Scottish Surprise
Ten years after earning her first LPGA victory at the 2016 Volunteers of America Texas Shootout, Jenny Shin took home her second trophy.
It was an impressive win in Scotland, where just 10 players finished under par and many of the game’s biggest stars were swept away along the western coast.
With three outrights finishing inside the top 19, we remain close and continue to contend week after week on both tours.
Shin has built a decent record across the pond, but at +15000—and even longer in some places—to begin the week, congratulations to her on earning a second career win a decade after the first.
Much like the men three weeks ago, the women will travel from the shores of Scotland to the western coast of England for the AIG Women’s Open.
Less than 10 miles north of Royal Birkdale, the conclusion of the women’s major championship season has a slight feeling of redundancy. Two famous English shoreline links layouts will conclude the men’s and women’s major seasons.
The entire top 10 of the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings is in the field.
Much like the men, the women have been here before—five times, in fact, with all five visits coming within the last 30 years.
The history of The Open Championship stretches back more than a century. The Women’s Open is celebrating its 50th edition.
Returning to these historic links in Lancashire sets the tone for what should be a fitting conclusion to the 2026 major championship season.
A Par 3?
Every eight to 10 years or so, we return to Royal Lytham & St Annes and immediately remember one thing: this is the course that begins with a par 3.
Yes, the par-71 scorecard begins with a 180-yard par 3.
The course will measure 6,601 yards for the championship, with an additional par 4 and one fewer par 5 than a standard par-72 layout.
What I love most about links golf is the architects’ ability to use what the land gave them.
There are so many American courses on the PGA TOUR that feel as though the plans were drawn before anyone saw the setting.
Two weeks ago at Royal Birkdale, the men did not play a par 5 until the 14th hole. At Royal Lytham & St Annes, the par 5s are finished by the 11th.
A masterpiece of eclectic par 4s, the course closes with six in a row. Each is different from the next, and you can bet we will be closely tracking par-4 scoring.
Similar to the par 5s, the women will face all three front-nine par 3s before making the turn.
Course Conditions, Weather and Wind
The warm weather at Royal Birkdale was not your typical English summer.
This week’s forecast calls for temperatures in the high 60s, with a slight chance of rain during the early-morning hours each day. That should be enough to keep the surfaces soft enough to receive a few well-struck approaches.
The wind is another story.
Royal Lytham & St Annes is not nearly as exposed as some links venues, but we are still expecting serious wind during the afternoons.
Each day should begin with a steady breeze in the low to mid-teens. By the afternoon, a steady wind coming off the Irish Sea from the west could produce gusts exceeding 25 mph.
The front nine takes players away from the clubhouse. The ninth green and 10th tee are the furthest points from the locker rooms.
A majority of the opening holes travel east. After making the turn, players will head west on six of the closing nine holes.
Keep the wind direction in mind. Players should be able to score on the front nine.
The only par 4 that travels west during the opening stretch is also the shortest. There are two par 5s on the front nine, and both should play downwind.
Avoid the 97 fairway bunkers, and players will be in position to attack early.
Yes, there are 97 fairway bunkers—and 168 bunkers in total.
Off the tee and on approach, this will be an accuracy contest.
We will take a deeper look at the historic men’s and women’s leaderboards in the outright section, but the variety of shots required here immediately stands out.
Much of that variety comes from the conditions.
Women have won the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Lytham at both 17-under and four-over par. That is quite a scoring differential for a course that has not fundamentally changed since hosting its first Open Championship in 1926.
How Do You Win?
Royal Lytham & St Annes has hosted five AIG Women’s Opens and 11 men’s Open Championships.
Take a look at this Hall of Fame list of past champions:
Women’s Open Champions
- 1998: Sherri Steinhauer (+4)
- 2003: Annika Sorenstam (-10)
- 2006: Sherri Steinhauer (-7)
- 2009: Catriona Matthew (-3)
- 2018: Georgia Hall (-17)
Open Championship Winners
- 1926: Bobby Jones (291)
- 1952: Bobby Locke (-1)
- 1958: Peter Thomson (-6)
- 1963: Bob Charles (-7)
- 1969: Tony Jacklin (-4)
- 1974: Gary Player (-2)
- 1979: Seve Ballesteros (-1)
- 1988: Seve Ballesteros (-11)
- 1996: Tom Lehman (-13)
- 2001: David Duval (-10)
- 2012: Ernie Els (-7)
One interesting footnote: Since World War II, Royal Lytham & St Annes is the only Open venue to produce two English winners.
