The Chevron Championship officially has a new home.
On Wednesday, the LPGA and Chevron announced that the year’s first major will now be played at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston after being held at the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course at the Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands, Texas, for the past three years. The move was first reported by Golfweek in November.
The event, which is the first of five majors, will be contested April 23-26, one month after Memorial Park hosts the PGA Tour’s Texas Children’s Houston Open.
“Chevron’s partnership continues to set a standard for what it means to invest in women’s golf — not just as a championship, but as a platform to inspire and grow the game,” LPGA commissioner Craig Kessler said in a statement. “Moving the Chevron Championship to Memorial Park Golf Course strengthens that vision. It brings the event closer to the heart of Houston, connecting more fans and communities to our athletes, and helping ensure this major — a tradition that began in 1972 — continues to shine as one of the game’s most meaningful stages.”
Memorial Park played host to the Houston Open 14 times between 1947 and 1963. After the municipal jewel underwent a $34 million renovation led by architect Tom Doak, the tournament returned to Memorial Park in 2020. The Houston Open moved from the autumn to the spring in 2024.
The Chevron Championship was contested at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, Calif., for 51 years before moving to the Club at Carlton Woods in 2023.
Moving the Chevron Championship to Memorial Park should help the LPGA and tournament organisers draw a bigger crowd, with the event being held closer to downtown Houston.
“Hosting The Chevron Championship, the LPGA’s first major of the year, at the City of Houston’s Memorial Park Golf Course underscores our commitment to providing a world-class fan and player experience that serves the larger Houston community and continues to showcase our great city to the world,” Jim Crane, chairman of the Astros Golf Foundation, who financed Memorial Park’s renovation, said in a statement. “The Astros Golf Foundation is proud to work alongside Chevron and the LPGA to amplify this major tournament and help more Houstonians experience world-class events in the heart of the city. This event will highlight the incredible talent of the LPGA, and advance the growth and reach of women’s golf — a mission we are proud to support.”
The shift to Memorial Park will give the year’s first major a slightly different feel. With no pond around the 18th green at Memorial Park, it could spell the end of the celebratory jump, which was originally made famous at Poppie’s Pond in California. Last year’s winner Mao Saigo jumped into the pond but struggled to get back to the dock because she isn’t a strong swimmer.
The decision to move venues for the Chevron Championship is the latest in a series of major moves by Kessler, who has been commissioner for less than 200 days. Kessler has delivered a groundbreaking deal to transform the LPGA’s TV product, brought in Golf Saudi as a sponsor for a new tournament with a $4 million purse and started to rework the LPGA schedule to maximise the tour’s ability to grab more attention; on Tuesday, TGL announced that it will launch a women’s league later this year. Now, the year’s first major will head to a municipal course near downtown Houston, which should lead to bigger crowds and an elevated profile.
The Chevron Championship will kick off the LPGA’s major season. Next comes the U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine. The Amundi Evian Championship will once again be held at Evian Resort Golf Club and the major season will close with the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
This article originated on Golf.com
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