The idea of setting up events using grouped handicap ranges has been around for a long time. As you have likely experienced, flights range from club to club or event to event and most of them are determined by local flavour. It’s a question most provincial associations and Golf Canada receive regularly from tournament organizers and clubs: What flight cut-offs should we use?

There is only one reason to do this and that’s to have those with similar handicaps competing against one another (Net or Gross). This is prevalent in most club championships or major events (some city, regional and invitational championships as well). For the first time in history, the Golf Canada Handicap Manual now addresses the use of flights, one of the many changes to the 2016-17 Rules and Handicap Cycle.

There is no single method, as it really depends on the makeup of your field. A few tips are offered to help committees organize their flights, such as the following for an individual stroke play competition:

A second option is to wait until all entries are complete and then create flights with the players divided evenly by handicap or along natural breaks in handicaps from participants. For example, if you had 99 players, you might prefer to have three flights of 33 players. Alternatively, you could look for natural handicap gaps to assist with establishing ranges. Let’s say you had 40 players who were handicaps of 12 and under, 29 players who had handicaps between 14 and 24, and then 35 players in the handicap range of 28 and above, you could use natural breaks in your playing field at 13 and 25-27 to establish flights.

It is up to the committee to decide whether the Course Handicap or Handicap Factor will be used in establishing flights/range, in addition to the number of flights that might be ideal or required, which generally depends on your field. Although not in the handicap manual, it is best to avoid disclosing your flight cut-offs to participants in advance of your entry deadline. You might just find some suspect golfers trying to work their way into a particular flight if you do. The majority of golfers subscribe to and uphold the high integrity of this game, but some unfortunately don’t. Easy steps such as this should be taken to eliminate the temptation to be less than honest. We know that if someone really wants to cheat, they’ll probably find a way. In this case, there’s no reason to provide them a way on a silver platter. Keep flights internal until the draw can be made well after the entry deadline, as this will help eliminate some golfers from “manipulating” their handicap.

It also would behoove the committee to have a list of the Conditions of Competition set out well in advance of the event. These outline all details of the event/competition and, ideally, must be agreed to by all participants who register.

The importance of these Conditions cannot be overstated. We have numerous conversations each year surrounding issues that come up as a result of Conditions not being implemented, poorly worded, or others that were not adhered to by the tournament organizers themselves. It leads to an uncertain path and exploring reactive conflict resolution. After all, there is only so much the Rules of Golf can cover and Conditions tighten up some of those potential issues.

We highly recommend in those Conditions, specifically as it relates to handicapping, having a blanket clause, such as, “The Committee reserves the right to alter any of the conditions and schedules herein, including the course handicap of any competitor for any reason. The Committee reserves the right to reject the entry of any applicant, at any time, for any reason. Any decision by the Committee, in any matter, shall be final.” Although this looks severe, we can assure you that this becomes a need later if any unforeseen issues pop up. In fact, one of the most important pieces to running any tournament is setting up clear and concise Conditions of Competition, which would also include an excerpt explaining how flights will be set up and when they will be announced.

Once a club has a set of Conditions for each of its events, it will serve as a template which can be used for years and only requiring small updates each season. Taking the time to set these up properly is well worth it. And if the above is subscribed to, the event will run smoothly with more fun and enjoyment had by all. Isn’t that what everybody wants?

LEARN MORE: To maintain an official Golf Canada Handicap Factor, post your scores by signing in after your round at golfcanada.ca.

Taking flight This article was originally published in the May 2016 edition of Golf Canada Magazine. To view the full magazine, click the image to the left.

Golf Canada is pleased to announce that Burlington Golf & Country Club will host the 13^th annual Golf Fore the Cure presented by Subaru National Event on Sept. 12.

The event marks the celebration of another year of success for the program, which aims to increase women’s participation in the sport while fundraising for the fight against breast cancer. During its 13 years, Golf Fore the Cure has raised over $5.4 million for breast cancer research towards program partners Canadian Cancer Society and Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation. The participation program has exposed over 100,000 women to the sport of golf—a statistic that hits home with Burlington Golf & Country Club’s Head Professional, Trevor Fackrell.

“We have a very strong female membership at Burlington Golf & Country Club and are thrilled to be supporting Golf Fore the Cure and its powerful impact on both women’s golf and breast cancer research,” said Fackrell, a PGA of Canada Class “A” member. “We’re really excited to be hosting the National Event and look forward to a very special celebration at our golf club.”

