By Carey Van Lue

Portland Classic

Columbia Edgewater Country Club | Portland, Oregon| August 31- September 3, 2023

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE 2023 PORTLAND CLASSIC

• This is the 52nd playing of the Portland Classic and the 36th time it has been played at Columbia Edgewater Country Club
  • No other non-major event has remained on the LPGA Tour schedule longer than the Portland Classic, which was first played in 1972
  • The event did not take place in 2001
  • Ten past champions of the event are LPGA Hall of Famers: Judy Rankin, Donna Caponi, Amy Alcott, Nancy Lopez, Betsy King, Patty Sheehan, Juli Inkster, Dottie Pepper, Annika Sorenstam and Lorena Ochoa
  • The tournament has been held at five different venues in Portland since its inception, including Columbia Edgewater, Portland Golf Club, Riverside Golf & Country Club, Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club and Oregon Golf Club
• Columbia Edgewater Country Club is a private golf club founded in 1924 and designed by Designed by A.V. Macan
  • The course is located just south of the Columbia River and immediately west of Portland International Airport
  • In addition to the LPGA Tour’s Portland Classic, the course has also hosted the PGA Tour’s Portland Open Invitational
• Six past champions are in the field this week including Andrea Lee (2022), Georgia Hall (2020), Hannah Green (2019), Marina Alex (2018), Stacy Lewis (2017) and Brooke Henderson (2016, 2015)
• In the 2022 playing of the event, Lee became a Rolex First-Time Winner after shooting a final round 66 (-6) to defeat Ecuadorian Daniela Darquea
  • Lee earned her first win in her third season on the LPGA Tour
• In 2021 and 2020, the Portland Classic was shortened to 54-holes
  • The 2020 playing was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Jin Young Ko won the 2021 playing of the event at Oregon Golf Club, which was shortened due to air quality concerns from wildfires in the area
• Eight of the top 10 players in the world will tee it up in Portland this week: Lilia Vu (No. 1), Nelly Korda (2), Ruoning Yin (5), Lydia Ko (6), Hyo-Joo Kim (7), Allisen Corpuz (8), Charley Hull (9) and Henderson (10)
• There are two local players in the field this week, Caroline Inglis and Kyra Ly
  • Inglis is a member at Columbia Edgewater Country Club and resides just across the river in Vancouver, Wash.
  • Inglis is a University of Oregon alumna; she graduated in 2016 with a degree in Business Administration and was a member of the Oregon golf team
  • Ly is a sophomore at Oregon State University and a member of the women’s golf team
  • Playing as a sponsor invite, Ly is from Portland Oregon
• The three sponsor invites in the field this week are Ly, Paula Creamer and Jenny Bae
  • Ly is an amateur who earned her sponsor invitation by finishing first in the 2023 Les Schwab Tires Am Open Champion at Columbia Edgewater
  • Bae is the 2023 recipient of the Juli Inkster Award, which is given to the highest-ranked women’s collegiate golfer in her final year of eligibility
    • Bae has played primarily on the Epson Tour this season, where she has earned two wins and one additional top-five finish
    • By winning the award, Bae earned an invitation into the Portland Classic

• LPGA Tour rookies Riley Rennell and Chanettee Wannasaen Monday qualified for the Portland Classic
  • Wannasaen lost to Yue Ren in a playoff last week at the Circling Raven Championship on the Epson Tour

2023 SOLHEIM CUP UPDATES

With the completion of the 2023 CPKC Women’s Open, the 12 members of both the United States and European Solheim Cup teams have been finalized

U.S. Team

• Lilia Vu, Nelly Korda, Allisen Corpuz, Megan Khang, Jennifer Kupcho, Danielle Kang and Andrea Lee qualified for the team via the U.S. Solheim Cup points standings
• Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang earned their spot through the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings
• Ally Ewing, Cheyenne Knight and Angel Yin were named to the team as Stacy Lewis’s captain’s picks
• Meet the United States Team

European Team

• Celine Boutier and Maja Stark qualified for the European Team through the LET Solheim Cup Points rankings
• Six players qualified via the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, including Charley Hull, Leona Maguire, Georgia Hall, Linn Grant, Carlota Ciganda and Anna Nordqvist
• Captain Suzann Petersen named Madelene Sagström, Gemma Dryburgh, Emily Kristine Pedersen and Caroline Hedwall as her captain’s picks
• Meet the European Team

2023 LPGA TOUR STATISTICS

Award Leaders

*Clinched

Aon Risk Reward Challenge: No. 10, par 5

The par-5 10th at Columbia Edgewater CC was challenging to card a birdie on in 2022, with the hole playing over par in the third round and averaging 4.87 for the week. Water protecting the green leaves a tight landing area for players considering going for it in two. The 22% of player who made the decision to go for it were generously rewarded, picking up nearly half-a-stroke on the competition.

Through the CPKC Women’s Open, Hye-Jin Choi leads the Challenge standings (-0.933), with Atthaya Thitikul close behind in second (-0.923) and major champion Ruoning Yin lurking in third (-0.885). Angel Yin’s two birdies last week on Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club’s No. 11 moved her into the top five (4th, -0.875), knocking Hae Ran Ryu down to solo fifth (-.867).