Uniquely, they are one man and one woman—Tony Jacklin and Georgia Hall.
Hall’s closing 67 on Sunday was impressive in 2018. She made six birdies through the first 16 holes, hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation during the final round, and hit 71% of the greens across all four rounds.
That approach accuracy was one of the keys to her victory.
It is important to note that the course played as a par 72 in 2018. With one fewer par 5 on the scorecard this time, long-range approach accuracy becomes even more important.
The best approach player on the LPGA is Haeran Ryu, who is hitting more than 80% of her greens in regulation. The second-ranked player is hitting 72%, while world No. 1 Nelly Korda is hitting 73%.
With 71 greenside bunkers and that list of past champions, I am leaning heavily on approach play for this championship—not just from the fairway, but from everywhere.
We all saw how dry the fescue and rough were at Royal Birkdale. Expect more of the same here.
Total Driving
Royal Lytham & St Annes has always been one of the more difficult driving tests in the Open rota.
Players will stare at nearly 100 bunkers from the tee boxes across 18 holes. When they find one of those landmines, they will often be forced to pitch out short of the green and scramble to save par.
There are two points to consider.
First, we are looking closely at total driving. Who are the longest and most accurate players on tour?
Power will be an incredible asset on the closing holes heading back into the wind. Three of the final five holes are par 4s measuring more than 420 yards.
In many cases, the longer players will also be able to carry some of the sand trouble off the tee.
The average par 5 measures 532 yards, making all three reachable for the longest players in the field.
Sorenstam, Duval and Els were all excellent drivers of the golf ball. Two of them were also multiple-time U.S. Open champions.
Royal Lytham presents plenty of trouble off the tee. The winner will need to stay out of it.
Scrambling and Bogey Avoidance
With what feels like an infinite number of bunkers, scrambling becomes another major factor.
The cut in 2018 was one-over par, while the leader after 36 holes was 10-under. Bogey avoidance is always an important factor in this championship.
Hall made only three bogeys during her victory in 2018.
A stellar short game can save a championship campaign. The best major contenders consistently control their birdie-to-bogey ratios.
These are annually among the hardest courses the women play. You can also include Shadow Creek and perhaps one or two other regular-season venues in that conversation.
Who plays well when the challenge increases?
The LPGA has contested three major championships during its last six scheduled starts. When you study those leaderboards, a specific storyline begins to emerge.
The consistent contenders can scramble. They can chip, pitch and putt.
No player in the field has finished inside the top 10 in all three majors—although Ryu won two—but how many have two top-three finishes like Brooke Henderson?
Henderson has always been known as a ball striker, but she has also been saving a significant number of pars.
Putting on Links Greens
English coastal links venues generally have relatively simple greens. They have to.
If the wind blows and the greens contain too many swales and severe slopes, they can quickly become unplayable.
Putting on flatter greens is not especially difficult, which should bring more players into the winner’s conversation.
The biggest challenge from a putting perspective is determining who putts well in the Open.
LPGA putting statistics are largely generated on fast, undulating greens across Asia and America. Comparatively, these greens are flatter and slower.
I have studied the relevant leaderboards to identify the best British Isles putters.
If we are emphasizing scrambling, making everything from inside eight feet must be part of the equation.
I will not lean as heavily on the flatstick as I will on ball striking. Open putting is difficult to predict.
Recent form will matter, but not as much as proven putting performance in major championships and across the Atlantic.
Par-4 Scoring
With 11 par 4s and a closing stretch of six in a row, par-4 scoring will be important.
Not many venues on the LPGA schedule offer the variety Royal Lytham & St Annes presents.
Six of the 11 par 4s measure fewer than 400 yards, and the average par 4 is only 392 yards. That is short by major championship standards.
Players will need to score with wedges on the shorter par 4s while also handling long irons and hybrids on the closing holes playing into the wind.
This is going to be a complete test.
The most well-rounded players tend to be the strongest par-4 scorers. It is a simple edge that consistently allows our outrights to contend on the right courses.
Scrambling includes bunker play, but I have also separated that statistic and considered who handles the sand particularly well.
It would be an incredible feat to play 72 holes here without finding a bunker. At some point, the sand will come into the equation, and I want players who can escape it.