The 18-hole charity event expects to host over 120 women, including the top-three fundraising teams from across Canada as well as program ambassador and Rogers Sportsnet broadcaster Evanka Osmak, who will be delivering opening remarks.

New in 2016, Pink Partner adidas Golf will be the official apparel provider at the event, distributing full outfits to the top-three teams and one clothing piece to all other participants. Presenting partner Subaru will continue to extend their commitment to the National Event with “Subaru’s Safest Drive” mini-game, adding to their generous gifting at the event. The evening will commence with a three-course dinner, coupled with speeches from keynote speakers and followed by a special prize draw.

“The National Event is always a special day of celebrating the success of the program and what it has done for women’s golf,” said Jeff Thompson, Chief Sport Officer with Golf Canada. “It’s an important culmination of everything that has been accomplished thus far, due in large part to the support we get from our great corporate partnerships and most importantly, our volunteers across the country.”

Registration is open to the public and also to corporate teams.

Click here to register.

HIGH RIVER, Alta. – Team Canada’s Jaclyn Lee went wire-to-wire to capture her second Sun Life Financial Alberta Ladies Amateur Championship (her last win came in 2014). The Calgary native ended as the only competitor to finish under par with a score of 5-under (71-70-70–211). Lee, a sophomore at Ohio State University, closed the event with a nine-stroke advantage over runner-up Kat Kennedy of Okotoks, who finished at 4-over for the tournament.

“It’s exciting because when I won it in 2014 it was wire-to-wire as well—so it’s cool to repeat that again,” said Lee of her dominant performance at Highwood Golf & Country Club. “I just tried to play my own game this whole week.”

Rounding out the top-three was Quinn Fitzgerald of Calgary, who carded rounds of 79-71-73 to close at 7-over par.

Lee, Kennedy, and Fitzgerald will make up Team Alberta’s Interprovincial Squad at the upcoming Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship from Jul. 26-29 at the Ken-Wo Golf Club in New Mina, N.S.

Calgary’s Lauren Diederichs of Elbow Springs won the Alberta Mid-Amateur Championship by two strokes over fellow Calgary native Tara McWilliam. Kyla Larder of Edson won the Alberta Mid Master Championship by seven strokes over Razina Visram.

Click here for full scoring.

SAN MARTIN, Calif. – When Mirim Lee walked off the course following her record-tying round, she described her day with words usually not heard when talking about the U.S. Women’s Open.

“So today’s round was easy day – easy round, yeah,” Lee said.

She sure made it look that way when she became the fifth golfer to shoot a round of 8-under par at the U.S. Women’s Open on Thursday, making 10 birdies on the way to a 64 to take the early lead at CordeValle.

With the greens not quite as firm as they likely will be later in the week and the wind not playing a major factor, there were low scores to be had throughout the field – at least for the opening morning of the tournament.

“I definitely expect it to change,” said Christie Kerr, who was three shots behind Lee in a tie for second. “I don’t think the USGA likes when we shoot 8-under on their golf course. You have to expect it to change, and if it doesn’t, then you’ll have opportunities to score.”

Lee is the first woman to shoot that much below par at the U.S. Open since Lorie Kane and Becky Iverson did it in the second round in 1999 at Old Waverly in Mississippi. The lowest total score in a round in U.S. Open history is a 63 by Helen Alfredsson in 1994 at the par-71 Indianwood in Michigan.

Lee capped her record day with birdie from about 8 feet on her final hole at the par-5 ninth to take a three-shot lead over fellow South Korean Minjee Lee and Kerr after the morning groupings.

“The course is perfect now,” Mirim Lee said. “Greens are really fast.”

Kelly Tan, Brittany Lang and Anna Nordqvist were all four shots back at 4-under, while six other golfers finished the morning round at 2-under, including Americans Christina Kim and Lizette Salas.

So Yeon Ryu, the 2011 U.S. Open winner, shot a triple-bogey eight on her final hole at the ninth to fall from 4-under to 1-under.

Defending champion In Gee Chun, followed by about a dozen members of the Flying Dumbo fan club wearing shirts that Chun designed, hit back-to-back bogeys on the front nine and finished 1 over. Chun is seeking to become the eighth player to repeat as U.S. Open champion and first since Karrie Webb did it 15 years ago.

