Key Players We're Paying Attention To At The Chevron Championship

As the kickoff of the 2025 Chevron Championship, the LPGA's first major of the season, inches closer—we're taking a closer look some of the key players. This week, 132 players will face off in a 72-hole stroke play competition with a $8 million purse on the line (the winner takes home is $1.2 million). All eyes are on The Club at Carlton Woods in Texas as the second major of the professional golf season (and first for the LPGA) is finally here.

In true major fashion, the field is stacked with 12 past champions, 24 of the Rolex Rankings top 25, and all eight of the 2025 LPGA Tour winners. It feels like it's anybody's trophy to win. World No.1 Nelly Korda has been quiet this season lurking into contention but still seeking her first win of the season.

Then there's Jeeno Thitikul. The 22-year old Thai golfer is the second-highest-ranked player in the world, but has yet to win a major championship. Thitikul's been on a heater though, recording five top-10s in six starts and a win on the LET.

But you can never count out the youngsters, with eight elite amateurs in the field including ANWA champion and sponsor invite Carla Bernat Escuder, I think we can count on the weekend shaping out to be an interesting one.

These are our players to watch at Chevron.

Nelly Korda

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Last year all eyes were on Korda leading into Chevron. With a win, she would join Nancy Lopez and Annika Sorenstam in tying the record for most consecutive wins in a row (five). Spoiler Alert: She did.

A year later, all eyes are on the defending champ, who has been relatively quiet (in comparison to this time last season) and still in search of her first win in 2025. Despite her lack of wins, Korda is still playing good golf. She has a couple of top-10s to her name and was in contention last week at the JM Eagle before faltering with a final round 72.

Korda knows how to come alive at the right moments, so we wouldn't DARE count her out.

Ingrid Lindblad

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As the most recent LPGA tour winner, this rookie has landed herself on our radar. Ingrid Lindblad is a former LSU Tiger where she had 15 medalist finishes and was No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf ranking before turning professional last June.

The 2024 Annika Award recipient joined the Epson Tour after college where she made seven cuts in nine starts with five top-10 finishes, including a win at the 2024 Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic which helped her become an Epson Graduate and earning her LPGA playing status.

But Lindblad, 25, is also no stranger to the major stage. In 2022, the young Swede played alongside Annika Sorenstam in the U.S. Women's Open and recorded the lowest 18-hole score by an amateur in USWO history with a blistering 65. She'd go on to be the low amateur for the tourney. Needless to say, she's definitely one to watch.

Jeeno Thitikul

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Is it Jeeno's time? It kind of feels like it. Similarly to a Viktor Hovland or Ludvig Aberg, Jeeno Thitikul is a young star with all the talent but just missing that maiden major win. I've said it before, she's arguably the hottest player on the LPGA Tour at the moment, consistency putting herself in contention and situations where she could capture a win at any second.

Last season she was the third-round leader before play was suspended due to weather. She'd go on to finish 12th for the week. In 2023, she finished T-4. It's in the cards for her, and she'll lean on her experience to hopefully secure her victory.

In Gee Chun

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After Rory's Masters triumph let's take a look at who else we should be watching as eligible career grand slam candidates. The LPGA Tour has five major championships (The Chevron Championship, U.S. Women’s Open, KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, AIG Women’s Open, and The Amundi Evian Championship), but the organization considers a player who has won four of the five different majors available to her during her career as having completed the Career Grand Slam.

At just 30 years old, In Gee Chun has been on the Tour for nearly a decade and has four career wins...three of them are majors (U.S. Women’s Open, KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and Amundi Evian Championship).

A win at Chevron could land her on a very exclusive list, joining Inbee Park, Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Juli Inkster, Pat Bradley, Mickey Wright and Louise Suggs as LPGA players who have completed the career grand slam.

Chun fired an opening round 65 at last week's JM Eagle, but ultimately finished T-52. It may be a long shot, but certainly a storyline (and excellent player) to keep top of mind this week.

The Ams: Carla Bernat Escuder and Asterisk Talley

One of the best parts of the majors are seeing some of the best amateurs in the world tee it up in a major. In a way, a final round at Augusta National probably feels a lot like competing for a major title, but to see the young stars get a dose of the big stage is still super fun to watch.

The 2025 ANWA champ and runner-up, Carlas Bernat Escuder and Asterisk Talley will be competing at Chevron this week.

The future of women's golf is already here, be sure to follow their names on the leaderboard.

A Player We'll Miss: Rose Zhang

ICYMI: Rose Zhang took to Instagram earlier this mouth to announce that she'd be out for a bit while she treats a neck injury.

Zhang wrote, "Safe to say, things haven’t been too hot for me in the golf realm and I found myself struggling to compete in high spirits due to an injury. Just remember, this isn’t a sob story.

While this period is unique and frustrating, I find great optimism in getting better and working hard to compete at the highest level. Thank you so so much to my team, sponsors, family, and friends for supporting me in this process. It’s going to be a long and patient ride, but it’s always a blessing to do what I do and have what I have. That being said, I will be pulling out of the JM Eagle event in LA to help aid my recovery. Hope to see y’all soon."

Get well soon, Rose!