Tag: 2023 U.S. Women’s Open

Meet Angela Zhang, 14, who drained a 25-foot birdie putt in a playoff to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach

“Just to be able to play alongside all the LPGA players I‘ve looked up to is going to be such an amazing experience.”

Angela Zhang drained a 25-foot downhill putt for birdie on the second playoff hole to qualify for this year’s historic U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links. It will be an especially memorable week for 14-year-old Zhang, who will be competing in her first professional event.

“I’m just super excited to be able to play Pebble Beach and compete in one, if not the highest, the best women’s professional golf tournament in the world,” said Zhang, “and just to be able to play alongside all the LPGA players I‘ve looked up to is going to be such an amazing experience.”

Stars she’d most like to meet: Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko.

This marked the third attempt at U.S. Women’s Open qualifying for Zhang, who turned 14 on May 5. She shot 70-73 in the 36-hole qualifier to play her way into a four-for-two playoff. Only two players from the field at Shannopin Country Club in Pittsburgh advanced. Former USC player Amelia Garvey birdied the first playoff hole to nab the first spot.

The 78th U.S. Women’s Open will be held July 6-9 at Pebble Beach, host to six U.S. Opens. This will be the first time a women’s major is contested there.

Morgan Pressel first qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open at age 12 and nearly won the championship as an amateur in 2005, taking a share of second at Cherry Hills. She’ll be the lead analyst for NBC’s coverage of Pebble Beach and had this advice for young players in the field: “I would sign up for practice rounds with all of the people you looked up to and wanted to play with if those spots are available. … Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself or go say hi in a locker room.”

Qualifying for a major was only the start to Zhang’s week. She flies back to her home state of Washington Wednesday afternoon to prepare for the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball at The Home Course in DuPont, Washington. Zhang won both the Washington State Women’s Amateur and Junior titles last year at age 13.

Her partner at the Four-Ball is Alice Ziyi Zhao, who also happens to be 14. There are 18 players in the Four-Ball field between the ages of 12 and 15.

Zhang and Zhao met five years ago at the IMG Academy Junior World Golf Championships. Zhao was co-medalist last year in stroke-play qualifying at the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Chambers Bay – at age 13.

Although Zhang is in the eighth grade, she’s taking freshman-level core courses that are part of an advanced curriculum in Bellevue, Washington. Zhang was introduced to the game by her father, Kevin, an IT professional who fell in love with golf in his mid-30s in his native China. Angela was born in Opelika, Alabama, but lived in China until it was time to go to school. In 2014, the Zhangs moved to the U.S. to give their children more opportunities.

Zhang won seven Washington Junior Golf Association titles last season and four tournaments on the AJGA. She’s won so much in the course of her young career that she’s lost count of her titles.

“I haven’t really kept track,” she said, “but I’d say maybe like 50 or 60 or so? Or maybe more. I don’t even know.”

Claire Kung (L) Angela Zhang (M) and Zoe Moore after finishing as the top three in the girls 7-9 group during The Drive, Chip and Putt Championship at Chambers Bay on September 9, 2018 in University Place, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images for the DC&P Championship)

Kevin said he knew from the start that his daughter had a gift ­– particularly her natural touch on and around the greens.

Zhang’s first time playing in front of television cameras came early at age 9 when she dominated the Girls 7-9 division at the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals at Augusta National. At age 9, the 4-foort-10 inch Zhang hit her drive 189 yards, 33 yards past her nearest competitor. She finished first in driving and chipping and took second in putting.

Zhang had the same mindset at Augusta National that she carries into every high-stakes moment.

“I remind myself that it’s just golf,” she said. “I play so much golf every day, just trust that I know what I’m doing.”

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2011 champion So Yeon Ryu accepts special exemption for U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach

Ryu won the 2011 Women’s Open at The Broadmoor East Course in a three-hole aggregate playoff.

The USGA announced that So Yeon Ryu has accepted a special exemption for the 78th U.S. Women’s Open July 6-9, 2023, at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Ryu won the 2011 Women’s Open at The Broadmoor East Course in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in a three-hole aggregate playoff over fellow South Korean Hee Hyung Seo.

Ryu, 32, has a sneaky impressive record in the championship. She notched six top-five finishes at the Women’s Open from 2011 to 2019, taking a share of second in ’19 at the Country Club of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. Ryu has posted 17 rounds under par in her 13 starts, a statistic bested by only two players since 2000: two-time champion Inbee Park and Stacy Lewis.

