After 3.25 inches of rain fell on Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Ark. the night of Saturday, Sept. 20, the LPGA Tour decided to cancel the remainder of the 2025 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. The decision stemmed from an already soaked course and rainy Monday and Tuesday forecasts.
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Welcome back to a short and sweet Golf Thursday, everyone.
The event was shortened to 18 holes, and $2 million of the prize purse was paid out to the tournament players. But what does this mean for the Race to the CME Globe?
Since 36 holes could not be completed, the tournament could not be deemed official. As an unofficial event, CME points also could not be issued. As the 2025 LPGA Tour season is winding down, accruing CME points gets more important.
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Making moves and gaining points each tournament in the Race to the CME Globe is vital this season, especially because the standings are so tight. The LPGA Tour isn’t seeing a Nelly Korda seven-win season this year, so more players are vying for CME points. No one player is snagging them.
Currently, Jeeno Thitikul sits at the top spot of the Race to the CME Globe standings with 2,900 points. Minjee Lee is second with around 2,300 points. One event where Lee finishes atop Thitikul, or even wins, could change the standings.
The LPGA Tour is off this week, but the players are back in action Oct. 1–4 at the 2025 LOTTE Championship presented by Hoakalei in Ewa Beach, Oahu, Hawaii. Without completion of a full event last week, it’s hard to say who will have momentum going into this tournament and then further into the Asia swing.
See you next week, golf fans.
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Trending on social: Players show gratitude for Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G
2025 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G shortened to 18 holes
Rain leaves Arkansas course unplayable and an uncertain Sunday
After announcing retirement, former Razorback Stacy Lewis opens with 68 in Arkansas
Sarah Schmelzel’s big finish in Arkansas gives her share of the lead after round one
Look back at all 13 of Stacy Lewis’ LPGA Tour victories
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Five at The IX: Snippets from Stacy Lewis’s pre-tournament press conference at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship on Sept. 18
On Sept. 18, Stacy Lewis spoke to the media ahead of the 2025 NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G. She announced on Wednesday, Sept. 17 that she’d be retiring from full-time professional golf. The former Arkansas Razorback has felt the love at this tournament, becoming an honorary hometown hero. She also expressed her desire to stay involved in the LPGA even after her playing career is over. Here are some snippets from Lewis’s pre-tournament presser.
THE MODERATOR: All right, here with Stacy Lewis ahead of the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship Presented by P&G. Big announcement made earlier this week. Can you just speak to what went into with your decision to announce your retirement, and specifically do it at this event?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, so it wasn’t a moment. It wasn’t — I wasn’t in a certain place when I said that, kind of decided that this year was going to be it. It was really just this spring. I kind of had a goal this offseason. My body had really been hurting a lot the last couple years, and so I kind of did some things the offseason. I found way to feel a little bit better on the golf course.
I just really wanted to see if there was still any good golf left in me. I was able to put together some good rounds earlier this year and just really put me at peace.
Just physically haven’t been able to practice the way I want to the last call it probably two or three years. The amount of time and energy you got to put into competing at this level and play good golf, I physically can’t do it anymore.
So I got other things that interest me now. I got a little one at home that wants me to be home a little bit more. I know there are times she’s not going to want me to be around, so I’m—I want to take in this time and enjoy that and give my body a break.
Q. You talked about not being quite sure what you might do. Can you kind of give us some hints there of what the future might hold for you?
STACY LEWIS: The last I call it maybe for, five years I’ve been pretty involved in what’s going on behind the scenes at the Tour. I was on the LPGA board. I was part of the last commissioner’s search. I was doing all the things I was doing with Solheim Cup for call it almost four years.
I learned about the business side of the Tour and it became more and more interesting to me. I hope to continue to make an impact on this Tour. I did it while I was playing and I was able to bring sponsors and bring fans in and do it that way, but I want to continue to find ways to give back. I don’t know exactly what that looks like. I don’t have a job lined up for sure. But I want to find ways it help because I love this Tour. I love these girls.
It’s been so much fun to play against them and I want to continue to give them help and the best opportunities I can.
Q. The physical part, was it at all related to what you had years ago or what kind of was hurting?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, so in 2019 I qualified for the Gleneagles Solheim. I think it was a week before Solheim I hurt kind of like my right rib cage hitting a shot in Portland actually.
Really since then I’ve just had a lot of trouble with my right side. I think it’s overcompensating. I got a part of my back to doesn’t move and doesn’t twist and doesn’t rotate. It’s just the compensation over the years.
To go back to how I felt coming out of surgery here my freshman year and not bending or twisting and not being able to swing a golf club, to think that 20 plus years later I would still be swinging a golf club at this level is really pretty remarkable and I am just really grateful for the opportunities that I’ve had.
Q. How are your emotions right now, knowing this will be the last time playing in front of your home crowd?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah. The last day or so has been a lot harder than I ever thought it would be. I had to speak last night at a dinner and I totally lost it.
It’s been really cool the last kind of 24 hours I would say, all the messages I got from friends, fans, people that I don’t even really know just telling little stories about where they met me and when they met me.
You know, just really kind of puts things in perspective of you’re out here trying to win tournaments, but you’re also able to impact a lot of people. That’s really what I’ve been kind of reflecting on over the last 24 hours.
You know, I’m excited for the golf to start because that’s what is more normal and what’s easier right now. But I’m excited to get to do this one more time here. This was to me the only place to announce this. This was where my career started, so really was the only place to do it.
Q. So with that in mind, how cool is it for you to have that full circle? So few people get to start their career somewhere and end it in that place. How special is that?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, it’s amazing. I’m going to carry an Arkansas golf bag this week, too. We’re going to throw it back to what it was when we started. This tournament has always been so special to me. Because no other players have had this. No other players have this hometown, have the crowd like that much on their side.
You know, I was telling Craig Kessler, our new commissioner, about the first few years of this tournament. Before Gaby came out I was the only Arkansas Razorback, and the players joke that they could find me anywhere on the golf course based off all the Hog calls.
So no one else has had this, so to start and finish it here is just really fitting.
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