Major Championship Form
Since Nelly Korda captured her second major championship of the season, a new name has taken center stage: Haeran Ryu.
The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship was her first major victory.
Not only was the 2018 Women’s Open Georgia Hall’s first major championship, but it was also her first professional win.
We have several brilliant ball strikers in this field, and they will contend.
Our winner will be the player who can handle the pressure, much like Jackson Koivun did on Sunday.
I have considered recent form in major championships as the final player characteristic for this week.
The ability to perform when it matters most is rare. Few players in this field have consistently proven they possess it, and those are the women I am targeting for the outright card.
LPGA Free Picks
Hyo Joo Kim (+2200, FanDuel)
Hyo Joo Kim has an excellent record on links-style courses.
She finished runner-up at the 2025 Scottish Open before earning a T13 finish at the Women’s Open one week later.
Kim’s short game and putting have always been strengths. With two wins and counting in 2026, her ball striking has now caught up to her ability around—and on—the greens.
Coming off a 16th-place finish at Dundonald Links last week, watch for Hyo Joo to carry that momentum into this championship and manage her game perfectly around another Royal Rota venue.
A Lim Kim (+3600, DraftKings)
After finishing fourth at the Women’s Open last year, A Lim Kim is more than ready to make another run.
Kim finished runner-up in Scotland on Sunday under challenging conditions. As a former U.S. Women’s Open champion, she has already proven she can handle major championship pressure.
A Lim’s power will be a major asset in the wind, and her recent approach form makes her an immediate contender.
Add in a couple of additional top-20 finishes in the British Isles over the past three years, and Kim definitely has my attention.
Next up
For the second time in as many weeks, we are diving deep into a major championship venue and field. Before we get to the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, let’s take a brief look back at the Meijer LPGA. AIG Women’s Open Champion Miyu Yamashita made a birdie on the first playoff hole to defeat Lottie Woad. Woad was going for her second win in three starts. Yamashita fired a final round 64, tying the low round of the day, securing her third LPGA title. I doubt this will be the last time these two competitors meet late on a Sunday afternoon. Both under 24 years old, they have some years ahead of them. That was the third playoff to decide the Meijer in the last five years! Going up against the US Open is a useless endeavor, but if you did happen to catch the highlights, you saw an entertaining Sunday. A
fter a two-week tour in Michigan, the world’s best women head to Chaska, Minnesota. Hazeltine National Golf Club is no stranger to championship golf. In fact, the 2019 Women’s PGA was played at this venue. That edition was won by Hannah Green. Green is having a major year with two wins already on her 2026 resume. Built in 1962 by Robert Trent Jones, Hazeltine National welcomes a field of 156 players competing for a $13 million purse. The largest in women’s major championship golf! Well done, KPMG. Twenty-four of the top 25 players in the Rolex World Rankings are here to try and win the season’s third major championship. Considering Nelly Korda has won the first two major championships of 2026, we know what the first storyline is coming into HNGC. The best women in the world are vying for a season Grand Slam. In my mind, she’ll have to win this one and the AIG Women’s Open to do it; sorry, Evian, you were late to this party.
Korda is the betting favorite by a wide margin. We may need to get creative, as she is unbettable at +300. Unlike Scottie’s 2026 campaign, this number one player in the world has been winning.
Major test
Hazeltine National Golf Club is a big kids’ course. Five of the 10 par 4s that make up this 6,760-yard par 72 layout are over 400 yards. The par 3s are manageable in length, but the 5s, three of those stretch over 530 yards. The club sits at almost 1,000 feet above sea level. Elevation will help the ball carry a couple of extra yards, but overall we are looking at a test that comes without a ton of roll. As you will see in the forecast, the HNGC region has been damp over the past 10 to 14 days. The 2016 Ryder Cup and two more PGA Championships during the Tiger years have been contested here. Reports from the property highlight healthy rough and a medium bounce. All 11 2026 LPGA winners are competing alongside 12 past champions. A few of those players crossover under both categories. They will be joined by eight PGA of America/LPGA qualifiers. The Men’s PGA Championship always boasts having the deepest field in golf, and the women’s edition is no different. The 36-hole cutline is no different as well. The low 70 and ties get to play the weekend.
