Women's Golf

The 2019 Evian Championship continued Friday with Mi Hyang Lee taking sole possession of the lead with a 36-hole score of 10 under par. 

After starting the day tied for second place behind Paula Creamer, Lee finished with a four-under 67 to jump up one spot. She's got heavy competition right on her heels with Hyo Joo Kim, Sung Hyun Park and Inbee Park in a three-way tie for second place at nine under par. 

Here's the leaderboard from Evian Resort Golf Club in France, via EvianChampionship.com:

1. Mi Hyang Lee (-10)

T2. Hyo Joo Kim (-9)

T2. Sung Hyun Park (-9)

T2. Inbee Park (-9)

5. Shanshan Feng (-7)

T6. Caroline Hedwall (-6)

T6. Amy Olson (-6)

T6. Sei Young Kim (-6)

T6. Pajaree Anannarukarn (-6)

T6. Jennifer Kupcho (-6)

T6. Jin Young Ko (-6)

    

Lee was able to claim the lead despite having a double bogey on the par-five ninth hole. She hit her stride at the end of her round with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 and an eagle on No. 18. 

.@hyang2golf takes the lead at -10!
Did you know that her 132 score is her career-lowest 36-hole one. Lee's previous best was 133... at the #EvianChamp in 2015!#IBMsports pic.twitter.com/yTMEi4y7Ux

— The Amundi Evian Championship (@EvianChamp) July 26, 2019

Since turning pro in 2012, Lee has four victories on the LPGA Tour. A major title is the lone blemish on her resume to this point, though she did post a career-best finish at the ANA Inspiration in April when she came in second place. 

“Just keep trying to [stay] calm and be nice and it works,” Lee said after the round, via Ron Sirak of LPGA.com. “I missed a lot of greens today, but was trying to think simple and just go shot by shot.”

Kim and Hedwall tied for the lowest score of the day (64). Hedwall's round was a dramatic turnaround following a disappointing one-over 72 Thursday. She got off to a rough start in the second round with a bogey on the first hole, but it didn't sink her because she closed the front nine with five birdies in seven holes before making the turn. 

Kim was flawless Friday with five birdies, one eagle and no bogeys to put herself squarely in the mix to win her second Evian Championship. 

Hyo Joo Kim, now that's what we call a scorecard! 🚀😍 🏌️‍♀️ #EvianChamp #IBMSports pic.twitter.com/NY20ojkU6e

— The Amundi Evian Championship (@EvianChamp) July 26, 2019

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Creamer had a round to forget. Her momentum after an opening-round 64 didn't carry over to Friday when she carded a five-over 76. 

One of the contributing factors to Creamer's rough showing was a rain delay that halted play for nearly one hour. She was at two under par through 12 holes before the weather changed. The California native played the final six holes at six over par, leaving her with a steep mountain to climb. 

"Yeah, sometimes rain delays get you, sometimes they don't," Creamer said, via Sirak. "Unfortunately, this time it got me.  I've been playing really well. It's unfortunate, obviously, but today is not Sunday. Today is Friday."

Weather is expected to be a factor for players again in the third round. The LPGA announced players will tee off at 7 a.m. local time on the first and 10th tees due to a forecast of thunderstorms and rain in the area Saturday afternoon. 

Based on the way Lee closed out her round, getting back on the course early could be exactly what she needs to extend her lead on moving day. She can't afford to slip up with a trio directly behind her not to mention surging players like Hedwall and Amy Olson proving they are capable of putting up low scores. 

The Evian Championship will celebrate its 25th anniversary this week, and some of the biggest names in women's golf will be involved in the 2019 edition.

The Evian Resort Golf Club in Evian-les-Bains, France, will play host to the tournament, with Angela Stanford returning as the defending champion.

She faces a massive challenge if she's to defend her title. The field contains Sung Hyun Park, Jin Young Ko and Lexi Thompson, who are the three highest-ranked players in the world, respectively. The rest of the LPGA's top 10 players will also juke it out for the prize.

