EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France – Restored to July on the calendar, the Evian Championship begins back-to-back weeks of major championships in women’s golf for the first time in six decades on Thursday.

It shapes up as a tough test starting in a French heat wave for players who aim to play eight rounds of major golf in 11 days here and at the Women’s British Open.

“There’s so much emotion that is going to go into this,” defending champion Angela Stanford said Wednesday, pointing to a challenge for players unfamiliar with either Evian Resort Golf Club or next week’s venue at Woburn, England.

According to the LPGA Tour, playing majors in successive weeks has not been tried since 1960. This year’s schedule also condenses the five majors into exactly four months – from the April 4 start of the ANA Inspiration to the final round of the British Open on Aug. 4.

To become the fifth women’s major in 2013, the $4.1 million Evian Championship gave up its place in the July sun for typically rainy September. Entire rounds were twice swept from the record books before winners of 54-hole tournaments were crowned in 2013 and 2017.

“I do hate the cold. I was complaining a little when it used to be in September and colder,” said top-ranked Sung Hyun Park. In a Thursday storm two years ago, Park’s 6-over score after five holes was abandoned for a fresh Friday start. She missed the cut last year.

The 25-year-old South Korean never played at Evian when it was a regular LPGA Tour-sanctioned event in July from 2003 to 2012.

The hot, dry summer in eastern France is forecast to continue for the first two rounds with mid-30s Celsius (mid-90s F) temperatures.

Still, the par-71, 6,527-yard (5,968-meter) course is not set up quite as expected.

The greens are predictably harder and faster than in September – “runs more and bounces a lot more,” Park said – though the course is playing long off the tee.

“I’m a little bit disappointed in the fairways right now. A lot of players expected firm and fast, and it’s not,” Stanford said, adding the conditions could force players to “play more on defence.”

On undulating hills overlooking Lake Geneva, the course can be a demanding walk in the heat before the expected weekend arrival of thunderstorms. The forecast for Sunday’s final round is an autumnal 20 C (68 F) in the rain.

“I need to conserve energy,” 15th-ranked Jessica Korda said of playing back-to-back big events. “I know what I feel like after majors and how much time I like to take off.”

A win for Korda, or her 10th-ranked sister Nelly, would extend a streak of five straight first-time winners of majors.

In a period lacking a dominant player, 10 different players won the past 10 women’s majors, starting with In-Kyung Kim’s 2017 British Women’s Open title. All 10 are in the 120-player Evian field.

Stanford may be the biggest outsider among them, having gone without a top-20 finish since her victory here.

“Honestly, it’s been a very bad year,” said the forthright Texan, who could take inspiration from Americans who retained their title in France this month.

Stanford said she was in a Chicago park on July 7 watching a public screening of the United States soccer team’s victory in the Women’s World Cup final.

“It was so cool. I loved it,” Stanford said. “Sometimes you have to be bold, and they were bold.”

MIDLAND, Mich. – Cydney Clanton and Jasmine Suwannapura ran away with the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational on Saturday, shooting an 11-under 59 in best-ball play for a six-stroke victory.

Clanton and Suwannapura took a five-shot lead into the final round after shooting an alternate-shot 63 on Friday at Midland Country Club in the LPGA Tour’s first-year team event. They finished at 27-under 253.

“It’s pretty awesome,” Suwannapura said. “I couldn’t ask for a better partner.”

Suwannapura won her second tour title, and Clanton her first.

Clanton earned spots the next two weeks in the Evian Championship and Women’s British Open. The first Auburn University player to win on the tour, she began the season without a full LPGA Tour card after finishing $8 out of the top 100 on the 2018 money list. Clanton has split time this year on the LPGA Tour and developmental Symetra Tour, winning the Symetra Tour’s El Dorado Shootout in April.

“I couldn’t even dream up to have won a Symetra event earlier this year and then to come out and win with Jasmine,” Clanton said. “It’s so funny, this is the tournament that I wanted to come and play in. I was like, ‘Team event, I’m in, let’s go.’ So, I’m blessed for the opportunity, I’m blessed that Jasmine came and let me come play with her.”

