Tag: Palos Verdes Championship

Marina Alex battles back from injury to claim second LPGA title, edging No. 1 Jin Young Ko at Palos Verdes

Marina Alex won for the second time on the LPGA and first in three years at the Palos Verdes Championship.

Marina Alex wasn’t sure if winning on the LPGA would ever happen again for her. The 31-year-old’s lone LPGA title came in 2018 at the Cambia Portland Classic.

Since then, it’s been a battle physically, with a back injury keeping Alex away from competition for seven months in 2020.

“I’m kind of not really there with processing what we down today,” said Alex after a hard-fought win at the inaugural Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America.

Alex closed with a 5-under 66 to finish at 10 under for the tournament, one stroke ahead of World No. Jin Young Ko, who also shot 66 and was in the clubhouse for some time at 9 under, the number to chase.

Lydia Ko needed to hole out her final approach for eagle on the 72nd hole to force a playoff. Her second shot landed 5 feet short of the hole. She missed the birdie putt right and walked away shaking her head.

When Ko, playing in the final group alongside Hannah Green, made the turn she held a share of lead with Alex, Jin Young Ko and Megan Khang.

A series of poor tee shots from Lydia Ko, however, kept her from making enough of a run. The tour’s physio came out help stretch out her body as she played down the stretch. When asked by Golf Channel’s Jerry Foltz if she was concerned about her back going forward, Ko said she hoped not.

“It’s that time of the month,” she explained. “I know the ladies watching are probably like, yeah, I got you. So, when that happens my back gets really tight and I’m all twisted. It’s not the first time that (the LPGA physio) Chris has seen me twisted. I felt a lot better after he came.”

Australia’s Green held a three-stroke lead after two rounds, but shot 72-72 over the weekend to finish tied for fifth on the heels of a runner-up at the DIO Implant L.A. Open. Green heads back to Australia for several weeks before getting into the heart of the LPGA’s major season.

“I feel like I played good and I played bad this week,” said Green. “Like this weekend obviously shooting over par is not ideal, but the more you put yourself in those conditions the more you get used to it, and hopefully can excel that one week.”

Alex, who also played in the final group of the LPGA Drive On Championship, said recent work with Claude Harmon III has helped her feel re-inspired coming out to the West Coast.

“It’s been tough,” said Alex. “We’re all getting older. I’m getting older. There are so many amazing players out here. The competition is really, really difficult. So I just didn’t know if my mind and body were going to put me back in a position that I was going to be able to do it again.”

Alex, the first player from Vanderbilt to win on the LPGA, said she tried to stay away from leaderboards, noting that she doesn’t typically respond well when she goes “leaderboard crazy.”

“It can just create extra pressure that I don’t need,” said Alex, “whether it’s to make a birdie or to conserve a lead. It’s just – it doesn’t help my performance, so I kind of have to be really disciplined to just take a deep breath and do me.

“If it’s good enough to win, it’s good enough to win. If someone outplays me, that’s okay, but I don’t want to outplay myself. That’s the mistake I have made in the past.”

Los Angles native Andrea Lee, playing on a sponsor exemption, tied for fifth to secure strong status for the rest of the season. Lee won at Palos Verdes while at Stanford and has been an honorary member of the club since age 15.

The former top-ranked amateur had her instructor Jim Gormley, the club’s director of golf, on her bag for the final round. Lee birdied Nos. 16 and 17 for a late push up the board.

“Jim knows this place like the back of his hand obviously,” said Lee. “There were some reads out there yesterday that I felt like I just couldn’t get down, so asked him to be on the bag today, and he definitely helped out there.

“These greens are really tricky to read, and you got to make putts if you want to be in contention out here.”

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Augusta National champion Anna Davis plays the weekend in LPGA debut, gets taste of the future

Overall, Anna Davis’ take on her first LPGA event: “Really fun.”

Overall, Anna Davis’ take on her first LPGA event: “really fun.”

The 16-year-old high school sophomore from Spring Valley, California, left Georgia last month rather stunned that she’d won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. A host of invites to LPGA events followed, including three majors.