“I am excited and honored to accept this special exemption into the U.S. Women’s Open,” said Ryu in a statement. “This championship means so much to me, and to be able to compete in it again, and to do so at a place as special as Pebble Beach, is thrilling, and I am so grateful to the USGA for this opportunity. I look forward to teeing it up there in July.”

A two-time major champion, Ryu has won six times on the LPGA and 10 times on the Korean LPGA, her most recently victory coming at the 2020 Korea Women’s Open. She’s also a past champion of the Japan Women’s Open. Ryu is currently No. 112 in the world.

The 2012 LPGA Rookie of the Year, Ryu earned LPGA Player of the Year honors in 2017. She was ranked No. 1 in the world for a total of 19 weeks from June to November 2017.

Ryu joins three-time champion Annika Sorenstam as recipients of special exemptions into this year’s field. They are among 87 players who are currently fully exempt. Qualifying for this year’s championship begins May 9 at two sites.

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Record number of entries filed for U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach; former champs Paula Creamer and Cristie Kerr among those who will try to qualify

Everyone wants to be part of history.

It comes as no surprise that the USGA received a record 2,107 entries for the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links. This marks the first time that entries surpassed 2,000, with the previous record of 1,874 set last year at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club.

Everyone wants to be part of history.

Past champions Paula Creamer and Cristie Kerr are among those who will have to advance through qualifying to compete in the first Women’s Open ever held at Pebble Beach. Kerr, 45, and Creamer, 36, are scheduled for the May 15 qualifier at Echo Lake Country Club, in Westfield, New Jersey. Both have previously received special exemptions into the championship.

World No. 1 Nelly Korda is among the 87 exempt players currently in the field. Players who win LPGA-sanctioned events between now and July 3 will also be added to the field as well as any player who is among the top 75 points leaders and ties from the Rolex Rankings as of July 3, not otherwise exempt. The winner of the 2023 NCAA Women’s Division I Championship will also secure a spot.

Three-time major champion Anna Nordqvist played Pebble Beach for the first time last week and nearly aced the par-3 seventh hole. She called it “probably” the best course she’s ever played in the U.S.

“I was lucky with the weather,” said Nordqvist. “It started blowing two, two and a half clubs on the back nine, but what an amazing golf course.

“Yeah, it was beyond what I could ever dream of, and it’s going to be an amazing tournament there for the U.S. Women’s Open. I’ve been pro since 2009, and just to have the opportunity to go to such like an iconic venue playing golf, I think it’s an amazing opportunity for the women’s game.”

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Korda said at the Hanwha International Crown on Wednesday she had never played Pebble Beach. Danielle Kang said the same. Lexi Thompson played it for the first time last year during an outing, along with Cypress Point.

“It’s an amazing venue,” said Thompson. “I only got to play it for the first time towards the end of last year. I got probably the most perfect weather. It was about 70 degrees and blowing 5 miles per hour and everybody was like, don’t get used to that.”

The championship’s youngest entrant is 9-year-old Bella Simoes, an amateur from Brazil.

Kimberly Williams, a 60-year-old professional from Bethesda, Maryland, is the oldest.

Here’s the list of players who are fully exempt into the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open (as of May 4):