Course Conditions, Weather, Wind
Hazeltine National has received approximately 2″ of rain in June. Yesterday, practice rounds were cancelled for the day at 5:15 pm local time.. The course is in excellent shape, and the water table YTD is 1.5″ under the annual average. Rain is also expected on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Saturday evening into Sunday morning looks like the worst of it. High temperatures will reach the high 70s on Thursday and Friday. By Sunday, it will be 85 degrees. The wind will start out of the north on Thursday and make its way around the compass, finishing out of the south-southeast by Sunday. The wind will be in the single digits on Thursday and Friday, and blow in the 12-14 mph range over the weekend.
Softer conditions will not hurt as the average green size at Hazeltine National is 5,000 sq/ft. Small targets by any tour’s standard, they are covered in Bentgrass blades. Surrounding those greens (and fairways) are 108 bunkers. Eight holes have water in play and the fairways average 27 yards wide. If you study this scorecard and setting, you quickly realize it is an oversized accuracy contest. That poses a problem for the field. One of the longest players on the LPGA, Nelly, is also one of the most accurate. Hence, in eight individual starts this season, Korda has four wins and three second-place finishes. LOL, her worst finish is a T8. Truth be told, the PGA of America should be cheering for Nelly to play well. Not just for the TV ratings, but for history. Korda missed the cut in 2023 and 2024 in this event. Last year, the LPGA traveled to the PGA’s home in Frisco, TX, and the weather caught the tournament officials by surprise in their setup of the golf course. That shouldn’t happen at HNGC. I expect a stout test, one that favors the best players. After all, who doesn’t want the most marketable woman in golf to win their event?
How to win?
Let’s take a trip back in time to 2019. Hannah Green won the Women’s PGA the last time it was played at Hazeltine National, but who were the contenders, and how can we use that leaderboard to our advantage? Here is the top 10 from that KPMG Women’s PGA Championship:
That is a very accuracy-heavy final leaderboard. Now some of those names may not be familiar to you, but rest assured those 13 women were accurate during that time on the LPGA. Many of them were major champions coming into Hazeltine National and I am sure that helped them contend on this course. HNGC spans 335 acres. Shinneock Hills was 200 acres and we all saw how big that property played. My first priority for picking players in the KPMG is getting the power-accuracy proportion correct. I’m favoring accuracy 67% over power 33%. The rough is really healthy and the greens are small. Contenders will be in the fairway to start. The good news, when it comes to Total Driving, that’s one category that Nelly does need to lead. We are running with the longest and straightest players off the tee. When deciding between two players for any given bet, once again I’m going with the more accurate player.
Fifty percent of approaches will be played from over 150 yards. Miss the fairway from that distance, and you’re in trouble. Get closer than your opponents, and you have an advantage. The best mid- to long-iron players also possess the same complement of speed and accuracy. If Inbee and Ariya were in the same top 10, that tells us something. Park was one of the most accurate during her time on tour with an iron (or wood) in her hand. Jutanugarn was one of the most powerful. In today’s terms, this is like comparing Lydia Ko and Haeran Ryu. Both can compete here. The best way to separate them is to start looking at a few more specific skills.
With 5,000 sq/ft greens, scrambling, bogey avoidance, and birdie-to-bogey ratio matter. Who are the best players when saving shots matters most? The winning score in 2019 was nine under par. Green made 15 birdies and six bogeys that week. No double bogeys and just a few bogeys succinctly tell us what it takes. By comparing a couple of analytics that tell us who the best scorers are from 50 yards and in will further help us select those who will separate. Scrambling also includes the use of the putter. Having studied HNGC from the 2016 Ryder Cup, I also know that par 4 scoring is essential. Hannah was three under par for the week on the 4s. One of the very few players who played the 4s under par. The 3s and 5s present scoring opportunities, while the fours present challenges. Play the 4s under par like Green, and you’ll win some green!
Hazeltine National is a tough T2G test. Since the LPGA has limited data, taking the best T2G players will give us a nice baseline. Separating out the ball striking will also help us better understand who the best putters are. Of course, using only strokes gained putting doesn’t always tell us the full story on the greens. Players can make putts at HNGC. Knowing who converts par-saving and sub-par chances is key. Strokes gained scoring, scrambling, and scoring average at this point in the season accurately reflect a player’s scoring capability. Finding the best Bentgrass putters over the past month plus as the LPGA visited New Jersey, Ohio, and Michigan was helpful as well. I then looked through the harder venues from 2026 and compared those leaderboards for common player trends. The end result of that study can be seen below.