Davis finished the second round of the Palos Verdes Championship in impressive fashion – eagle, birdie par – to play the weekend. A final-round 76, however, dropped her to 70th for the event.

“I didn’t play that well,” said Davis, when asked what she’d learned abut herself this week.. “Like, nothing about my game was really that great this week, but I would say just staying like – staying together just mentally.

“Like especially on the second day for sure, knowing that I had to do something and then getting it done to make the cut was nice.”

Davis called making the cut in her first LPGA event “a pretty good accomplishment.” The serious, more focused atmosphere of a professional event did not escape the young amateur.

Davis said she’ll be more prepared going into her next LPGA start at the Cognizant Founders Cup later this month. Also on the docket: the U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles, Amundi Evian Masters and AIG Women’s British Open at Muirfield. She’ll fill in other events around the majors.

“Super good experience,” said Davis of the week, “and it’s something I look forward to doing in my future.”

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Augusta National champion Anna Davis, 16, delivers eagle-birdie-par finish to make cut in LPGA debut

Davis, 16, reached the par-5 16th in two and made a 40-foot putt for eagle to vault up the leaderboard.

Anna Davis knew as she stepped onto the 16th tee at Palos Verdes that a change of strategy was in order. The 2022 Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion was 4 over for the tournament and two shots outside the cut line in her first LPGA start at the inaugural Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America.

“I knew that I obviously had to make something happen to make the cut,” said Davis, who is playing on a sponsor exemption. “I knew that I had to be kind of aggressive going into the last few holes.”

Davis, 16, reached the par-5 16th in two and made a 40-foot putt for eagle to vault up the leaderboard.

“Like I knew it had to go in and I made it,” said Davis, “so that was cool.”

She then set out to play more conservatively on the last two holes but wound up with a bonus birdie on the 17th hole to give herself a cushion. Davis’ eagle-birdie-par finish over the last three holes put her in a share of 52nd for the tournament at 1 over. She shot 71-72 in her first two rounds on the LPGA.

Anna Davis hits a shot during the first round of the Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America. (courtesy of LPGA)

Hannah Green holds a three-shot lead over the field at 9 under with No. 1 Jin Young Ko, Lydia Ko, Minjee Lee and Megan Khang in a four-way tie for second.

Davis’ chill vibe and signature bucket hat helped make her a popular champion at Augusta. The high school sophomore is currently ranked 47th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Aside from last week’s Monday qualifier on the LPGA, this is her first competitive start since winning the ANWA.

Davis tees off at 9:20 a.m. local time alongside Xiyu Lin.

“It was my goal to make the cut so I’m glad that I could do that,” she said. “Yeah, it’ll be cool to play this weekend.”

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Augusta National champion Anna Davis, rocking her bucket hat, opens with a 71 in LPGA debut at Palos Verdes

The 2022 Augusta National Women’s Amateur champ admitted to feeling some nerves early in the day.

Anna Davis admitted to feeling some nerves Thursday morning in the lead-up to her LPGA debut. But by the time she got to the tee, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion said she was fine.

It’s a week of firsts for Davis, 16, who hails from Spring Valley, California, but finds herself in the Los Angeles area for the first time.

“I think it was pretty much like every other tournament I would say,” said Davis, who opened with even-par 71 at the Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America.

“There weren’t like as many people, but I’m expecting for the next few days leading up to see some more people out here. See how that goes.”

Davis, who is playing this week on a sponsor exemption, started on the back nine at Palos Verdes Golf Club and was 2 under through her first five holes. She hit 12 fairways, 10 greens and took 29 putts.

“Yeah, I missed like a few putts leading up, but as I got to the back nine my ball striking was kind of bad,” she said, “so I didn’t give myself very many chances.

“I kind of stayed strong and finished at even.”

Minjee Lee paces the field at 8 under with World No. 1 Jin Young Ko one back.