Here are some of the key tee times, the broadcast information and the prize money on offer in one of the five major events on the women's golf calendar.

     

Selected Tee Times (BST)

7:25 a.m. - Hye Jin Choi, Nasa Hataoka, Gaby Lopez

7:36 a.m. - Hannah Green, Jin Young Ko, Jeongeun Lee

8:09 a.m. - Hyo Joo Kim, Lydia Ko, Inbee Park

11:05 a.m. - Angela Stanford, Anna Nordqvist, In Gee Chun

11:16 a.m. - Minjee Lee, Lexi Thompson, Sung Hyun Park

11:27 a.m. - Sei Young Kim, Maria Fassi, Brooke M. Henderson

11:49 a.m. - Laura Davies, Amy Yang, Ariya Jutanugarn

12:11 p.m. - Morgan Pressel, Amy Olson, Jessica Korda

   

Full tee times are available on the LPGA website.

   

Date: Thursday, July 25 - Sunday, July 28

TV Info: Sky Sports Golf (UK), Golf Channel (U.S.)

Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), Golf Channel Livestream (U.S.)

      

Preview

Ahead of the historic edition of the competition, Golf Digest provided a breakdown of what to expect from Evian-les-Bains:

This year, @EvianChamp turns 25.

An overview of its rich history. ⬇️ #EvianChampPartner pic.twitter.com/aDHiFHhxbJ

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) July 23, 2019

The last five major winners in the women's game have been first-time major champions, which is indicative of the quality at the top of the sport at the moment. It also makes it tough to call who will come out on top in France come Sunday evening.

The world's best player, Park, will be seeking to make a better fist of this competition after she was unable to make the cut in 2018. 

She's taken a two-week break ahead of the tournament in a bid to be fresh, and she will have taken some confidence from her runner-up finish at the Women's PGA Championship in June.

The world No. 1 said she values winning these big events over her status as the best player on the planet:

#LPGAQuickQuote with Sung Hyun Park pic.twitter.com/Gx17o7EQ9R

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 23, 2019

Meanwhile, Jin will be expected to perform well having broken her major duck at the ANA Inspiration earlier in the year. She will be going out alongside two of the year's other major winners in Hannah Green and Jeongeun Lee.

Jin has built some momentum going into the competition, too. She was excellent alongside playing partner Minjee Lee in the final round of the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, shooting a collective 58:

That's a 58 for @minjeegolf and Jin Young Ko! 🔥🔥

As a team they carded 12 birdies and 6 pars at the @DowGLBI! pic.twitter.com/vM8VloDlwX

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 20, 2019

Meanwhile, the 2018 champion has shared how excited she is about defending her title this week:

I feel extremely fortunate that I get to come back to a place with so many great memories.
Looking forward to an awesome week!!#thankyouLordforthatsky@evianchamp https://t.co/JrnvXuCXM6

— Angela Stanford (@Angela_Stanford) July 22, 2019

After winning the Women's PGA Championship, Green shouldn't be ruled out by any in France either. Not only did she finish top of the pile at Hazeltine, the Australian was a wire-to-wire winner and held off charges from some elite players over the course of the weekend.

Even so, the course feels like a fine fit for Jin's game. Her best-ever finish in the Evian was a tie for 26th a year ago, but the South Korean appears to be in a good place to scale grander heights in 2019.  

After being suspended by SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio for insensitive remarks, Hank Haney believes he was proven right with Jeongeun Lee6 winning the 2019 U.S. Women's Open:

Congratulations to Jeongeun Lee6 on your great win at the US Women’s Open. I knew you’d win. Who’s The Great Predictor now Steve Johnson @steveyrayj

— Hank Haney (@HankHaney) June 3, 2019

The comments came after he used stereotypes to predict a winner for the major event.