LPGA – Free Picks
Jeeno Thitikul (+1500 FanDuel)
The number two-ranked player in the world is 15-1 to win a major championship! Jeeno Thitikul possesses the power and grace to win at Hazeltine National. Thitikul is one of the most talented players in the field and won a little over a month ago. Par 4 scoring, T2G, Total Driving, and the putter are all part of her weekly repertoire of skills out on tour. By far the best player without a major title, if anyone can take down Korda on a big girl course, it’s Jeeno.
Charley Hull (+3000 FanDuel)
Charley Hull is a major championship player. Second place at the US Open at Riviera three weeks ago, Hull is another player who has the power and scoring ability to handle this major championship test. Not many players feed off the pressure like Charley, and that focus level when the tournament is on the line gives her a serious edge. The skill set for HNGC is going to be very similar to Riviera. Hull’s well-rounded game fits both ballparks better than a vast majority of the field.
US Open Prep.
It has been a weird run–up to the LPGA’s second major championship of the season. The world’s best women will be in Los Angeles at the famed Riviera Country Club for the United States Women’s Open. In preparation for the toughest test of the year, a field of 144 plan to compete in Galloway, New Jersey, in the ShopRite LPGA powered by Wakefern. Hopefully, Wakefern is a code word for private jet, because a Sunday finish and cross–country trip to California will take a toll on the top 65 and ties who play on Sunday. I mention Sunday, because the cut will not happen until Saturday night. The ShopRite is one of two 54-hole events remaining on the schedule. I know grocery prices have gone up, but throwing a three-day event on the shortest course the LPGA plays across the country from the US Open is a tough sell for ShopRite. Heck, they could have played this event last week and given the women more time to prepare for the national championship.
As expected, only five of the top 25 in the Rolex Rankings are competing. The betting favorite is Hye Jin Choi (+750). Please don’t take this the wrong way. Read The Line loves the ShopRite. We have picked the winner twice 2022 (Brooke Henderson) and 2023 (Ashleigh Buhai) in the last four years. In order to grab number three, we will continue to use our winning ShopRite strategy. It starts with having played Seaview’s Bay Course many times. Analyzing a course you have played and covered on-site is very helpful. We also grabbed those two wins before the LPGA published any strokes gained data. With the upgrade of their analytic offerings and local knowledge, it is time to grab number three at Seaview, and for the year.
Ross three-peat
The Seaview Resort is a historic golf venue. The majestic white hotel sits above 36-holes designed by two of the great architects of the golden age of golf courses. The William Flynn Pines Course heads inland behind the hotel, and Donald Ross’ Bay Course extends from the front porch out toward the sea. The Bay Course stretches to 6,263 yards and plays to a par 71. The shortest test on tour, the women will play eight (of 11) par 4s under 400 yards. Even the average par 5 is only 490 yards. This is one of the most fan-friendly events on any tour. You can see every hole from a couple of vantage points, and many of the fairways run parallel to one another. A couple of tee boxes were added last year to increase the scorecard length. The average winning score over the last decade is 14.4 under par (for three rounds). It’s an entertaining course to watch a tournament because the field can birdie or bogey any hole, depending on the conditions. The Bay Course is so exposed, and you can see it during the coverage.
Course Conditions, Weather, Wind
New Jersey witnessed a miserable Memorial Day weekend. It rained approximately 1-2″ inches across all different parts of the state. Much like the rest of the country, there was a drought. That’s no longer the case and although we have no rain in the forecast for Friday through Sunday, the golf course is going to play on the softer side. Temperatures are supposed to reach the low 70s, but the Bay Course is on the water and the real feel will be cooler. Thankfully, the wind prediction is around 10 mph for the three days. It will blow harder at Seaview than the web says, but that’s a decent starting point.
Even with 93 bunkers and 6,000 sq/ft greens (on average), the field will score. That’s the DNA of the Bay Course. The ShopRite has seen Hall of Famers and first-timers win because the layout is so short. If you take the top BoB% players on tour and tell them they need to average five birdies a day under normal conditions, 15ladies (minimum) can do that. I’m praying the forecast holds up. The weather can be a wildcard at the ShopRite. The skill set needed to win is specific for Seaview. If the forecast holds, we will contend and have a great chance to win. Our weekly coverage of the LPGA will be a great asset in assessing this field. With the US Open across the country in eight days, we don’t have a deep roster of usual suspects. The field in Mexico was deeper. Hopefully, the LPGA gets a handle on this schedule and starts to figure this out. The Mizuho had a great field, but that was three weeks ago. In the last six weeks, the LPGA has collected two strong events. It’s April and May! Fans complain about the two overseas tours to Asia, but we are in peak season, and nobody is playing.