Kerr, playing in the same group with Mirim Lee, nearly matched her stroke for stroke with players standing 3-under through their first 11 holes. But Lee birdied five of her final seven holes, while Kerr had three birdies and a bogey down the stretch as a gap opened between the two.

Despite that, Kerr was quite pleased with how her round went considering the way she has played most of this year. The 2007 U.S. Open winner has not finished higher than 10th all season and missed two cuts in her three tournaments leading into this week.

But with a new shaft on her driver, Kerr found her game in the opening round.

“When you’re struggling to hit fairways, it makes the game a lot harder,” Kerr said. “And then the mental game gets off of it, it’s a whole process like that. But I knew when I found the driver this week that it just felt so much like my old driver and we found the right combination and even if I missed a little bit I could feel what I did wrong, I could feel the difference.”

Alena Sharp carded a 2-under 70 and sits T11 to lead the Canadian contingent. An even-par round has Maude-Aimée LeBlanc of Sherbrooke, Que., at T38.

Team Canada National Team member Naomi Ko (Victoria) opened with a 74 and holds a share of 67th; she sits one stroke ahead of former Development Squad member Taylor Kim (Surrey, B.C.).

Smiths Falls, Ont., native Brooke Henderson, one week removed from a victory at the LPGA Cambia Portland Classic, and Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Sue Kim of Langley, B.C., shot 76s.

Max Rottluff, Jonathan Garrick and Sam Fidone shot a 7-under 64 on Thursday at a calm Niakwa Country Club to share the first-round lead at the Players Cup, the fifth event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

Following his first professional victory at the SIGA Dakota Dunes Open two weeks ago, Germany’s Max Rottluff continued his strong form in Winnipeg by opening with birdies on five of his first six holes in benign conditions on the par-71 layout at Niakwa Country Club. After a week off to let his maiden victory in Saskatoon sink in, the Arizona State product is in prime position to capture a second victory in as many starts.

“There are quite a few birdie holes out there, but you don’t go out and expect to shoot 7-under,” said Rottluff, who is currently No. 3 on the Order of Merit. “You can only lose a tournament on the first day, you can never win it. It’s still a long way to go and I saw a few really low scores out there, so I’ve got three more days to go out and shoot some low scores.”

Garrick, the recent UCLA grad, began his round on the back nine and opened with six consecutive birdies and added a seventh on the par-4 17^th hole. After a dropped shot at the 18^th, the 22-year-old Los Angeles resident rebounded with a birdie on the par-4 fourth hole to finish with a 64, his career low in eight previous rounds on the Mackenzie Tour.  

“I made a few long putts and hit a couple of wedges close, and the next thing I knew it was six birdies in a row, which I had never done before,” Garrick said of his fast start. “This is a ball striker’s course where you have to hit a lot of drivers, which is my strength, so it has been a good advantage so far and I’m looking forward to the next few days.”

Making his Mackenzie Tour debut, Sam Fidone survived two water balls with a strong putting performance that yielded eight birdies to join the group at 7-under. The 23-year-old Texan has spent the year on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica, where he is currently No. 5 on ‘Los Cinco’ after a win at the Honduras Open and three other top-15 finishes.

“When I got here I quickly understood there were going to be a lot of putts made out here,” Fidone said. “The greens are relatively flat and they roll absolutely perfect, but at the end of the day this is a tee-ball course and if you are hitting fairways you are going to be able to figure your way out around this course and shoot a number.”

Three players are tied for fourth at 6-under par: Carter Jenkins, Adam Webb and Andrew Ledger. Jenkins, who finished runner-up at the SIGA Dakota Dunes Open, was nearly a co-leader before a bogey at the 18^th hole left him one stroke back. Webb, meanwhile, turned in a bogey-free round, which included a stretch of three birdies in a row from Nos. 2-4. Ledger followed suit with a bogey-free round of his own and birdied the par-3 ninth hole, his final hole of the day. 

BATH, Ont. – Heading into the final round of the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship at Loyalist Country Club, defending champion Chloe Currie of Mississauga, Ont., held a three-shot lead. That cushion proved to be enough as the Team Canada Development Squad member shot 1-over 73 to secure the win.

The member of Mississaugua Golf & Country Club made one bogey on the day on her first hole, but went on to par the remaining 17 holes. The 16-year-old Currie’s consistent brought her four-day tournament total to two-under (70-73-70-73-286).