The Aon Risk Reward Challenge is a season-long competition across the PGA TOUR and LPGA Tour that highlights the game’s best players as they navigate some of the most strategically challenging holes on Tour. Players will take their best two score from each Challenge hole, with the winners having the best average score to par at the end of the regular season, with the winning man and woman across the Tours taking home the Aon trophy and an equal $1 million prize. Tyrrell Hatton captured the 2023 ARRC on the PGA TOUR, earning the $1 million grand prize.

Race to CME Globe Update:

The Race to CME Globe Race continues at Columbia Edgewater Country Club for the Portland Classic. Three-time 2023 LPGA Tour winner Celine Boutier maintains her hold on the top spot on the Points List following a T22 finish at the CPKC Women’s Open with 2,412.650 total points. A little over 300 points back is two-time major champion Lilia Vu with 2,100.718 points while the reigning KPMG Women’s PGA champion Ruoning Yin sits in third yet again with 1,974.870 points. Jin Young Ko, following her runner-up performance in Canada and first top-10 finish since her Cognizant Founders Cup win, jumps into fourth (1,904.640 points) and knocks Hyo Joo Kim into fifth with 1,758.183 points. Vu, Yin and Kim from the top five will tee it up this week in Portland; a win for Vu or Yin would surpass Boutier as the No. 1 spot in the Race.

Megan Khang, who became the season’s ninth Rolex First-Time Winner at the CPKC Women’s Open, vaulted up the Race and into the top 20 to 18th from 37th after last week’s victory (1,115.749 points). Brooke Henderson also moved into the top 10 to eighth (1,348.900 points) thanks to her T13 result in Vancouver. Sei Young Kim (49th, 464.985 points) moved into her best spot on the Points List this season since she was 48th following the 2022 Dana Open after her tie for fourth at Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club.

The Race to the CME Globe is a season-long points competition with LPGA Tour Members accumulating points in every official LPGA event to qualify for the season-ending tournament, the CME Group Tour Championship. The player who wins the CME Group Tour Championship is named the “Race to the CME Globe Champion.” The top 60 points earners and ties earn a spot into the season finale with the entire field competing for a $7 million purse highlighted by a $2 million winner’s check, which ties the largest single prize in the history of women’s golf.

CME Group Cares Challenge – Score 1 for St. Jude Update:

The CME Group Cares Challenge is a season-long charitable giving program that turns aces into donations. CME Group donates $20,000 for each hole-in-one made on the LPGA Tour in 2023, with a minimum guaranteed donation of $500,000 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which is leading the way in how the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and life-threatening diseases. Sei Young Kim added the 12^th hole-in-one of the season at the CPKC Women’s Open, bringing the year’s total to $240,000.

2023 Wins by Country (22 tournaments, 10 countries)

9 – United States (Allisen Corpuz, Megan Khang, Cheyenne Knight, Alexa Pano, Elizabeth Szokol, Lilia Vu (3), Rose Zhang)

2 – Australia (Hannah Green, Grace Kim)

3 – France (Celine Boutier (3))

2 – People’s Republic of China (Ruoning Yin (2))

2 – Republic of Korea (Jin Young Ko (2))

1 – Canada (Brooke Henderson)

1 – Ireland (Leona Maguire)

1 – South Africa (Ashleigh Buhai)

1 – Sweden (Linn Grant)

1 – Thailand (Pajaree Anannarukarn)

2023 Wins by Player (22 tournaments, 17 players)

3 – Celine Boutier (LPGA Drive On Championship, Amundi Evian Championship)

3 – Lilia Vu (Honda LPGA Thailand, The Chevron Championship, AIG Women’s Open)

2 – Jin Young Ko (HSBC Women’s World Championship, Cognizant Founders Cup)

2 – Ruoning Yin (DIO Implant LA Open, KPMG Women’s PGA Championship)

1 – Pajaree Anannarukarn (LPGA Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play presented by MGM Rewards)

1 – Ashleigh Buhai (ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer)

1 – Allisen Corpuz (U.S. Women’s Open)

1 – Linn Grant (Dana Open)

1 – Hannah Green (JM Eagle LA Championship presented by Plastpro)

1 – Brooke Henderson (Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions)

1 – Megan Khang (CPKC Women’s Open)

1 – Cheyenne Knight (Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational)

1 – Grace Kim (LOTTE Championship presented by Hoakalei)

Average Age of 2023 Winners: 25.304

Youngest Winner: Alexa Pano (19 years)

Oldest Winner: Ashleigh Buhai (34 years, 1 month)

SOCIAL MEDIA: #DRIVEON

Tournament – @PortlandClassic (Twitter, Instagram)

LPGA Tour – @LPGA and @LPGAMedia (Twitter), @lpga_tour (Instagram)

TV/STREAMING TIMES

(all times EDT)

Thursday, August 31

Round 1

6:00-9:00 p.m. – NBC GOLF Channel, Peacock, International

Friday, September 1

Round 2

6:00-9:00 p.m. – NBC GOLF Channel, Peacock, International

Saturday, August 19

Round 3

6:00-9:00 p.m. – NBC GOLF Channel, Peacock, International

Sunday, August 20

Final Round

6:00-9:00 p.m. – NBC GOLF Channel, International

Live Coverage can also be found on Digital:

NBC – NBC Sports App, NBCSports.com, golfchannel.com

COURTESY LPGA COMMUNICATIONS