Jin Young Ko and Minjee Lee closed with a 58 to finish second.

“We both played better than we did the last time we played four-balls,” Lee said. “We just had a better rhythm out there. I think we just fed off each other. Jin Young had so many birdies today, so I just tried to keep up pretty much.”

“I’ve had full status before, but it will allow for me to kind of sit back and relax a little bit and kind of set my own schedule,” Clanton said. “I think it’s just going to free me up because it’s been something that I’ve been working on. I guess I was quite down for the first couple years.”

Suwannapura, from Thailand, also won the Marathon Classic last year.

Clanton and Suwannapura each bogeyed the first hole, then each had eight birdies.

“Actually, felt pretty good on the first tee,” Clanton said. “Didn’t hit a great shot into the green, but I’m not going to lie, the majority of my rounds start with bogeys. So I told Jasmine, I was like, ‘Dude, we’re ready. We’re ready to go. We got it out of the way. we’ll go low.”’

Sisters Ariya Jutanugarn and Moriya Jutanugarn tied for third with Na Yeon Choi and Jenny Shin at 20 under. They each shot 61.

“So much fun,” Ariya Jutanugarn said. “Need to be patient with alternate shot, but also even best ball we still have to be patient because we feel like you going to make birdie hole after hole, but it’s not going to happen.”

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp were fifth at 19 under after a 9-under 61 round. Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee and Australian partner Robyn Choi shot a 6-under 64 to finish 36th at 6 under.

Full scoring can be found here.

MIDLAND, Mich. – Cydney Clanton and Jasmine Suwannapura shot a 7-under 63 in alternate-shot play Friday to open a five-stroke lead in the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, the LPGA Tour’s first-year team event.

Clanton and Suwannapura birdied five of the last seven holes on the front nine and played the last five holes in 2 under, making three birdies and a bogey.

“I think because we pretty chill, like ‘You hit a bad shot, like OK, I’ll fix it, don’t worry,”’ Suwannapura said. “So everybody kind of like relaxing the game today, so the result pretty good.”

They had a 16-under 194 total at Midland Country Club, with a best-ball round left Saturday.

“Each hole’s an opportunity,” Clanton said. “How many opportunities can we give ourselves. One of those things where as many fairways and greens as you can hit and if the putts go in, great.”

Suwannapura, from Thailand, won the Marathon Classic last year for her lone LPGA Tour title. Clanton is winless on the tour. They had an alternate-shot 67 on Wednesday and shot a best-ball 64 on Thursday.

“Today, I think what we did was quite impressive just with our ball-striking in general,” Clanton said. “Jasmine’s putting’s on point. I think you’ve just got to look at it as it’s just another opportunity to play and the more that you can think of the fact that it’s just another day on the golf course, we’re going to go out and try to do what we’ve been doing, the better it’s going to be.”

Sisters Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn had a 64 to move into a tie for second at 11 under with Simin Feng-Ruixin Liu (67), Na Yeon Choi-Jenny Shin (67) and Paula Creamer-Morgan Pressel (69).

“I felt like first round, don’t want to miss any shot because I don’t want my sister to have like tough shot and I kind of worry and scared,” Ariya Jutanugarn said. “But today we already make the cut and nothing to lose, so we keep playing golf.”

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp fired a 69 to finish the day tied for sixth at 10 under, six shots back of the lead. Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee and Australian partner Robyn Choi combined for a 75 and are in a tie for 36th at even par.

Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., and partner Daniela Darquea of Ecuador as well as Quebec City’s Anne-Catherine Tanguay and Germany’s Sophia Popov missed the cut.

Full scoring can be found here.

MIDLAND, Mich. – Morgan Pressel and Paula Creamer shot a best-ball 6-under 64 on Thursday for a share of the second-round lead in the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, the LPGA Tour’s first-year team event.