“It feels incredible to defend the Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship. I was dreaming about this coming into the week and it is just awesome that I was able to win it twice!” Said Currie.

Currie recognized that winning back-to-back titles is a special feat and that she has joined some impressive company. “It is incredible, it is such an inspiration to join the great names to have won multiple times. Hopefully, I will be able to have my own accomplishments like theirs.”

When asked about the strongest part of her game, Currie pointed to her short game. “My chipping and putting were really good this week. I got up and down many times and gave myself great chances.”

London, Ont., natives Isabella Portokalis and Ellie Szeryk finished in a tie for second. Portokalis – the leader after the first two rounds – had a rough start to the day finishing 5-over on the front nine. However, the West Haven Golf & Country Club and Team Ontario member, rebounded nicely on the back nine shooting 4-under to complete the round with a 73 to finish 3-over 291. Szeryk, 14, entered the day in second, three shots back of Currie, but was unable to make up any ground on the leader.

Rounding out the Top-5 was a tie for fourth between Hornby’s Alexandra Naumovski (72-72-76-74-294) and Ridgeway’s Madeline Marck-Sherk (79-74-72-69-294) at six-over. Naumovski prevailed in a playoff and will join Currie and Portokalis to represent Team Ontario at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship, Aug. 2-4 at The Links at Penn Hills in Shubenacadie, N.S.

Additional information, including the final leaderboard, can be found here.

INVERNESS, Scotland – Scott Hend of Australia and Felipe Aguilar of Chile made it through blustery conditions and shot 3-under 69 to share the lead Thursday after the first round of the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open.

Phil Mickelson wasn’t so fortunate.

The five-time major champion, a winner the last time the Scottish Open was held at Castle Stuart, struggled to make putts and took three bogeys on the par 5s on his way to a 76. His next task will be making the cut.

“The greens weren’t overly fast to where balls were rolling when you were putting,” Mickelson said. “They were very fair. I thought it was a fair test. A score around par would have been a good score. I felt like I gave three or four shots away on the greens that could have put me at a score around par.”

Only 20 players managed to break par at Castle Stuart.

Graeme McDowell and Padraig Harrington were among those at 70, while Branden Grace of South Africa and Andy Sullivan were in the group at 71.

Hend already is in the British Open next week at Royal Troon. He learned last week at the French Open that he was in the Open, exempt to the PGA Championship and that Jason Day had withdrawn from the Olympics, meaning Hend was a lock to take one of the two spots for Australia.

His first task is going after his third victory of the year.

“Obviously, conditions were quite tough and I was a little bit scrappy with some putts not quite getting to the hole,” he said. “But overall, very happy.”

Four spots in the British Open are available this week to the leading players among the top 12 not already eligible. One of those players is Aguilar, though Sunday is too far away for him to think about Royal Troon.

“That’s in the back of my mind,” he said. “I’m just worried about what’s going to happen tomorrow. I just finished the first round and still have 75 percent of the rounds to go. If that comes along, it will be great. It will be awesome, but it’s not even on my mind yet.”

Mickelson wasn’t the only American to struggle among those who came over to prepare for links golf. J.B. Holmes finally got his clubs, which did not make it over on his flight, but he had three double bogeys on his way to an 80. Patrick Reed had to play one shot off a hillside and slipped on the way down. He opened with a 75.

Russell Knox made a solid start in what amounts to a home tournament for the Scot who now lives in Florida. Knox opened with a 72 and was only three shots behind after the opening round.

“The atmosphere was amazing,” Knox said. “A lot of old friends and people I’ve known for a lot of years showed up, which was great.”

He opened with a pair of birdies, but the wind picked up in the afternoon, and it was a battle, especially at the end. The long 18th played straight into the wind, and Knox wasn’t the only player who dropped a shot on the last.

“It’s a terrible setup in my opinion – 600 yards, straight into a 30 mph wind,” he said. “They could have easily moved us up a tee. I disagree with that hole today. But I hit three good shots and three bad putts.”

FAIRVIEW, P.E.I. – The 2016 CN Future Links season will come to a close with the Atlantic edition of the championship series from July 12-14 at Countryview Golf Club in Fairview, P.E.I.

Built as a nine-hole course in 1999, Countryview Golf Club earned the nickname “P.E.I.’s little Augusta” for its impeccable conditions and challenging design. Members would typically play back-to-back rounds, prompting an expansion to 18 holes in 2011. Competitors will have a chance to familiarize themselves with the course during a practice round on July 11 before tournament play commences.