According to Des Bieler of the Washington Post, Haney said on the radio show that he would "predict a Korean" to win and he would "go with 'Lee'" without adding a first name.

"I couldn’t name you, like, six players on the LPGA Tour," he said at the time.

The swing coach was then suspended by the program with both the PGA Tour and Sirius XM calling the comments insensitive, per ESPN.

He apologized but still provided a similar response after the event Sunday:

My prediction that a Korean woman would be atop the leaderboard at the Women’s US Open was based on statistics and facts. Korean women are absolutely dominating the LPGA Tour. If you asked me again my answer would be the same but worded more carefully.

— Hank Haney (@HankHaney) June 2, 2019

Lee6, who often goes by just "Six," took home the $1 million top prize at the women's U.S. Open after becoming just the third player in the last 25 years to finish under par for all three rounds, per Bill Fields of ESPNW.

While Haney's comments dismissed her individuality, the win does add to a recent trend of success for her country with South Koreans winning eight titles at the U.S. Open in the last 12 years.

Jeongeun Lee6 is the 2019 U.S. Women's Open champion, becoming the first woman to take home $1 million in the tournament's history.  

Lee6 survived bogeys on two of her final three holes to shoot one under par for the day and complete the event at six under. Sunday marked her first win on the American LPGA circuit, and the rookie became the 11th different winner in the last 11 U.S. Women's Open tournaments. 

🏆 6 IS NUMBER 1! 🏆

Jeongeun Lee6 wins the #USWomensOpen for her first major championship title! pic.twitter.com/zKEnCKj0rW

— USGA (@USGA) June 2, 2019

Once Lee6 took the outright lead on 12 with a birdie, she did not relinquish it. Celine Boutier gave her a scare as she arrived on 18 just one stroke off the lead, but she couldn't maneuver out of the bunker and double-bogeyed the final hole to finish three under par.

Celebrate, Jeongeun Lee6!

You are #USWomensOpen champion! pic.twitter.com/Z3TLGycxCH

— USGA (@USGA) June 2, 2019

However, the final round was plenty jumbled for a while.

Once someone took the lead, she would squander it away. For example, Gerina Piller nailed three birdies in a row, but she bogeyed two holes in a row once she was tied for the lead. Piller finished tied for fifth with a 68 in the final round—her best score of the tournament.

Fellow American Jaye Marie Green tasted the lead, too. A birdie on the fifth hole gave her an outright lead at six under par. But like Piller, she finished three under and tied for fifth.

So no big deal... But there are six names tied on top of the leader board. #USWomensOpen pic.twitter.com/SzwJg6Cu8L

— USGA (@USGA) June 2, 2019

Top-ranked American Lexi Thompson missed eight fairways Sunday and is still seeking her first win of the season. Despite her rough final round at two over, the 24-year-old finished in a tie for second at four under par, establishing her new best finish of the season.

The bad news for @Lexi: She has bogeyed three of the first four holes today. The good news: She's only two strokes behind the leaders, who are in a three-way tie. #USWomensOpen pic.twitter.com/JYGHLpdSiT

— FOX Sports: Golf (@GolfonFOX) June 2, 2019

Final Leaderboard

1. Jeongeun Lee6 (-6)

T2. Angel Yin (-4) 

T2. So Yeon Ryu (-4) 

T2. Lexi Thompson (-4)

T5. Gerina Piller (-3) 

T5. Mamiko Higa (-3)

T5. Jaye Marie Green (-3)

T5. Celine Boutier (-3)

T5. Yu Liu (-3)

Full leaderboard is available at USGA.org

Payout information courtesy of Golf Digest

Higa, the 36-hole leader, struggled with her putter in the final round and bogeyed five holes. The 25-year-old shot a bogey-free 65 on Thursday—the lowest round in a debut in U.S. Women's Open history, according to Golf Central. She tied for fifth at three under overall after she shot three over in the final round.