Stephanie Meadowand Giulia Molinaro had a 61, and Frenchwomen Celine Boutier and Karine Icher shot 62 to match Pressel and Creamer at 10-under 130 at Midland Country Club. The teams will play alternate shot Friday and close Saturday with a best-ball round.

“You have two balls in play, you can play much more aggressively,” Pressel said. “I know I certainly could play aggressively knowing my partner had my back the whole way around.”

Trying to get into the U.S. Solheim Cup mix, Pressel and Creamer birdied six of the last eight holes on their opening nine – the course’s back nine – then parred the last nine.

“Morgan played awesome on the back nine, which was our front nine,” Creamer said. “I couldn’t really get anything going on this side. But we’ve got two more days left so we’re not in bad position by any means. It wasn’t our ‘A’-game today, but still very pleased with where we’re sitting.”

Meadow, from Northern Ireland, and Molinaro, from Italy, had eight birdies in a 10-hole stretch, making five straight on Nos. 5-9.

“We talked about it and said, ‘We’ve just got to time it right,” Meadow said. “There’s something about when your partner’s in a little bit of trouble we kind of pick up the pace and try to make birdie and kind of have their back. I think that’s what we did really well today.”

Boutier and Icher birdied four of the five and closed with three straight birdies.

“Our games complement each other really well,” Boutier said. “When I was struggling a bit, she was there to save the team, and the opposite, so it was pretty good.”

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp, the first-round leaders after a 65 in alternate-shot play, had a 66 to fall a stroke back with Kim Kaufman-Kris Tamulis (62), Tiffany Chan-Peiyun Chien (62), Pajaree Anannarukarn-Pannarat Thanapolboonyaras (63), Mirim Lee-Amy Yang (64) and Cydney Clanton-Jasmine Suwannapura (64).

“Would have liked to make a few more birdies,” Henderson said. “I feel like it’s very unusual that we have a better score alternate shot than in best ball.”

Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee and Robyn Choi of New Zealand fell from third into a tie for 23rd at 5-under after a round of 68.

Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec City and partner Sophia Popov of Germany and Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., and partner Daniela Darquea of Ecuador missed the cut of 4 under.

The French duo of Celine Herbin and Joanna Klatten had a 60, the best round of the day, to get to 7 under.

Cristie Kerr and Lexi Thompson were 5 under after a 64. Sisters Jessica and Nelly Korda (67) and Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn (65) also were 5 under.

Full scoring can be found here.

MIDLAND, Mich. – Canadians Brooke Henderson and Alena Sharp shot a 5-under 65 in alternate-shot play Wednesday to take the first-round lead in the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, the LPGA Tour’s first-year team event.

Henderson and Sharp had seven birdies and two bogeys at Midland Country Club.

“We really got it going, kind of fed off each other,” Henderson said. “She hit some good shots, I made some putts and vice versa. So it really worked out nice and it’s a good way to start.”

Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel were a stroke back.

“We’re best of friends we’ve played a lot of team events together, so it’s nothing new for us to be able to come out here,” Creamer said. “We haven’t played alternate shot for a little while, and when we have played it in the past, it’s always match play and you never have to finish. Out here you actually have to shoot a score, which is a little bit different.”

The teams will play best-ball Thursday, return to alternate shot Friday and close Saturday with a best-ball round.

“It’s intense, but then we got out our tension and then we played and we were free-wheeling it,” Sharp said. “I think the first few holes we didn’t really know what to expect and we had a lot of adrenaline, and then we calmed down and played really nicely together.”

The 21-year-old Henderson won the Meijer LPGA Classic a month ago in Grand Rapids to break the Canadian record for tour victories with nine. Also the Lotte Championship winner in April in Hawaii, Henderson broke a tie with Sandra Post for the Canadian record on the LPGA Tour and also moved ahead of George Knudson and Mike Weir for the overall country mark. The 38-year-old Sharp is winless on the LPGA Tour.

The teams of Minjee Lee-Jin Young Ko, Robyn Choi-Jaclyn Lee, Jasmine Suwannapura-Cydney Clanton and Amy Yang-Mirim Lee shot 67.