“Countryview is an excellent venue for our final regional junior championship of the year,” said Tournament Director Dan Hyatt. “The course is in peak condition and the players will encounter a unique challenge in its design.”

The Junior Girls division will see the return of reigning champion Allison Chandler of Chester, N.S., and runner-up Laura Jones of Moncton, N.B. Chandler claimed a five-stroke victory at the 2015 edition of this competition at Gowan Brae Golf Club in Bathurst, N.B.

Port Williams, N.S., natives Meghan and Heather McLean finished T6 and T8 last year. The sisters will return to the East Coast having posted Top-20 finishes at the 2016 CN Future Links Québec Championship at Club de golf Beauceville in Beauceville, Que.

Calvin Ross will take part in the competition looking to defend his Junior Boys title. The product of Fredericton, N.B., was the only player under-par in 2015 and will look to build upon a T6 result at this year’s CN Future Links Québec Championship.

He will be accompanied by Woodmans Point, N.B., resident Stuart Earle. The 17-year-old stood alone in sixth at last year’s competition and is the only other returning player from the Top-10.

The top six finishers in the Junior Boys division will gain exemptions into the 2016 Canadian Junior Boys Championship to be contested August 1-4 at Clovelly Golf Club in St. John’s, N.L. In the case of ties, exemptions will be decided via hole-by-hole playoff. All players within the Top-6, including ties, in the Junior Girls division will each earn entry into this year’s Canadian Junior Girls Championship, hosted by The Links at Penn Hills in Shubenacadie, N.S., from August 2-5.

Additional information regarding the 2016 CN Future Links Atlantic Championship, including participants, start times and up-to-date results can be found here.

MEDICINE HAT, Alta. – The 2016 CN Future Links Western Championship at Medicine Hat Golf & Country Club required extra holes before its winners could be crowned. Kehler Koss prevailed in a one-hole playoff to complete a wire-to-wire victory to capture the Junior Girls title. Brendan MacDougall persevered through two playoff holes to secure the win in the Junior Boys division.

Koss hung on following three double-bogeys in regulation play to send the championship to a playoff on the par-4 10^th hole against West Vancouver’s Phoebe Yue. The Calgary product recorded her third birdie of the day to claim the title.

“It was really stressful today. I wasn’t striking the ball as well and I was missing a lot of three-footers,“ said Koss. “I was just trying to breathe in the playoffs and calm myself down because I was really shaky going into that. I don’t think I actually watched her [Yue] hit any balls.”

The 17-year-old Koss finished with runner-up honours at this event in 2015 at Goose Hummock Golf Course in Gibbons, Alta. With a CN Future Links title in hand, she now looks ahead to this summer’s National Championship.

“I’ve worked so hard to get to this point. Last year I three-putted on the last hole to lose by one, and that was heartbreaking. Today, it was nice to see that this hard work I’ve been putting in for the past year has really paid off.”

Yue carded a 1-over 73 to rally from a five-stroke deficit, but fell to Koss with a par performance on the extra hole. Calgary’s Kenna Hughes, the 2015 champion, finished with a bogey-free 1-under showing across her final nine holes to take third-place at 7-over.

As the Junior Girls division’s Top-6, Koss, Yue and Hughes alongside Calgarians Annabelle Ackroyd, Claire Emery and Taylor Stone have earned exemptions into the 2016 Canadian Junior Girls Championship from August 2-5 at The Links at Penn Hills in Shubenacadie, N.S.

An eagle on No. 11 and four birdies through his final four holes propelled Calgary’s Brendan MacDougall up the Junior Boys leaderboard.  The 18-year-old recorded his lowest score of the week – a 4-under 68 – to force second-round leader Chandler McDowell into a playoff with matching scores of 7-under 209.

The pair remained knotted following the first playoff hole, before MacDougall secured the championship title by making par on No. 9.

“I’ve actually never been happier in my life! This is my last CN Future Links event, so I’m pretty excited about that,” said MacDougall. “I’m pretty happy with the way I came back. I made a lucky par on ten and from there, I said ‘alright, I’m not out of it and I can come back.’”

In his final year on the junior circuit, MacDougall hopes to improve upon his T23 result at last year’s Canadian Junior Boys Championship at Summerlea Golf & Country Club in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que.

