Monthly Archives: April 2024

Chevron Championship – LPGA’s First Major of 2024

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Another week and another major – I love Spring!

It’s a good thing that the LPGA moved the first major of the year so there is no conflict with the Augusta National Women’s Amateur or The Masters. Most people over a certain age will remember the first major as the Dinah Shore or the Colgate Dinah Shore, then it became the ANA Inspiration (which was held in Palm Springs) but with the new sponsor came a new venue in Texas at The Club at Carlton Woods, the Woodlands, Houston.

Last year was the first year at the new location and Lilian Vu won in a playoff against Angel Yin. I don’t think Vu is likely to play well enough to defend her title because she has been dealing with back issues. Perhaps if Angel plays well she may have a chance but my money is on the LPGA’s number one player.

Yes, just as I picked the number one player in the world on the men’s side to win The Masters, I am picking the number one female player in the world, Nelly Korda to win the Chevron Championshiop. Korda, like Scheffler, has won multiple times on tour this season.

In fact, if she wins the Chevron that will be five (5) consecutive wins this season. The last player to win five in a row in the same season was Nancy Lopez back in 1975 in her rookie year. The only other LPGA player to win 5 consecutive tournaments is Annika Sorenstam but she did it in two seasons (end of one season and beginning of another season).

The other players I’ll be watching are:

(1) Lydia Ko – if she wins that will give her the final point she needs to be eligible for the LPGA Hall of Fame. The most difficult Hall of Fame to get eligibility for based on a point system.

(2) Brooke Henderson – I always cheer for the Canadian star to win.

(3) Rose Zhang – came on tour out of Standford with a bang by winning her first professional tournament but hasn’t done much this season so maybe the first major will be the spark to get the 2nd win.

How to Watch the Chevron Championship

The Golf Channel will show the championship early (10 am – 2 pm and late 6 pm to 8 pm) on Thursday and Friday. And the weekend telecast will be on NBC from Noon to 6 pm.

Both Peacock and ESPN+ will offer steaming of the championship so if you have subscriptions there is an opportunity to see more of the event live.

Below are the dates, times, and options:

Thursday, April 18: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; 6-8 p.m. ET (Golf Channel/Peacock)
Friday, April 19: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; 6-8 p.m. ET (Golf Channel/Peacock)
Saturday, April 20: 2-3 p.m. ET (Peacock); 3-6 p.m. ET (NBC/Peacock)
Sunday, April 21: 2-3 p.m. ET (Peacock); 3-6 p.m. ET (NBC/Peacock)

The 2024 Masters – My Picks for the Winner, Sleepers, and Sentimental Dark Horse

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year for all golf fans – Masters week!

I hope I get a few comments from folks because I really am curious what other’s have for their picks to win and who are sleepers and/or dark horse predictions. Now, I don’t gamble so I’m not big on doing research on odds so my picks are just based on my gut.

Winner – I think the #1 player in the world Scottie Scheffler is a safe bet and he has been one of my favorite players since he won in 2022. He has played in four Masters starting in 2020 and has always finished in the top 20; last year he finished T10. Of course, he has won twice already this season so he is in great form coming into the championship.

Sleepers – There are a few but if I have to pick one as the winner, I am going with Brooks Koepka. I think he will play with a chip on his shoulder given his T2 finish last year and loss to Jon Rahm. It’s also interesting to see all the articles online that predict a LIV golfer will win this year; and Koepka fits the bill.

Other sleeper picks include:

Wyndam Clark: This is his first time at The Masters so I’m not sure how his game fits the course but I’m picking him because his form has been so good coming into The Masters .

Jordan Speith: He had been my favorite player since he turned pro and it’s a roller coaster ride being his fan. He is really not playing well but you can never count Jordan out at The Masters; and he did finish T4 last year.

Nick Dunlap: The young man turned pro this year after winning a PGA tournament as an amateur (the first to do it since Phil Mickelson 33 years ago). He was the #1 Amateur in the world before turning pro and it would be fun to see him win.

Brian Harman: The reason I pick him as a sleeper is because he is a lefty and there is a fascinating theory that The Masters favors lefties which is explained in a Golf Digest Video on YouTube and this video that explains hole #12

Sentimental Dark Horse Pick – I would love to see Keegan Bradley win The Masters. I have followed his career since he turned pro for two reasons (1) He’s a New Englander and Boston sports fan and (2) As a fan of the LPGA, I was familiar with his aunt, Pat Bradley. Over the years, I have come to like his personality too. I also felt sorry for him when he did not get picked for The Ryder Cup. He has played in The Masters eight times and his best finish is T22 (last year, he finished T23) so he really is a long shot but it would be so cool if he won.