Lydia Ko had a more disappointing finish, tied for 39th at five over par, but she did provide a spark along the way. Ko drained a hole-in-one on the 11th hole, heralded as the most difficult hole at the Country Club of Charleston. She celebrated accordingly: 

Beers on Lydia! Lydia Ko stopped by the @uswomensopen media center to buy the writers a beer in celebration of her hole-in-one on 11. Of course, we won’t drink any until after play! Cheers!! 🍻 pic.twitter.com/YuqZpWullQ

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 2, 2019

Just as the last 11 U.S. Women's Opens have each produced a different champion, the last eight LPGA majors have eight separate winners. The next major will be the KPMG Women's PGA Championship from June 20-23 at Hazeltine National Golf Course in Chaska, Minnesota. 

The next tournament, though, is slated just five days away when the ShopRite LPGA Classic begins June 7 at the Stockton Seaview Hotel and Golf Club in Galloway, New Jersey.

The winner of the 2019 U.S. Women's Open will receive $1 million in prize money for the first time in the tournament's history after the United States Golf Association raised the purse.

Per Joel Beall of Golf Digest, it was announced on Tuesday the purses for both the U.S. Open and U.S. Women's Open have been raised by $500,000. The top prize for the women's tournament will now be $1 million, a significant increase on the $900,000 Ariya Jutanugarn took home after her 2018 triumph.

The total purse for the tournament, which starts Thursday at the Country Club of Charleston in South Carolina, will be $5.50 million, up from $5.00 million in 2018.

By comparison, the prize fund for the 2019 U.S. Open, which starts on June 13 at Pebble Beach in California, will be $12.50 million, with the winner claiming $2.25 million.

Per Beall, USGA senior managing director John Bodenhamer said the prize money increases were aimed at improving competitor experience at the tournaments:

"The USGA is committed to providing an unparalleled experience to every player competing in its championships. Through strategic investments in our player relations program, we are continuing the effort to create a competitor experience commensurate with the game’s most prestigious championships, and that includes an increased purse and a continued commitment to make playing in an Open championship unforgettable for the world’s top amateur players."

In the women's game, the U.S. Open is the second major of the year.

Jin Young Ko captured her first career major at April's 2019 ANA Inspiration:

Jin Young Ko closed out the @ANAinspiration in style!pic.twitter.com/1pWlIcqLn8

— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) April 8, 2019

The South Korean is among the favourites to win in Charleston this week, along with Australia's Minjee Lee and Canada's Brooke Henderson. 

Defending champion Jutanugarn will be looking to become the first woman since Karrie Webb in 2001 to win the tournament in successive years. 

The 2019 U.S. Women's Open takes place at Country Club of Charleston this week, with a high-class field going in search of one of the biggest honours in the game.

Ariya Jutanugarn will be back in the field to defend the title she won a year ago at Shoal Creek, but she will have fierce competition for the prize.

After winning at the ANA Inspiration earlier in the year, Jin-young Ko is expected to fare well in the second major event of 2019. As well as the defending champion and world No. 1, Minjee Lee and Sung-hyun Park, the second and third-highest ranked players in the world respectively, will feature.

Read on for further details about the tournament, including the viewing details, the prize money on offer and the times the top players will go off on Thursday.

       

Date: Thursday, May 30

TV Info: On Thursday and Friday, the action will be shown on Fox Sports 1 starting at 2:30 p.m. (ET). Over the weekend, the competition will be shown on Fox at 2 p.m. (ET).

In the United Kingdom, the action will be shown live over the weekend on Sky Sports Main Event from 7 p.m. (BST).

Live Stream: Fox Sports Go (U.S.), Sky Go (UK)

Purse: $5,000,000

     

Selected Thursday Tee Times (ET)

*7:44 a.m.—Minjee Lee, Jin-young Ko, Inbee Park

8:06 a.m.—Cristie Kerr, Anna Nordqvist, Shanshan Feng

*8:06 a.m.—Ariya Jutanugarn, Sung-hyun Park, Lexi Thompson

8:17 a.m.—Sei-young Kim, Pernilla Lindberg, Moriya Jutanugarn

*8:17 a.m.—Nelly Korda, Brooke Henderson, Danielle Kang 

     

*Starting at 10th tee. For the tee times in full, visit the competition website.