“I just told myself each round, ‘Brendan you’re good enough, you’re here, you know you can play well, if you play your game, you’re going to be fine.’ This will be my third time at nationals, so if I can improve the way I played last year, that would be great.”

McDowell of Springbrook, Alta., recorded five birdies on the day, including four across a bogey-free back nine. Team Canada Development Squad member Alexander Smith of Calgary collected four birdies to claim a share of third at 3-under alongside Thomas Code of Dorchester, Ont.

MacDougall, McDowell, Smith and Code will be accompanied by Kai Iguchi (Banff, Alta.) and Kade Johnson (Yorkton, Sask.) at the 2016 Canadian Junior Boys Championship which will be contested at Clovelly Golf Club in St. John’s, N.L. from August 1-4.

Additional information regarding the 2016 CN Future Links Western Championship can be found here.

SAN MARTIN, Calif. – There is very little separating the top two women’s golfers in the world in Lydia Ko and Canada’s Brooke Henderson.

The two teenage sensations have won the past three majors heading into this week’s U.S. Women’s Open with the 19-year-old Ko taking two and the 18-year-old Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., following last month with a thrilling playoff victory over Ko in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in Washington that could set the stage for a heated rivalry for years to come.

Fittingly, the two will be together when this year’s third major starts at the U.S. Women’s Open at CordeValle on Thursday, less than 100 miles south of San Francisco. Ko and Henderson will play the first two rounds with 21-year-old Lexi Thompson, who is ranked fourth in the world, in the marquee group of the tournament.

“It’s great to watch them both on the golf course and their attitudes and just their demeanours on the golf course,” Thompson said. “They’re aggressive players, and just consistent overall. You can’t really even find a weakness in their game, and that’s why they’re so good.”

The top three ranked players in the tournament – third-ranked Inbee Park will miss the Open because of a thumb injury – will face stiff competition in the 156-player field that includes nine previous champions, including last year’s winner, In Gee Chun.

Other winners include Michelle Wie (2014), Na Yeon Choi (2012), Paula Creamer (2010), Eun-Hee Ji (2009), Cristie Kerr (2007), So Yeon Ryu (2011), Karrie Webb (2000, 2001) and Se Ri Pak (1998).

This will be the final U.S. tournament for Pak before she plans to retire. Her win at Blackwolf Run in Wisconsin 18 years ago helped spark the recent South Korean dominance of the LPGA Tour. Seven of the last 11 winners of the U.S. Open have come from South Korea.

“After I came and after I start winning, I have this great success, everybody was thinking, I can do that,” Pak said. “Giving a lot of confidence, built confidence for them. So they’re here, they make it a dream, they make it possible. So I think I was part of it.”

But when the tournament starts, much of the focus will be on Ko and Henderson, who hope to build off the drama they staged last month when Henderson tracked down Ko in the final round with a long eagle putt and a tough par before winning in a playoff by coolly stuffing her approach into 3 feet.

That gave Henderson her first career major as she tries to match Ko, who had won the previous two with her victory at the ANA Inspiration earlier this year after winning the Evian Championship in 2015.

“Lydia Ko is amazing,” Henderson said. “She’s an inspiration to all of us girls out here, and I think everyone in the world, basically. She’s done amazing things in her career and she’s only a couple months older than I am.”

Henderson followed that up with her third career tour win when she repeated as champion at the Cambia Portland Classic for her third career win and can surpass Ko as the youngest player with two majors with a win this week.

This marks just the third time the U.S. Women’s Open has been played in California and this is the highest-profile event to be played at the Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed course that opened in 1999. The course, located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, plays as a par 72 over 6,784 yards, although it could be a bit shorter this week depending on tee locations.

The course finishes with a par-5, 528-yard hole that features a water hazard near the green and the possibility of trying to reach the green in two shots for players looking to close a gap on the final day.

The tournament is also the final one to determine who will qualify for the Olympics next month. The top 15 players in the world rankings will all be eligible with a limit of four for any country. South Korea is the only country with more than two players currently in the top 15. The rest of the 60-player field will be determined by world rankings with a limit of two players per country.

Among the players looking to qualify for Rio de Janeiro this week are Webb, who has extended her Hall of Fame career in hopes of making the Olympics. With Minjee Lee having secured one of Australia’s spots, Webb likely must finish at least in the top 10 to have any chance to pass Su Oh for the other.