USA) and Annika Sorenstam (Sweden). Korda has accumulated 12 career wins on the LPGA Tour. Her only major championship victory so far was the 2021 KPMG Women's PGA Championship.

Yoo So-yeon

World No. 1 in the world Yoo So-yeon will retire after this tournament. She is a strong player with six wins on the LPGA Tour. She won the LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year award in 2012 and Player of the Year in 2017. The Chevron Championship was formerly known as the ANA Inspiration, and Yoo So-yeon won the tournament in 2017. Until 2022, it was held at Mission Hills Country Club in California, USA. The winner's tradition of jumping into the pond on the course with their caddie was famous. Yoo So-yeon chose this tournament as her retirement stage, reminiscing about those memories.

KLPGA long hitter Bang Shin-sil will compete on the U.S. stage. She qualified within the top 40 in the world rankings. This is her first appearance in an LPGA Tour event, where she will test her competitiveness. Since the season opener this year, Korea has yet to lift a winner's trophy in eight tournaments. There is interest in whether Bang Shin-sil can stop Korda's dominance and become Korea's first winner this year. Past winners include Ko Jin-young, who won in 2019, as well as Kim Hyo-joo, Kim Se-young, Jeon In-ji, and Shin Ji-ae.