  

Preview

A year ago, Jutanugarn eventually got the better of Hyo-joo Kim in a playoff to win the title and will be seeking to become the first back-to-back winner of the U.S. Open since Annika Sorenstam, who triumphed in 1995 and 1996.

But after a brilliant 2018, Jutanugarn has been able to capture the same levels this season and will need to up her game if she's to be in the mix come Sunday evening.

In 2019, the Thai player has yet to pick up a victory in her 11 starts, and last time out, she was a distant tied 43rd at the Kingsmill Championship.

The winner that weekend was Bronte Law, whose performance at the Kingsmill River Course will make her one to watch this week:

.@brontemaylaw put her foot on the gas and shot a 4-under 67 Sunday at the @PureSilkChamp to win her first @LPGA Tour event.

HIGHLIGHTS ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/VyNc8urNMu

— LPGA (@LPGA) May 27, 2019

The same can be said of the world's top-ranked player at the moment in Ko, who secured her first major title earlier in the year. Here is how she celebrated that triumph:

https://twitter.com/LadyGolfer_com/status/1115077745837584385

At the ANA, she was exceptional and a comfortable three shots ahead of her compatriot, Mi-hyang Lee. After breaking her major duck, the world No. 1 can play without pressure this weekend, which is an ominous prospect for the rest of the field.

Lee is one player who will feel as though she can rival Ko at her best and is arguably playing the most consistent golf of any competitor in the field as it stands.

The Australian won at the Hugel-Air Premia Los Angeles Open in May, and prior to that, she was tied for third at the Lotte Championship.

After a poor recent run in the majors, there'll be an expectation on her to find some overdue form at one of these events.

Michelle Wie announced on Instagram (h/t Beth Ann Nichols of Golfweek) that she is withdrawing from the 2019 U.S. Women's Open due to lingering right hand injuries. 

"While I'm making progress with my recovery, I have decided to withdraw from the US Women's Open, Wie wrote. "It was a difficult decision to make because the US Open was one that I was looking forward to playing in all year, but my recovery and health is the priority. Thanks so much for all the messages of support—they really keep my spirits up.  I am hopeful that I'll be seeing you all back out on Tour very soon! Love, Michelle."

Wie previously announced on Apr. 23 that she would be stepping away from the game for some time:

"Had an encouraging visit with my doctor, however we both think it's in my best interest to take some time away to allow my body to heal properly and get stronger," Wie wrote. "Health is my top priority right now and hopefully I can get back to being pain free real soon. Thank you everyone for staying patient with me. I appreciate y'all."

Per Joel Beall of Golf Digest, "Wie underwent surgery at the end of 2018 to treat an avulsion fracture, bone spurs and nerve entrapment in her right hand."

The injuries have since returned and forced her to withdraw from the 2019 HSBC Women's World Championship during the first round. The 2014 U.S. Women's Open champion pulled out of the Kia Classic and missed the cut at ANA Inspiration this season.

The withdrawal is an unfortunate setback for the five-time LPGA Tour winner, who made a career-high 20 cuts in 24 tournaments and registered eight top-10 finishes last season.

She arguably finished off the second-best season of her career, behind only a 2014 campaign that saw Wie garner two wins, six top-three finishes, 13 top-10 results and a career-best 69.82 stroke average.

In other words, Wie was closer to her best form than her worst before the injury, which hopefully is an encouraging sign whenever she returns to the LPGA Tour at full strength.

The 2019 women's golf national championship could not have concluded in a more exciting fashion. 

After Duke and Wake Forest each took two matches apiece, everything came down to the Blue Devils' Miranda Wang and the Demon Deacons' Lauren Bagnoli.