“We chatted pretty much the whole way around,” Lee said. “We usually don’t get to get this opportunity to play with our friends too much, so I think that was the best part.”

The sister duo of Nelly and Jessica Korda topped the group at 68.

“Start of the round, kind of just getting used to everything, the new format,” Nelly Korda said. “Gave each other some good opportunities on the back and took advantage of a couple. Anything under par for alternate shot is good, so we’re happy with that.”

 

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Sisters Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn shot 70, and Cristie Kerr and Lexi Thompson opened with a 71. Rookies Jennifer Kupcho and Maria Fassi also had a 71. They staged a memorable duel that Kupcho won at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

“Alternate shot’s always really hard. We knew that coming in and we didn’t really know how it was going to go because we didn’t try it,” Kupcho said. “It went better than what I thought it was going to go, so I was pretty happy.”

Suzann Pettersen, making her first tour start after a 20-month break for the birth of her first child, and European Solheim Cup captain Catriona Matthew had a 73. Pettersen will be a vice caption for the European team.

“I just really enjoyed it,” Pettersen said. “It was nice to play with Beany. Some good shots and some average shots and some that we just got out of the way. Overall, very happy to be back.”

Full scoring can be found here.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Sei Young Kim won the Marathon Classic on Sunday for her second LPGA Tour victory of the season, making five straight birdies in a mid-round burst and shooting a 6-under 66 for a two-stroke victory over Lexi Thompson.

Brooke Henderson finished in a tie for 11th at 9 under for the tournament, while Alena Sharp finished in a tie for 46th at 4 under.

Kim began the birdie run on No. 7 and finished at a tournament-record 22-under 262 at Highland Meadows Golf Club. The 26-year-old South Korean player has nine tour titles, also winning the LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship in May in California.

“I really wanted another win, especially this week, because the last two weeks I play really bad,” Ki said.

Thompson, a stroke behind Kim entering the day, closed birdie-eagle for a 66.

“She played some amazing golf,” Thompson said. “I didn’t have my best ball-striking day, but 5 under, finished well. She played amazing. It’s very well deserved.”

Six shots ahead of Thompson after the birdie run, Kim played the final seven holes in even par, offsetting a birdie on 15 with a bogey on 1. Kim broke the event mark of 263 set by In-Kyung Kim in 2017.

She’s focused on winning her first major title, with The Evian Championship and Women’s British Open coming up.

“I haven’t had a win the major tournament yet,” Kim said. “I think I try too much when I play the major tournament. I just play the same as regular tournament, even major. … Just let it go. Let it happen.”

Stacy Lewis was third at 16 under after a 66. She was born in nearby Toledo.

“It was a lot of fun,” Lewis said. “More putts have gone in this week than in the years past. It was nice to give my family something to cheer for.”

U.S. Women’s Open champion Jeongeun Lee6 had a 69 to finish fourth at 14 under.

Jennifer Kupcho tied for fifth at 11 under after a 71, playing alongside Lewis.

“Getting to play with Stacy – and Lexi yesterday – seeing how their ball-striking is and how good their iron game is, definitely something to work on and definitely can learn and did learn from their games,” Kupcho said.

The former Wake Forest star won the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in April.

Linnea Strom (65), Tiffany Joh (67), Caroline Masson (68) and Pavarisa Yoktuan (69) also were 11 under.

Kupcho earned a spot in the Women’s British Open along with Joh, Strom, Yoktuan and Mariajo Uribe.

Full results can be found here.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Sei Young Kim shot a 5-under 66 on Saturday in the Marathon Classic to take a one-stroke lead over Lexi Thompson into the final round.

Brooke Henderson is in a tie for seventh, but seven shots behind Kim. Alena Sharp, who held a tie for the lead after round one, is  now in a tie for 41st.

Kim had seven birdies and two bogeys in gusty conditions to reach 16-under 197 at Highland Meadows Golf Club.