Davis has a busy summer lined up thanks to her big win at Augusta. She also has an invite to the Cognizant Founders Cup next month as well as the U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles, Amundi Evian Masters and AIG Women’s British Open at Muirfield. Davis said she’ll fill in other events around the majors.

The high school sophomore wore her signature bucket hat Thursday at Palos Verdes, making her easy to spot.

“I’ll walk around and some of the girls will recognize me and they’ll say congrats,” said Davis. “That’s kind of funny.”

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No. 1 Jin Young Ko rebounds from L.A. meltdown, shoots 64 to trail by one at Palos Verdes

When the World No. 1 made the turn at Palos Verdes on Thursday, it looked like vintage Ko.

Jin Young Ko recorded the first quadruple-bogey eight of her LPGA career last Saturday at Wilshire Country Club and then ballooned to a 75 on Sunday at the DIO Implant LA Open. She dropped from a share of the lead to outside the top 20 in rather shocking fashion.

But it’s a new week, and when the World No. 1 made the turn to the front nine at Palos Verdes on Thursday, it looked like vintage Ko. Six consecutive birdies on Nos. 2-7 gave her an opening 7-under 64 at the inaugural Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America. She’s one shot off the pace of leader Minjee Lee.

“Before starting today’s round, I just remind just golf is golf,” said Ko. “Don’t think about last week. Starting again, new routine. Get the routine like step by step, and don’t think about future. … Just feel my body and feel my mind and just enjoy.”

Charley Hull, Moriya Jutanugarn and Jennifer Chang shot 65.

This marks the second consecutive week in the Los Angeles area for the LPGA. Lee said she took Monday off and didn’t come to the course. She played nine holes on Tuesday and saw the rest of the course in the Wednesday pro-am. Because the venue is so hilly, Lee said it’s important to keep her legs fresh.

Even though Palos Verdes is a new venue for the Australian, she did feel somewhat at home.

“My golf club back home it’s the same type of fairways,” she said. “I don’t think we play a course with the same type of grass throughout the whole year, so it was kind of a nice surprise when I got here.”

Jin Young Ko of South Korea reacts after her putt on the 11th green during the first round of the Palos Verdes Championship Presented by Bank of America at Palos Verdes Golf Club on April 28, 2022, in Palos Verdes Estates, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

A new kind of challenge also suited Ko, who looked to turn the page quickly on last week’s disaster.

“This week is so much different to last week,” said Ko. “This week is shorter than last week. Greens are really, really small this one, and we have to focus. Middle of the green is just like maximum 20 feet for putt.

“So, yeah, it’s kind of fun, this course. I’m enjoying.”

Albane Valenzuela lost the Pac-12 Championship in a playoff at Palos Verdes and has fond memories of playing the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge every year at Stanford. The 24-year-old opened with a 66, her best round of the season.

“I think I shot 5 under also as an amateur,” said Valenzuela. “I think really feeding off that good momentum that I had in college, all those good memories. I’m staying with one of my best friends this week, one of my college roommates, so all the good vibes always help.”

Last season, Valenzuela said she hit it awful and scrambled to make pars to keep her card. This season, however, her ball-striking has been solid for some time.

“It’s kind of a different way of playing golf,” she said. “Now I’m finding fairways, hitting a lot of greens and just hitting it well. I just feel like I’m very calm, and I just trust my own game and really just commit to what I know how to do.”

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‘I’m not that nervous’: Augusta National Women’s Amateur champ Anna Davis, 16, still chill on cusp of LPGA debut at Palos Verdes

“I’m kind of just trying to treat it as any other event. Just trying to have fun out here.”

Anna Davis will be rocking the bucket hat this week in her LPGA debut, having acquired a few new ones since winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur earlier this month. Her attitude about playing against the best in the world? As chill as ever.

“I’m not that nervous,” said Davis, who is competing in this week’s Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America on a sponsor exemption.

“I’m kind of just trying to treat it as any other event. Just trying to have fun out here.”