Tight fairways, plenty of bunkers, and hopefully some wind will give these ladies a decent test. It’s a shoot-out at the Jersey Shore. Let’s find some women who can make 5+ birdies per round for three straight days.
How to win?
Breaking down the ShopRite is all about accuracy. The course is very short for modern LPGA standards. The tour continues to go here because the crowds give the ladies tremendous support, but under normal conditions, it is not a professional test. The lead skill we seek is approach play. Our two RTL winners, Henderson and Buhai, were in the top 5 on tour for iron play when they won. The average approach length is short at Seaview’s Bay Course. Five of the 11 par 4s are under 350 yards in length. Add in a very short par 3 on 17, and that’s six approaches (33%) where you must create close birdie chances. Remember, the winning score is 14 or 15 under par over three rounds. Our contenders are looking to fire five under par per day to keep pace. Those six short-range approaches are important. Since the LPGA lacks specific proximity data, how can we measure who separates on short par 4s? I like par 5 scoring at the ShopRite for this reason and a couple of others.
Players who can score on the 5s have a unique combination of skills. First, they score from close range. The modern professional golfer pushes the ball down to the green in two on a par 5. That third scoring shot comes from inside 100 yards. The best birdie makers on par 5s excel on this last approach. Six par 4s and all three par 5s will reward this skill set at the ShopRite. That’s half the holes these ladies will play each day. If you can birdie four or five of those nine, you are on pace to win. Those sub-par scores are the easiest to make on tour. The second skill on par 5s that applies on the Bay Course is your long iron or fairway wood approach in two. All three par 5s are reachable at Seaview, as the average length is 490 yards for the 5s.
Those three long-iron swings on the 5s also correlate to success on the par 3s. If the Bay Course challenges anything, it is par 3 scoring. Outside of the short seventeenth, the other par 3s are over 180 yards. Each one has a small, undulating green. As we have seen the past three weeks on tour, Ross was notorious for testing players on par 3s. Add up those three tee shots and the three long second swings on the par 5s, and that’s six more situations where players can separate. The final key par 5 player trait is making birdie or better. The scoring average of the last three top 10s at the ShopRite after three rounds is 4.5 on the 5s. The leaders are going low on these holes. It doesn’t matter what the weather is; this collection of par 5s is very scoreable. You must average two birdies per day on those three holes.
Looking through the recent top 10s from the 2022 to 2025 leaderboards, putting ranks second in strokes gained importance. That makes sense, because this is a three-day shoot-out. Wind–swept courses like this one are required to have relatively benign putting greens because the slopes will not hold balls in the wind. They do have shelves and sections, but when you get on the right plateau, the putting becomes very straightforward. The average green is small, 6,000 sq/ft. Hit the green, and you have a legitimate birdie chance. The defending champion, Jennifer Kupcho, gained nearly three strokes per round last year with her flatstick. Women will make putts, and since scoring is all that counts, you have to pay attention to those who are trending on the greens. Consider this as well, we just left TWO Ross–designed venues. Did Donald create all of those putting surfaces? No. But the Ross DNA is there, and it exists at the Bay Course too.
How much should we pay attention to short game and OTT play? Seaview might be the only course across the LPGA and PGA TOUR where the driver really does not matter. Can it help with the 5s? Yes. There are so many short holes at Seaview, you just need to hit your wedges (very) close. That’s the consideration for the short game as well. Sure, the ladies will miss some greens, but these surfaces are really windswept flat. A decent around the green player will do fine here. You don’t really need to worry about bunker play, etc., because the field is hitting approach shots from such close range. We’re not going to overthink this; we have predicted the winner here twice. Approach, approach, approach, pick the player who will hit 75% of her GIRs, make 18 sub-par scores in three rounds, and that’s the winner.
Will any part of this event help us handicap next week? Probably not. The USGA will have Riviera set up 500+ yards longer. The driver will play a huge role in the Pacific Palisades and mid- to long- iron play. Keep an eye on the putter at Seaview. We will want to know who is popping with the flatstick, but overall, this three-round event is as much of a one–off format as is the skill set needed. Enjoy the entertainment and the NJ crowds. Nine of the last 11 ShopRites were won by one stroke or in a playoff. After a miserable Memorial Day weekend, things are about to heat up down at the Jersey Shore.
