As the LPGA Chevron Championship kicks off at Houston's Memorial Park on Thursday, all eyes will be on top-ranked Jeeno Thitikul from Thailand, who is seeking her first major victory. Alongside her is Australia's Hannah Green, looking to extend her impressive run of recent successes.
Jeeno achieved her eighth career LPGA title earlier this year but opted out of last weekend's Los Angeles event to refine her game. "That one thought of swing it was -- I don't have it," she stated. "That's why I can't control my ball as much as possible. It just lost the feelings. You don't know where the ball is going to go. I had to work on things. I feel like one week working wasn't enough and then I feel like my iron game was not on track that I want. I feel like we're getting there."
At just 23 years old, Jeeno remains in pursuit of her first major, having had several near misses throughout her career. Despite boasting nine top-10 finishes at major tournaments, she has yet to claim a victory. "You want to be in contention," Jeeno said. "If you were in contention every week, you saw your name on the top in every week, which means your game was there and just matter of time."
Her best performance in a major came as a runner-up at last year's Evian Championship, and she previously finished tied for fourth at the Chevron in 2023. "Every time I lost in a major for sure people remind me every week," Jeeno noted. "It's just another challenge of my career. At this age I think I accomplish a lot, but obviously major is the one I feel like first time always the hardest."
Hannah Green comes into the tournament on a high after winning in Los Angeles, following victories in both Singapore and her home country's Women's Australian Open and WPGA Championship last month. "I feel like I'm still somewhat on Cloud Nine," Green admitted. "I definitely have a lot of confidence in my game. It has been a really crazy I guess last five, six events that I've played."
Green aims for her second major title, having previously won the Women's PGA Championship in 2019. "Before last week I was probably thinking, 'OK, top-10 will be really good.' Now I'm more hungry to continue the success that I've had so far," she said. However, she is wary of managing expectations. "I want to win. Obviously I do. But I feel like it's also a really hard task to win back-to-back weeks. I want to make sure that even though I'm very confident that I'm not getting too ahead of myself. Staying patient out there is what you have to do to win major championships, so that's what I'm going to focus on."
Aside from Thitikul and Green, the tournament will feature strong contenders including second-ranked Nelly Korda and fourth-ranked Charley Hull of England. Hull, who also has 10 top-10 major finishes but is without a major win, looks forward to the upcoming challenge. "I've been working very hard on my game so just looking forward to it," Hull said.
Mao Saigo, the defending champion from Japan, enters the event ranked 14th but has struggled this season, with no top-20 finishes in her first five starts.
With the Chevron Championship marking the beginning of a new era in Houston, the stage is set for an exciting opening tournament of the year’s major season. Fans will be eager to see if Jeeno Thitikul can finally breakthrough or if other players like Hannah Green can add to their recent successes. The competition promises to be fierce as the world’s top golfers battle for the coveted title.