“It was a little tough to judge the distance,” Kim said. “Wind very gusty, on and off.”

The South Korean player won the LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship in May in California for her eighth tour title.

“Tomorrow, I play with Lexi Thompson, one of my favourite players,” Kim said. “I’m very exciting play with her. … I’m very confident right now. Play same as last three days.”

Thompson made a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th for a 65. She won the ShopRite LPGA Classic last month in New Jersey for her 11th tour title.

“It was a lot windier today,” Thompson said. “A little bit different direction, but not a big difference. It was just gusty. … It was a little bit more to deal with and then firmer greens in the afternoon, but it was a good test.”

She’s coming off a two-week break after playing five straight events.

“I took my first week off at home and just relaxed and then I basically just played the second week,” Thompson said. “I just wanted to keep my swing in the groove because I was hitting it well before I took the break. Just really took it easy. Came into this week knowing I like this golf course and just this tournament in general, so it’s just been overall a fun week for me.”

U.S. Women’s Open champion Jeongeun Lee6 was third at 12 under after a 69.

“My tee shot was not very good, especially my iron shots,” Lee6 said. “It was so hard to control my shots. There weren’t a lot of birdies today.”

Stacy Lewis (69), Jennifer Kupcho (69) and Carlota Ciganda (68) were 11 under.

Lewis won the last of her 12 LPGA Tour titles in 2017. She was born in nearby Toledo and has an endorsement deal with Marathon Oil.

“As long as it stays windy and the golf course keeps playing hard, I think there is a good round out there,” Lewis said. “I feel like I’m getting really close. I did a good job hanging in there today. I thought it played pretty tough. Just keep inching a little closer to playing some really good golf. That’s all you can do.”

Kupcho is making her sixth tour start as a pro. The former Wake Forest star won the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in April.

“It was good,” Kupcho said. “I definitely struggled a little bit the beginning with tee shots. Got the groove going at the end and just missed a couple putts.”

Full scoring can be found here.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Sei Young Kim shot a 7-under 64 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead over U.S. Women’s Open champion Jeongeun Lee6 in the Marathon Classic.

Kim had four straight birdies on Nos. 3-6 and also birdied the par-4 12th and 15th holes and the par-5 18th to get to 11-under 131 at Highland Meadows Golf Club. The South Korean player won the LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship in May in California for her eighth tour title.

“My play wasn’t good the last two weeks,” Kim said. “I’m just trying to do my best this week. So, I’m very happy with the (better) result than I expected.

Lee6 shot her second straight 66. The South Korean birdied two of the last three holes.

“It was pretty good,” Lee6 said. “The greens were not too soft, not too firm. It was so easy to play with my second shot in order to control my shots. Satisfied with it.”

Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis and Jennifer Kupcho were 9 under. Kupcho shot 66, Thompson 67, and Lewis 68, with Lewis playing alongside Kim the first two days.

Lewis won the last of her 12 LPGA Tour titles in 2017. She was born in nearby Toledo and has an endorsement deal with Marathon Oil. From Texas, she’s treated like a hometown player.

“I love it,” Lewis said. “It was pressure at first, but now it’s fun. It’s nice having the crew out there behind me and give them something to cheer about this year, which is awesome.”

Canadian Alena Sharp carded a 1-over 72 to slip into a tie for 11th after holding a share of the 18-hole lead.

Kupcho is making her sixth tour start as a pro. The former Wake Forest star won the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in April.

“I’m hitting the ball really good this week, reading the putts well, and putting good rolls on them,” Kupcho said.

She parred the par-5 17th and 18th after birdieing three of the previous four holes.

“Obviously, walking off 17 and 18, two par 5s to finish, you expect to get at least one,” Kupcho said. “Left 17 short and just pushed 18’s putt. It’s a little upsetting.”

Thompson is coming off a two-week break.

“I just took yesterday’s round and came into today with the same confidence and same mindset,” Thompson said. “Just firing at pins and focusing on one shot at a time. I feel good with where my game is at. It was perfect weather. Couldn’t ask for anything better.”

