Another drought broken — Quotes from the Great Lakes
The IX: Golf Thursday with Marin Dremock, June 19, 2025
Carlota Ciganda is finally back in the winner’s circle after a nearly eight and a half year drought.
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Yet another winless drought was broken on Tour the week after Jennifer Kupcho won her first title in three years at the ShopRite LPGA Classic. At the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give, Ciganda shot a 67 in her final round to avoid a playoff with Hye-Jin Choi and win her first LPGA tournament since 2016.
Ciganda’s season has been super consistent. She’s made nine cuts in 10 starts in 2025, her only missed cut being the U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills. But Ciganda hasn’t been in the winner’s circle on the LPGA Tour in almost eight-and-a-half years. Her last win was the 2016 CitiBanamex Lorena Ochoa Invitational.
The nerves of not being in this scenario for such a long time didn’t seem to affect Ciganda. The 35-year-old Spaniard narrowly avoided a tie with Choi and won the Meijer by one stroke. Ciganda is the first Spaniard to win the Meijer LPGA Classic.
After the third round finished with six players atop the leaderboard at 11-under-par, the Sunday final round was set up to be an unpredictable finish. Ciganda was one of those six, along with Choi, T-Mobile Match Play champion Madelene Sagstrom, Nanna Koerstz Madsen, veteran Lexi Thompson and Sofia Garcia. Any one of those players could have taken home the trophy.
The final round got off to a fantastic start for both Thompson and Choi. Choi carded an eagle and a birdie on the front nine to go out with a clean 33. Thompson birdied three holes in a row, Nos. 3, 4 and 5, to also go out with a 33.
“I had my bad shots out there that showed its face, but just happy how I stayed patient and positive out there and pushed through the week and just really enjoy being out here once again,” Thompson said after her final round.
Ciganda, on the other hand, bogeyed No. 2 to start off her final round. But back-to-back-to-back birdies on holes 8, 9 and 10 propelled her toward a winning back nine. While Choi only shot 1-under on the back nine and Thompson struggled with two bad bogeys on Nos. 16 and 17, Ciganda birdied the last two holes of the tournament to come out on top.
“To be honest I haven’t really looked at the leaderboard all week. It is true that on 16 I just ask him like, how are we doing. He was like, you are T2 right now, and Hye-Jin Choi, she was first,” Ciganda said in the post-win press conference. “I knew if I beat her I obviously had a chance.”
The next tournament on the LPGA Tour schedule is a big one: the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. It’s hard to believe that the third major of the year is already here. From June 19–22, the 156 top-ranked players in women’s golf will compete for a $12 million purse at PGA Frisco. It’s the first time Fields Ranch East — and the Lone Star State — will host the KPMG.
It’s really difficult to tell who might take the season’s third major championship. A course that’s never hosted an LPGA tournament might prove difficult for these players, so an unlikely victor may emerge. Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco will play around 6,700 yards this week, give or take.
Obviously, though, Nelly Korda is up there in my predictions. With her game trending in a positive direction, she looks poised to win her third major title. But I’m not sure she’s got the final touches worked out quite yet. Other competition in the field, like defending champion Amy Yang, ever-relaxed Angel Yin and constant threat Ruoning Yin all have chances as well.
Honestly, any of the past champions in the field have what it takes to win the KPMG again this year. In Gee Chun (2022), Hannah Green (2019) and Brooke Henderson (2016) have been searching for wins this season, making them more dangerous coming into the KPMG.
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But with the field so stacked, it’s difficult to call out one specific player that will walk away with the title. However, I do think a Texas resident might be the one to win. Minjee Lee, Yuka Saso, 2025 winners Yealimi Noh and Jeeno Thitikul (LET), and Sei Young Kim — the 2020 champion — all call the Lone Star State home and might just be more in tune with the contours and quirks of the course.
It’ll shape up to be a good one, as all majors do. See you next week to run it back, golf fans.