Anna Davis of the United States plays her third shot on the second hole during the final round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur at Augusta National Golf Club on April 02, 2022 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

Davis, 16, said she didn’t expect to be competing in an LPGA event this young. But a victory at Augusta opens all kinds of unexpected doors. She also had an invite to the Cognizant Founders Cup next month as well as as the U.S. Women’s Open, Amundi Evian Masters and AIG Women’s British Open at Muirfield. Davis said she’ll fill in other events around the majors.

On Monday, Davis took part in the Bank of America Play It Forward Clinic and said it’s surreal that young players now look up to her.

“I remember being young and I looked up to Alexa Pano and Megha (Ganne), people like that,” said Davis. “Now I have girls like on Instagram DMing me and asking me questions. It’s cute. I’m glad that I can be that person now.”

Davis goes to a public school online and said friends lit up her phone after she won at Augusta. Growing up learning the game alongside twin brother Billy, she said, was a huge advantage.

“I mean, ever since we were little we were very competitive,” said Anna. “There would be like temper tantrums on the golf course and we would fight. As we grew older it turned into a friendly competition.

“It keeps you focused and keeps you practicing deliberately, so I would say that was a huge advantage growing up.”

With such different schedules, they don’t practice together as much these days, but do when they can.

“My brother goes to the school my dad works at, which is like a private school,” said Anna. “He’s getting a really good education so that’s good. He’s so good. He doesn’t get to practice as much as I do, but I would say he’s probably better than I am.

“For the confidence, we’ll say he’s not.”

As a member of the Junior Solheim Cup team last year, Davis had already met most of the top Americans on the LPGA prior to this week. She was also well-known to college coaches long before she won at Augusta. Davis said she never had a dream school and will see how the recruitment process starts to shake out this summer.

Augusta National sent Davis a copy of the NBC broadcast of the ANWA. Her main takeaway?

“I’m like, that putt should have gone in,” she said. “That should have gone in, too.”

At only 16, there’s plenty of time left for a repeat.

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Plenty of former college stars have won at Palos Verdes, site of this week’s new LPGA event

It’s not often that a new LPGA event is hosted at a course that has a long history in the women’s game.

It’s not often that a new LPGA event is hosted at a course that has a long history in the women’s game. The inaugural Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America takes place on a venue that has hosted the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge collegiate event for the past 25 years.

Past champions include Lorena Ochoa (2002), Natalie Gulbis (2001), Jennifer Rosales (1999) and a host of current LPGA players. The up-and-down course places a premium on accuracy and ocean views. Palos Verdes Golf Club opened in 1924 and was designed by the renowned team of George C. Thomas and William P. “Billy” Bell, who also designed Riviera Country Club, Bel Air Country Club and Los Angeles Country Club North.

This is the second consecutive week the LPGA is hosting an event in the Los Angeles area. Here are past winners of the Northrop Grumman who are in the field this week:

Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion Anna Davis, 16, receives sponsor invite to new LPGA event in California

The 16-year-old high school sophomore will make her LPGA debut in her home state.

Anna Davis, the bucket hat-wearing teen whose chill demeanor made her an instant favorite at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, will take her California cool to the professional ranks next week as she competes on a sponsor exemption in the inaugural Palos Verdes Championship.

It will be her LPGA debut.

Davis, 16, came from two back to win at Augusta National earlier this month with a final-round 3-under 69. The high school sophomore from Spring Valley, California, was the only player in the field who finished under par for the tournament.

The LPGA is hosting back-to-back events in the Los Angeles area, offering an “LA LPGA Dual Ticket” – a weekly grounds pass that provides access to both Palos Verdes and this week’s DIO Implant LA Open at Wilshire Country Club.

Davis, who now ranks 47th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, will first try to Monday qualify for the LA Open, where two spots are up for grabs.

Prior to winning at Augusta, Davis won the Girls Junior PGA Championship by seven strokes, which also happens to be where she first started wearing a bucket hat.

Davis joins Wake Forest junior Rachel Kuehn, winner of the 2022 Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge at Palos Verdes Golf Club in March, as sponsor exemptions for the new LPGA Palos Verdes event.

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