  • Marina Alex
  • Na Rin An
  • Aditi Ashok
  • a-Saki Baba
  • a-Jessica Baker
  • Celine Boutier
  • Ashleigh Buhai
  • a-Krissy Carman
  • Chella Choi
  • Hye-Jin Choi
  • In Gee Chun
  • a-Monet Chun
  • Carlota Ciganda
  • Allisen Corpuz
  • Gemma Dryburgh
  • Ally Ewing
  • Ayaka Furue
  • Linn Grant
  • Hannah Green
  • Georgia Hall
  • Mina Harigae
  • Nasa Hataoka
  • Brooke Henderson
  • Charley Hull
  • Mone Inami
  • Chisato Iwai
  • Eun-Hee Ji
  • Ariya Jutanugarn
  • Danielle Kang
  • Minami Katsu
  • Haruka Kawasaki
  • Megan Khang
  • A Lim Kim
  • Grace Kim
  • Hyo Joo Kim
  • Sei Young Kim
  • Cheyenne Knight
  • Jin Young Ko
  • Lydia Ko
  • Jessica Korda
  • Nelly Korda
  • Jennifer Kupcho
  • Brittany Lang
  • Bronte Law
  • Alison Lee
  • Andrea Lee
  • Da Yeon Lee
  • Minjee Lee
  • Mirim Lee
  • So Mi Lee
  • Jeongeun Lee6
  • Hee Jeong Lim
  • Xiyu Lin
  • Gaby Lopez
  • Nanna Koerstz Madsen
  • Leona Maguire
  • Jill McGill
  • Yuna Nishimura
  • Anna Nordqvist
  • Ryann O’Toole
  • Min Ji Park
  • Sung Hyun Park
  • Paula Reto
  • Hae Ran Ryu
  • Madelene Sagstrom
  • Mao Saigo
  • Lizette Salas
  • Yuka Saso
  • Jodi Ewart Shadoff
  • Hinako Shibuno
  • Jiyai Shin
  • Annika Sorenstam
  • Angela Stanford
  • Maja Stark
  • Patty Tavatanakit
  • Atthaya Thitikul
  • Lexi Thompson
  • Momoko Ueda
  • Lilia Vu
  • Michelle Wie West
  • Miyu Yamashita
  • Amy Yang
  • Angel Yin
  • Ruoning Yin
  • Yuri Yoshida
  • a-Yana Wilson
  • a-Rose Zhang

(a-amateur)

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‘This is a dream-changer’: First-ever U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach set to feature Michelle Wie West, Annika Sorenstam and vast potential

It’s fitting that Michelle Wie West will take part in what could be the most important U.S. Women’s Open.

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Michelle Wie West’s husband, Jonnie, tested positive for COVID-19 just a couple days before last year’s U.S. Women’s Open. Wie West tested negative for four days and felt it was somewhat of a miracle that she was able to compete at Pine Needles as she transitioned away from a competitive career on the LPGA, though it stung to be across the country from her husband, daughter and parents.

“I just remember sitting in my hotel room thinking, this is not the way to go,” said the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion. “This is so sad.”

The 78th U.S. Women’s Open, July 6-9 at Pebble Beach Golf Links, will provide the chance for Wie West to say a proper goodbye in her beloved Bay Area, with her husband on the bag and the rest of her family watching every shot. It’s fitting that the most well-known player in the women’s game in recent years will take part in what could be the most important championship in U.S. Women’s Open history.

On Tuesday, Wie West took part in Women’s Open media day, playing nine holes there for the first time in blustery conditions.

“I didn’t dream of this to be the last one,” she said, “but if I could this would be the way to go.”

2023 U.S. Women’s Open
Michelle Wie West at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open Preview Day in Pebble Beach, California, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. (Photo: Jed Jacobsohn/USGA)

As Wie West got her first glimpse of the iconic course, Annika Sorenstam announced on Twitter that she had accepted a special exemption to compete at Pebble, making an historic week in the women’s game all the more special.

“I think this is a dream-changer,” said USGA CEO Mike Whan of the U.S. Women’s Open coming to Pebble Beach for the first time. “I think this really matters to the people playing, but the real impact of this is the girls that are thinking about playing or aren’t really sure what they think about golf.”

History won’t just be made on the course as the USGA announced record-breaking television coverage (26 hours) and live prime time network coverage over the weekend on NBC. In addition, the media and fans will be able to track every shot that’s hit at Pebble Beach as the USGA utilizes the PGA Tour’s ShotLink scoring system for the first time at a women’s event.

The message: This isn’t just a big week in women’s golf. It’s a big week in women’s sport.

2023 U.S. Women’s Open
Michelle Wie West at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open Preview Day in Pebble Beach, California, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. (Photo: Tim Schmitt/Golfweek)

Former U.S. soccer star Brandi Chastain and Olympic figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi, who became the first Asian-American to win a gold medal in a Winter Olympic competition in 1992, joined major champion Morgan Pressel on a panel to talk about the potential impact of the historic week. Pressel will be lead analyst for NBC.

Chastain became a household name in the U.S. after scoring the winning goal at the 1999 World Cup at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The Northern California native believes there are many things that could be taken from that history-making Cup, which broke records in attendance, television ratings and interest.

“I think No. 1 is the leadership that said we see what could be,” said Chastain, “and we must put it out there in a way that’s brave and bold.”

The Women’s Open at Pebble Beach could be a milestone for women’s sport, much like the Rose Bowl was in 1999.