For the seventh time in program history, @DukeWGolf has won the #NCAAGolf Women's National Championship 🏆 pic.twitter.com/T84FuDcJpw

— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) May 23, 2019

In the end, Wang parred the 20th hole of their matchup to give Duke a national championship in a 3-2 win over their ACC rival. This is the Blue Devils' first national championship since 2014 and their seventh overall.

Duke's victory can be credited in large part to Jarvee Boonchant's upset victory over Jennifer Kupcho, who is the world's top amateur golfer. Boonchant managed to eke out a one-up victory by defeating Kupcho on their 19th hole. She previously trailed in the match on the back nine but took holes Nos. 15 and 17 before dropping 18 to send it to extras.

Wake Forest's two victories were a 1-up victory by Emilia Migliaccio over Gina Kim and Siyun Liu's sneaking by Virginia Elena Carta on the 20th hole.

According to NCAA.com, this is the first time three matchups have gone to extra holes in a single match in NCAA tournament history.

Wake Forest will walk away from the match wondering what could have been; the Deacons led on four of the five scorecards at one point on the back nine.

Michelle Wie announced in social media posts that she will "take some time away" from golf for health reasons:

❤️❤️❤️ Thank you for your unwavering support through this process. pic.twitter.com/qo2bYtHOTo

— Michelle Wie (@MichelleWieWest) April 23, 2019

Wie, who won the 2014 U.S Women's Open and has carded 14 top-10 finishes at majors, has been trying to heal from a persistent wrist injury.  

Keely Levins of Golf Digest provided more information: 

"In October 2018, Wie underwent surgery to fix the trifecta of an avulsion fracture, bone spurs and nerve entrapment in her right wrist and hand. She sat out the remainder of the 2018 season—after missing the year's final two majors before the procedure—with hopes that the surgery would result in a future of pain-free golf. Unfortunately, that has not been the case."

On Tuesday, Feb. 26, Wie talked about her road to recovery before she took part in the HSBC Women's World Championship, citing a 2017 car accident that has caused hand injuries. As she told reporters:

"I got into a car accident two years ago with my right hand on the wheel and got rear-ended. That's what happened with the neck at [the 2017 U.S. Women's Open at] Bedminster and I had an avulsion fracture in my right hand. So a piece of the bone had chipped off.

"So they just went in there and cleaned it up, cleaned up a little bit of scar tissue since I was with it for almost two years now. So the surgery went good. It was a pretty easy, normal procedure, and yeah, it's taken quite a bit, but I think I'm back on track."

Unfortunately, the HSBC defending champion was forced to withdraw after 14 holes in the first round due to a wrist injury.

Wie did take part in the ANA Inspiration, missing the cut, but she was still happy with her health after the first round.

"I feel good," she told reporters. "I feel like I can play 18 more holes. That's a really big win in my book."

Wie also played at the LOTTE Championship in April. While she missed the cut, she fought through injury just to complete the first round.

Randall Mell of Golf Channel noted one moment in particular: "With a yelp of pain, Wie watched her shot at the 11th tee sail wide right. She let go of the club, with her surgically repaired right hand going limp."

Wie spoke afterward.

"Just got into an uncomfortable position," she said. "Just coming back, some shots are going to hurt. Trying to figure my way around that and just trying to get back in the swing of playing again. ... Yeah, it's not fun when it does hurt, but I'm going to get physio right now and hopefully they can patch it up a little bit and I'll be good to go tomorrow."

Wie has five LPGA wins and 59 top-10 finishes for her career.

Sweden's Pernilla Lindberg will be out to defend her ANA Inspiration title on Thursday as the first major of the 2019 LPGA Tour gets under way at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California.

Lindberg secured her first LPGA title and her first major championship with her marathon win over Inbee Park in 2018. The victory was eventually sealed on Monday morning after eight play-off holes.