This week in women’s golf
LPGA News
Field breakdown: 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
Dr. Alison Curdt: An LPGA master teacher’s journey to golf’s major stage
KPMG Women’s PGA Championship continues to set the standard for excellence in women’s golf
Meet the four Career Grand Slammers who completed the quest at KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
How to watch the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
Nicole Felce: From golfing firsts to dreams within reach
Five things to know about the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
Carlota Ciganda wins Meijer LPGA Classic for her first LPGA Tour victory in more than 8 ½ years
Meet the two LPGA Tour members who have won major titles at Oakmont
BMW Korea extends hosting of Korea’s annual LPGA tournament, “BMW Ladies Championship,” through 2029
LET News
Harry ecstatic to achieve AIG Women’s Open dream
Hat-trick on the cards for homecoming queen Kouskova
Race to Evian reaches climax in Czech
LET back in Beroun for Tipsport Czech Ladies Open
Trish Johnson awarded MBE in King’s Birthday Honours
Amundi German Masters 2025 opens the season of professional golf tournaments in Germany
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Epson Tour News
Riley Smyth takes control of Pure Michigan Cup standings
Three things to know about the 2025 Island Resort Championship
Field breakdown: 2025 Island Resort Championship presented by Delta County Chamber
Great Lakes Championship Tools of a Winner: Riley Smyth
Smyth claims second Epson Tour victory at the Great Lakes Championship
Epson Tour Race for the Card standings shift before the Great Lakes Championship
Hailee Cooper earns U.S. Women’s Open paycheck just in time for Father’s Day
Amateur/NCAA News
Winning ‘The Gazette’ women’s championship a source of pride (A great piece on transgender golfer Alice Baker and her rivalry with Dottie Pepper)
Paula Martín Sampedro wins the 122nd Women’s Amateur Championship in thrilling final
Golfweek’s 2024-25 women’s college golf All-Americans
Five at The IX: Riley Smyth wins her second Epson Tour title of the season with victory at the 2025 Great Lakes Championship, takes charge of Pure Michigan Cup standings
Q: We’re here with Riley Smyth, the champion of the inaugural Great Lakes Championship. A 6-under round today to pull out the victory. How did it feel walking off that last green?
RILEY SMYTH: It felt great. This 18th hole is not easy, so just to be able to get it over the water and on the green was definitely a big sigh of relief.
I had no idea where the scores were at that point, and with the group behind me, I was still trying to make a birdie. I thought I might have needed it, but I definitely really felt great walking off that green knowing I had a one-shot lead with the final group behind.
Q: This is your second win this season. Another 500 points to your Epson Tour resume for the 2025 season. What does this do for your confidence moving forward? We’re almost at the halfway point of the season, and you’ve already got two under your belt, so how does it help you, hopefully, get an LPGA Tour card at the end of the year?
RILEY SMYTH: Obviously, it does a lot for my confidence, just being able to pull it out. I mean, I didn’t have a great first round, kind of gutted it out, but was able to come back and have two rounds 6-under, both the second and third. So obviously, that gives a lot for my confidence, to be able to know that I can do that and come from behind.
But still a lot of golf left to be played the rest of this year.
Q: Can you talk a little bit about the competition on the Epson Tour? I know you said you weren’t really paying attention to the scores, but it was tight. And I feel like we really see that every week out here. So, can you talk about how hard it is to win a golf tournament, let alone do it twice?
RILEY SMYTH: It’s so tough. Everyone is so good out here that you still have to play your best golf. You have to be able to make the putts when you get the opportunities, and it’s just week in and week out, everyone is playing so well.
The top of the leaderboard is so tight every week, and it’s great players at the top, so it’s hard to go win a tournament, but to know that I can do it, it does help my confidence a lot.
Q: And then we’re heading to the Island Resort Championship next week. Short drive. Do you have any plans to celebrate this win?
RILEY SMYTH: We’re staying in town tonight and might figure it out, but I’m happy to be staying put tonight to be able to celebrate this one.
Q: The golf course obviously worked for you. What about it made it fit your game?
RILEY SMYTH: I think my length was a big positive. I was able to have a lot of wedges into the greens, and with how soft they were, I was able to really attack a lot of them.
So I was just able to put myself in a lot of really good positions to make birdie, and the par fives I was able to capitalize on, so that was really helpful to be able to get some under-par scores on those holes.
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