LPGA – Free Picks
Celine Boutier (+1900 DraftKings)
The 2021 ShopRite winner, Celine Boutier has been on a tear with her iron game on the last two Donald Ross venues. Ninth place at the Mizuho and sixteenth at the Kroger, the former champ is locked in on approach. The difference with Boutierversus some of the other middle-tier prospects is her putter. When Celine is scoring and stacking up top 20 results, it is always a well-rounded resume. Third in the field for rounds recorded in the 60s, and fourth in round one scoring, watch for the French lady to get off to a fast start and take this title home with a wire-to-wire finish.
Jodi Ewart-Shadoff (+7200 DraftKings)
Following the LPGA intensely for four straight years, I can say with confidence, Jodi Ewart-Shadoff at 72-1 is a total misprice. The second-best approach player in the field has proven she can play Seaview. In her last five starts on the Bay Course, Ewart-Shadoff has three results in the top 12. One of those finishes was a third place in 2022. Jodi finished sixth in Mexico earlier in May, another accuracy-driven design. When the number one skill needed is iron play, put JES on the card. Sixth in par 5 scoring, there are other skills Shadoff has that will promote contending again at the shore.
A mix of D.C. drama, accusations of selfishness over LIV returnees, Nelly Korda’s greatness, and a crazy rules story from Asia.
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Pablo Larrazabal says the DP World Tour should welcome LIV players back, even if it costs some current players starts, money, or status. His argument is pretty simple: better players mean better fields, better sponsors, better venues, and better tournaments. And if that makes life harder for guys already on the tour? Play better.
→ A Guy Got A Mulligan, Almost Won, Then All Hell Broke Loose
This is golf rules chaos at its finest. Inhoi Hur hit one out of bounds, somehow got to play his provisional like the first ball never happened, then nearly shot his way into a playoff the next day. The original dispute got ugly fast while people were searching for the ball, with yelling, accusations, and the whole tournament getting held up.
→ Nelly Korda Is Just Bullying People Now
Nelly Korda won in Mexico by four shots for her third title of the season, which is starting to feel less like a hot streak and more like a hostile takeover. And the crazy thing is she’s not even putting that well.
A mix of dominance, innovation, controversy, and what’s coming next. One player is back on top of the world, another story dives into how far equipment testing can go, one decision splits fans, one lays out the future of a major, and another follows a player looking for redemption on one of golf’s toughest stages.
→ Nelly Korda Wins Chevron Championship to Reclaim World No. 1
Nelly Korda is back where she belongs – and she didn’t sneak up on anyone getting there. This win wasn’t just another trophy, it was a statement that the consistency, the adjustments, and the dominance we’ve been watching are very real. Reaching No. 1 again feels less like a comeback and more like a correction.
→ Can a Golf Ball ‘Private Club’ Work? Inside the Underground
Golf Magazine’s Johnny Wunder caught up with the minds behind the movement: Hollywood icon and certified stick Mark Wahlberg, industry veteran Garry Singer and retail titan/philanthropist Doug Meijer. They aren’t just trying to sell you a golf ball; they’re trying to change the way you think about what’s in your bag…and how you get it.
→ ‘Bad sport’: Rory McIlroy’s Decision to Skip Cadillac Championship Leads to Mixed Reactions
Rory McIlroy made a call, and not everyone is happy about it. Skipping events always comes with opinions, but this one hit a nerve. Some see it as a smart scheduling move, others as a lack of commitment. Either way, it shows how nothing can happen in professional golf without it turning into a debate.
→ PGA Championship Future Sites: List of Venues and Courses for Men’s Second Major
The roadmap for one of golf’s biggest events is starting to take shape. Future venues give a glimpse into how the PGA Championship wants to position itself – a mix of classic tests and modern setups that can challenge the best players in the world. It’s not just about where they’re playing, but what kind of golf they want to showcase.
→ Sam Burns Is Ready for Redemption at the U.S. Open
Sam Burns knows how quickly things can turn at a major. This is about getting another shot, learning from what didn’t go right, and stepping back into the spotlight with something to prove. The U.S. Open doesn’t hand anything out, which makes a redemption story like this one worth watching.