The 32-year-old has her work cut out if she is to retain her title, with a strong field set to compete in California.

The world's top three players, Sung Hyun Park, Ariya Jutanugarn, Minjee Lee, are all in contention, while Lydia Ko, Brittany Lincicome and Lexi Thompson are three of 11 former champions in the field.

     

Dates: Thursday, April 4, to Sunday, April 7 

TV Info: Golf Channel (U.S.), Sky Sports Golf (UK)

TV Schedule: Golf Channel — Thursday (midday to 4 p.m. ET and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET), Friday (midday to 4 p.m. ET and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET), Saturday (5 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET), Sunday (5 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET). Sky Sports Golf — Thursday (5 p.m. BST), Friday (5 p.m. BST), Saturday (11 p.m. BST), Sunday (11 p.m. BST)

Purse: $3 million

Tee Times: Full pairings will be available from the LPGA's official website

    

World No. 1 Park will be aiming for her maiden ANA Inspiration win and heads into the tournament in strong form after victories at the HSBC Women's World Championship in February and the Country Club Ladies Invitational in March.

The 25-year-old has said meeting Tiger Woods for the first time in a television shoot helped improve her form, per Randall Mell at the Golf Channel.

"If Tiger is watching this interview, then I would want to say that because we met, you gave me such good energy, that made me win the tournament," she said after victory at the Women's World Championship.

Park also takes inspiration from the fan club that follows her around the globe:

Wherever Sung Hyun Park competes around the world, her Namdalla (‘I am different’) fan club is both visible and vocal. Here are two of her fans watching as Sung Hyun tees off in the final round of the Ricoh Women’s British Open. pic.twitter.com/RM8Mq5Xafj

— Mark Lamport-Stokes (@MarkLamport) August 5, 2018

The South Korean explained the positive impact her supporters have on her when she is competing, per Mark Lamport-Stokes at the LPGA: "They come to see me and cheer for me, and they give me snacks. Just them being there for me makes me focus on my game more. They make me happy. They help my game."

Park can expect more backing in California and will have plenty of confidence after her recent wins. Her best performance in the tournament was a tie for sixth in 2016, but she will be expected to challenge this time around.

Jutanugarn will provide stiff competition as she also goes in search of her first ANA Inspiration title. The 23-year-old enjoyed a superb 2018 and will hope to continue that form in the first major of the year:

What a year for Ariya @jutanugarn! The reigning @uswomensopen champion is No. 4 on @espn's list of 20 most dominant athletes of 2018. Check it out: https://t.co/SjDFxAIk06 pic.twitter.com/KSxLB3w1Rr

— USGA (@USGA) December 12, 2018

Meanwhile, Jin Young Ko comes into the tournament fresh from victory at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup that has propelled her to her highest world ranking:

#Rolex Women’s 🌎 Golf Rankings

Updated Top 🔟:
1️⃣Sung Hyun Park
2️⃣@jutanugarn
3️⃣@minjeegolf
4️⃣Jin Young Ko⬆️
5️⃣@1soyeonryu ⬇️
6️⃣@NellyKorda ⬆️
7️⃣@nasagolf7355 ⬇️
8️⃣@InbeePark ⬇️
9️⃣@Lexi ⬇️
🔟@carlotagolf ⬆️

After her @LPGAfounders win Ko moves to #4, her highest career rank. pic.twitter.com/cxyGe7kVBO

— LPGA Media (@LPGAMedia) March 25, 2019

The victory was her third on the LPGA Tour, as she held on to claim the win by one stroke over four players in an exciting finish:

Jin Young Ko closed with a 7-under 65 to finish one shot ahead of a four-way tie for second to win the Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix. https://t.co/yoCuIYlYlH

— azcentral sports (@azcsports) March 25, 2019

Ko is another player with the talent and experience required to take the title in a field packed full of quality, which should make for another exciting tournament at Mission Hills Country Club.