The 54-year-old Chastain grew emotional when she talked about her personal connection to Pebble, where her grandfather took her out to watch the Crosby as an 8-year-old. They’d walk the course together and eat strawberry shortcake along the 18th fairway.

“As I was sitting there listening to Mike (Whan),” said a teary-eyed Chastain, “I realized I would be bringing my two granddaughters, and we’re going to have the same walk.”

2023 U.S. Women’s Open
Brandi Chastain at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open Preview Day in Pebble Beach, California, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. (Photo: Jed Jacobsohn/USGA)

Wie West, who will have her daughter Makenna onsite, had originally planned to start grinding on her game in April, but got busy and now plans to start this month. Jonnie, who works for the Golden State Warriors and plays to about a 2-handicap, will caddie for her for the first time at Pebble, though he has looped at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am a couple times as well as a Web.com event for Steph Curry.

“I know I play my best golf when I have fun,” she said, “so having my husband on the bag is going to be key for that.”

Unforgettable, too.

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Annika Sorenstam accepts special exemption into 2023 U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach

Annika Sorenstam isn’t done with major championship golf just yet.

Annika Sorenstam isn’t done with major championship golf just yet. The 10-time major winner has accepted a special exemption into this year’s U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links.

Sorenstam, of course, played her way into last year’s Women’s Open at Pine Needles by crushing the field by eight strokes at the 2021 U.S. Senior Women’s Open. The 52-year-old shot 74-81 last year at Pine Needles, missing the cut in her first LPGA major since 2008.

This marks the first time Sorenstam – who is one of four players to win the U.S. Women’s Open three times (1995, 1996 and 2006) – has accepted an exemption into the championship. She has made 16 previous appearances. Only Betsy Rawls and Mickey Wright, both four-time champions, have won more.

Sorenstam won 72 times on the LPGA and stepped away from playing full time after the 2008 season to start her family. She competed in her first LPGA event in more than a dozen years in in 2021, making the cut at the Gainbridge LPGA event at her home club, Lake Nona.

This year’s historic U.S. Women’s Open will be contested July 6-9 and marks the first time the championship will be held at Pebble Beach.

“I am incredibly grateful to the USGA for the opportunity to play in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open,” Sorenstam said in a release. “It is a championship that has helped to define my career, and to play in the first one at Pebble Beach, which will be a defining moment for women’s golf, with my family by my side will be a week we never forget.”

Past champions Paula Creamer and Cristie Kerr were the last players to receive a special exemption into the championship in 2021 at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. The most recent special exemptions before that went to two-time champion Karrie Webb, in 2018 and 2019. Amy Alcott’s sixth-place finish in 1994 at Indianwood Golf & Country Club in Lake Orion, Michigan, is the highest finish for anyone given a special exemption.

Michelle Wie West, winner of the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open, previously announced that this year’s championship will be the last competitive event on her calendar for the foreseeable future.

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U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach will be first women’s event to feature ShotLink scoring system

History will be made at Pebble Beach in a variety of ways this summer.

History will be made at Pebble Beach in a variety of ways this summer. As the best women in the world descend on the iconic course for the first time at the 78th U.S. Women’s Open, every shot that’s hit will be digitally tracked and archived. The U.S. Golf Associations’ new USGA ShotCast Powered by Cisco, which utilizes the PGA Tour’s ShotLink system, will be available at both the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens.

This marks the first time ShotLink data will be available at a women’s professional event.

Fans won’t miss a moment of the action with 3D hole imagery that provides real-time radar data and shot shapes from the game’s best. Users can follow along both on the championship website and the app. While information such as clubhead speed, ball speed and smash factor are available weekly in the men’s game, such detailed data is new technology for the women.

With advanced 3D imagery, fans will even be able to change angles on a particular shot, zooming into the player’s perspective, such as measuring the undulation and slopes as players line up their putts.

Currently on the LPGA, caddies are paid to record data from their players that’s used for the KPMG Performance Insights, an analytics system that provides information such as strokes gained statistics. There is no way, however, to track how a player makes her way around the golf course or the specifics of each swing.

The USGA’s ShotCast will archive every televised shot within the feature for both championships.

The PGA Tour developed ShotLink more than 20 years ago. The system is operated by a small staff and each week on Tour, roughly 350 volunteers work to score the golf tournament. The PGA Tour estimates its annual ShotLink volunteer count at around 10,000.

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