The KPMG Target Field Challenge with Stacy Lewis & Phil Mickelson++
by Cindi Sutter, Chief Communicator & Editor of Spirited Table®
Getting to Know the LPGA Tour
The LPGA is the world’s leading professional golf organization for women. Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Daytona Beach, FL., the association celebrates a diverse and storied membership with more than 2,300 members representing more than 30 countries. With a vision to inspire, empower, educate and entertain by showcasing the very best of women’s golf, LPGA Tour Professionals compete across the globe. Please join us in June for the KPMG LPGA Championship! INSPIRE GREATNESS!
June 18 - 23
Hazeltine National Golf Club
Chaska, Minnesota
About the Championship
The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship – a collaboration between the PGA of America, KPMG and the LPGA Tour – will be contested at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota for the first time in the Championship’s long and storied history. Broadcast in partnership with NBC and Golf Channel, the Championship offers a purse among the highest in women’s golf. The event combines an annual major golf championship with the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit and an ongoing charitable initiative called the KPMG Future Leaders Program – all focused on the development, advancement, and empowerment of women on and off the golf course.
My video below, reveals the humor and fun that ruled the Media Day and The KPMG Target Field Challenge, between Stacy Lewis and Phil Mickelson.
Find more information about the PLAYERS TO WATCH and the QUALIFICATION CRITERIA FOR THE 2019 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP.
2019 PLAYERS TO WATCH
Written By: Amy Rogers@TheAmyRogers
Amy Rogers is a Content Producer for LPGA.com. She has covered the LPGA, PGA, Web.com and European Tours for Golf Channel. She has also worked as a Sports Anchor and Reporter covering the New York City and Orlando markets.
Americans have been the predominant winners of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. Over the course of the championship’s storied history, which dates back to the mid 1950s, the championship has been won 41 times by players from the United States. However, as the LPGA Tour’s global influence has grown, so have the number of international players. Just two Americans have won the championship during the last decade, but there is a growing number of new American players who are contending week in and week out on Tour and will be chasing their first major title at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
Nelly Korda
Already a multiple winner in her first three years as a member of the LPGA Tour, Nelly Korda has quickly become the torchbearer for the Americans. Nelly, the younger sister of fellow LPGA member Jessica, has surged to the top of the Rolex Rankings and become the top-ranked American in the world. Her consistency on Tour has resulted in nearly two-dozen top 10s and two victories. As Nelly has grown more comfortable on Tour, so has her presence in major championships. She recorded her first top 10 in a major at the 2018 U.S. Women’s Open and will be the American to watch at Hazeltine as she looks to capture her first major title.
Jessica Korda
A five-time winner on the LPGA Tour, Jessica Korda has enjoyed a resurgence over the last year on Tour. During the 2017 off-season, Jessica underwent extensive jaw surgery to alleviate pain she had been playing with for years. Since the surgery, Jessica has played some of the best golf of her career. She won in her first event back on Tour and finished inside the top 10 in 3 of the 5 majors of 2018, including T4 at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. As the American fights to keep pace with her sister, a major victory is the missing piece in what has already been an impressive career.
Lizette Salas
Since capturing her first win on Tour at the 2014 Kingsmill Championship, Lizette Salas has come close on multiple occasions to returning to the winner’s circle. In 2018, Salas recorded four top 10s, which included a run on the weekend at Kemper Lakes Golf Club to finish T8 at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. The solid performance was just the second top 10 Salas has recorded in a major, but a confidence boost nonetheless for the three-time Solheim Cup member who is looking to add her first major title to her resume.
Angel Yin
Since joining the Tour in 2017, Angel Yin has been a player to watch. With an entertaining personality and a game to match, it’s only a matter of time before Yin captures a win on American soil. She already has the priceless experience of knowing what it takes win, having won on the Ladies European Tour. Since her rookie season, Yin has put herself in contention in the majors, most notably showing off her short game prowess with an impressive hole out from the water at the 18th hole at Kemper Lakes Golf Club to record a top 5 finish at the 2018 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. As Yin grows more comfortable on golf’s biggest stage, victories and major titles will inevitably follow.
Marina Alex
Coming off her career best season on the LPGA Tour, Marina Alex added her name to a short list of Americans who will be in pursuit of a first major title in 2019. During the 2018 season, Alex recorded five top 10s and picked up her first victory on Tour. While Alex hasn’t often contended in the majors since joining the Tour in 2013, she’s continued to ride the confidence of getting her first win into the 2019 season and the consistency she’s displayed makes her one of the up and coming Americans to watch at Hazeltine.
QUALIFICATION CRITERIA FOR THE 2019 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Commitment Deadline: Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. ET
Sponsor Invitation Deadline: Monday, June 17, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. ET. If a sponsor invite withdraws prior to the invitation deadline, the sponsor may replace the invite with another invite up until Monday, June 17, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. ET.
The field of 156 players will be determined as follows:
Active LPGA and/or World Golf Hall of Fame members. Note: To be considered Active, an LPGA and/or World Golf Hall of Fame member must have participated in 10 official LPGA tournaments within the 12 months prior to the commitment deadline.
Past winners of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship (inclusive of all previous winners of the LPGA Championship).
Professionals who have won an LPGA Major Championship in the previous five (5) years (2014-2018) and during the current year (2019).
Professionals who have won an Official LPGA tournament in the previous two (2) calendar years (2017- 2018) and during the current year (2019).
Professionals who finished top-10 and ties at the previous year’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Professionals ranked No. 1-30 on the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings as of May 21, 2019.
The top eight (8) finishers at the 2018 LPGA T&CP National Championship as determined by the LPGA.
The top finisher (not otherwise qualified via the 2018 LPGA T&CP National Championship) at the 2019 PGA Women’s Stroke-Play Championship.
Members of the European and United States Solheim Cup Teams in 2017.
Maximum of two (2) sponsor invites.
Any Player who did not compete in the 2018 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship due to maternity, as approved by the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in conjunction with the player’s home tour, provided she was otherwise qualified to compete in the 2018 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
LPGA Members ranked in the order of their position on the 2019 Official Money List through the conclusion of the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give.
If the event is not full, the remainder of the field will be filled by Members, ranked in the order of their position on the 2019 LPGA Priority List as of the commitment deadline.