Yealimi Noh, the 17-year-old from California who tied for sixth last week in Wisconsin in her LPGA Tour debut, missing the cut with rounds of 73 and 72. She played on a sponsor exemption after Monday qualifying last week.

SYLVANIA, Ohio — La Canadienne Alena Sharp et la Sud-Coréenne Youngin Chun partagent la tête de la Classique Marathon à l’issue de la première ronde, elles qui ont inscrit des pointages de 64 (moins-7), jeudi.

Sharp, qui est âgée de 38 ans et qui est originaire de Hamilton, a réussi huit oiselets contre un seul boguey. Elle est toujours en quête d’une première victoire sur le circuit de la LPGA.

Chun, qui est âgée de 19 ans, a évité les bogueys. Elle est aussi à la recherche d’une première victoire dans la LPGA.

À leur poursuite au club de golf Highland Meadows, on retrouve notamment quatre golfeuses à moins-6. L’Américaine Stacy Lewis, dont le dernier des 12 titres de la LPGA a été acquis en 2017, l’Espagnole Azahara Munoz, l’Allemande Caroline Masson et la Suédoise Jenny Haglund ont joué des rondes de 65.

Brooke Henderson, de Smiths Falls, en Ontario, a remis une carte de 67 pour s’installer à égalité au 11e rang à moins-4. Jaclyn Lee, de Calgary, a inscrit un score de 69, tandis qu’Anne-Catherine Tanguay, de Québec, a bouclé sa ronde en 71 coups.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Alena Sharp of Canada and Youngin Chun of South Korea shared the Marathon Classic lead at 7-under 64 on Thursday, a stroke ahead of Stacy Lewis and three others at Highland MeadowsGolf Club.

The 38-year-old Sharp, winless on the LPGA Tour, had eight birdies and a bogey to finish with a 64 – her lowest round this season.

“I played really well right from the first tee shot,” Sharp said. “I felt really calm this morning coming into this event. I always love playing here. I have great housing.”

The 19-year-old Chun, also seeking her first LPGA Tour victory, had a bogey-free round.

“I didn’t know I shot 64 today,” Chun said. “The funniest thing I finish par on the 18 and then I saw the leaderboard and there is a 7-under and I was like, ‘Who is that?’ I asked my dad. ‘I think I shot 6, right?’ He said, ‘No, you’re 7.’ So it was me.”

Lewis won the last of her 12 LPGA Tour titles in 2017. She was born in nearby Toledo and has an endorsement deal with Marathon Oil.

“It was awesome,” Lewis said. “The biggest thing is I hit 18 greens today. I’ve been working on the ball-striking a lot, so just really nice to see some results. Got a few putts to fall there on our last few holes.”

The Texan had seven birdies and a bogey.

“It’s a golf course I’m not necessarily 100% comfortable on,” Lewis said. “I just had some really good golf shots today. Had some easy tap-in birdies. I haven’t done that in the long time, in general.”

Azahara Munoz, Caroline Masson and Jenny Haglund matched Lewis at 65.

Brooke Henderson, Smiths Falls, Ont., (67) is 4 under, Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee (69) came in 2 under, Calgary while Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec City shot an even-par 71.

Lexi Thompson was at 66 with U.S. Women’s Open champion Jeongeun Lee6, Carlota Ciganda and Clariss Guce.

Thompson is coming off a two-week break.

“I played five weeks straight before that and really I’ve never played five weeks in a row in my career,” Thompson said. “It was definitely different for me. But two weeks off just relaxing, hanging out with my family and friends, just making sure I get that relaxing time was much needed. I felt good about my game coming into this week.”

Defending champion Jasmine Suwannapura opened with a 70.

Yealimi Noh, the 17-year-old from California who tied for sixth last week in Wisconsin in her LPGA Tour debut, had a 73. Playing on a sponsor exemption after Monday qualifying last week, she had five birdies and seven bogeys.

Full scoring can be found here.