Augusta National Women’s Amateur 2024 – Players to Watch

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The Augusta National Women’s Amateur (ANWA) has quickly become one of my favorite events to watch. There are a number of reasons, first and foremost the final round is at Augusta National, second and just as important to me is that it is a great showcase for the best female amateurs in the world; and as a fan of women’s golf it’s fun to see the players that are up and coming.

The first two days are played at Champions Retreat (72 players) and the final day at Augusta National (for the 30 players and ties that make the cut). You can watch all the action on Golf Channel, Peacock and NBC (final round Saturday Noon to 3:30 pm est). You can also watch the live stream on the ANWAgolf.com website. Here is a list of Air Times.

If you follow college golf you will know many of the players. The school with the most players invited is Stanford University (with five current players and four former Stanford students). You can read about all of them on the Stanford University Website. Including Rachel Heck (who just recently said she was not turning pro after college).

A few players I’ll be marking as “favorites” to follow on the ANWA website include:

  • Ingrid Linblad – the #1 female player in the world rankings. She is from Sweden, plays for LSU (I try not to think about that since I went to Tulane and LSU is an arch rival). Linblad’s record at AWNA is T3 (2021) and T2 (2022); and she shockingly missed the cut last year so it will be interesting to see how she fares this year.
  • Megan Schofill (world ranking 7) – She is the 2023 (current) U.S. Women’s Amateur Champion. She plays for Auburn. She defeated Latana Stone in the U.S. Woman’s Amateur; Stone is also playing this year in the ANWA.
  • Anna Davis (world ranking 17) – famous for winning ANWA in 2022 while wearing a Bucket Hat but she normally wears a visor. Maybe she will bring back the bucket hat for Augusta. I suppose it depends if she is superstitious. She plays her college golf at Auburn University.
  • Anna Morgan (world ranking 23) – I live in Greenville, SC. so I have to cheer for a Furman student. I played Furman last year and the women’s golf team was on the course and it was impressive to watch.
  • Hannah Darling (world ranking 19) – She plays her college golf for the Gamecocks and again, I now follow that team since I live in South Carolina. She is a great player and from Scotland! And her Gamecock teammate, Louise Rydqvist (from Sweden) is also playing ANWA.
  • Jansen Castle (world ranking 109)- is from Columbia South Carolina (yes, I have a theme going with my favorites).
  • Anabelle Pancake (world ranking 79) – Attends Clemson University. Hometown is Zionsville Indiana and was the runner up in the 2023 Women’s Amateur (not the US but the one run by the R&A).
  • Rachel Kuehn (world ranking 15) – Plays for Wake Forest. From Ashville NC. She got a lot of press because her mother, Brenda Corrie Kuehn, was a well known golfer. In fact, Rachel won the winning point for the 2022 Curtis Cup team, and her mother had the winning point in the 1998 Curtis Cup.
  • Emilia Migliaccio (world ranking 44) – A former Wake Forest golfer and now works for Golf Channel but has played in all four ANWA events. She was 2nd in 2021. I really would love to see her take the trophy now that she is an “amateur” like the rest of us. In other words, has a job and plays for the love of the game.
  • Gianna Clemente (world ranking 32) – She is only 16 but is the 2023 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship and Girls’ Junior PGA Champion. Maybe she will be like Anna Davis and win the ANWA at 16.

It is also fun to see former Drive, Chip, and Putt alumni in the event (nine in total) including Latana Stone (world ranking 30), won DCP twice for her age group (12-13) and won the 2022 U.S. Girls Junior. Runner up at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur and is now at LSU. And there is Kelly Xu won DCP (girls 7-9) in 2014 and now plays for Stanford University and her world raking is 93 .

Of course, there are players that have been in the limelight for years; notably Amari Avery who was featured in the movie “The Short Game” a 2013 documentary about 7-8 year old golfers. Her dad gave her the nickname “Tigress.” (yes after Tiger Woods). She is now at the University of Southern California and her world raking is 20.

I could actually list a number of other players but you can check out all the players bios at ANWA website.

Bottom line is that the Augusta Women’s Amateur is “must watch TV” if you are a golf fan.