Record Number of Entries Accepted for U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links | Sports Destination Management

Record Number of Entries Accepted for U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links

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Jun 26, 2023

The United States Golf Association (USGA) has accepted a record total of 2,107 entries, including 13 champions and all top 25 players in the world, for the 78th U.S. Women’s Open Championship. The U.S. Women’s Open will be held for the first time at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links, from July 6-9, 2023.

Entries surpassed the 2,000 mark for the first time; the previous record of 1,874 was established last year at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, in Southern Pines, N.C. A total of 1,873 entries were filed for the 2015 championship at Lancaster (Pa.) Country Club. The USGA accepted entries for the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open from golfers in 47 U.S. states and 62 foreign countries.

 

“The record number of entries is truly exciting and represents the worldwide interest in competing in the U.S. Women’s Open,” said USGA Chief Championships Officer John Bodenhamer. “Pebble Beach Golf Links is one of America’s iconic and treasured courses and will present a compelling championship venue that will bring out the best in the world’s greatest female players.”

 

Minjee Lee, of Australia, won last year’s U.S. Women’s Open with a championship record 72-hole total of 13-under-par 271 at Pine Needles and is one of 11 champions who are fully exempt from having to qualify. Joining Lee are Annika Sorenstam (1995, 1996, 2006), Eun-Hee Ji (2009), Michelle Wie West (2014), In Gee Chun (2015), Brittany Lang (2016), Sung Hyun Park (2017), Ariya Jutanugarn (2018), Jeongeun Lee6 (2019), A Lim Kim (2020) and Yuka Saso (2021).

 

World No. 1 Nelly Korda, of Bradenton, Fla., is among 87 exempt players currently in the field. Korda will compete in her ninth U.S. Women’s Open, with her best result an eighth-place finish in 2022.

 

To be eligible, a player must have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 2.4, or be a professional. Qualifying, which will be played over 36 holes at 23 sites in the U.S. and one each in Canada, Japan and Belgium, will take place between May 9-June 7.

 

Cristie Kerr, the 2007 champion, and 2010 champion Paula Creamer will attempt to qualify for the championship. Kerr, 45, and Creamer, 36, are scheduled to compete at Echo Lake Country Club, in Westfield, N.J., on May 15.

 

The championship’s youngest entrant is 9-year-old Bella Simoes, an amateur from Brazil. Kimberly Williams, a 60-year-old professional from Bethesda, Md., is the oldest. Heather MacRae, a 39-year-old professional from Scotland, was the first entrant on Feb. 15. Michelle Latini, a 29-year-old professional from Lincoln, Calif., submitted her entry 6 minutes, 29 seconds before the deadline of 5 p.m. EDT on May 3.

 

The number of fully exempt players is expected to increase with the inclusion of additional categories. The winner of any LPGA co-sponsored event prior to the start of the U.S. Women’s Open will earn an exemption. Additionally, any player who is among the top 75 points leaders and ties from the Rolex World Rankings as of July 3, who is not otherwise exempt, will be added to the championship field. The winner of the 2023 NCAA Women’s Division I Championship will also earn an exemption.

 

Pebble Beach Golf Links has previously hosted six U.S. Opens (1972, 1982, 1992, 2000, 2010, 2019), five U.S. Amateurs (1929, 1947, 1961, 1999, 2018) and two U.S. Women’s Amateurs (1940, 1948).

 

More information about the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links, including the qualifying schedule, is available at uswomensopen.com.

 

The list of the 87 golfers who are fully exempt into the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open (as of May 4):

 

Marina Alex

 

Minami Katsu

 

Anna Nordqvist

Na Rin An

 

Haruka Kawasaki

 

Ryann O'Toole

Aditi Ashok

 

Megan Khang

 

Min Ji Park

a-Saki Baba

 

A Lim Kim

 

Sung Hyun Park

a-Jessica Baker

 

Grace Kim

 

Paula Reto

Celine Boutier

 

Hyo Joo Kim

 

Hae Ran Ryu

Ashleigh Buhai

 

Sei Young Kim

 

Madelene Sagstrom

a-Krissy Carman

 

Cheyenne Knight

 

Mao Saigo

Chella Choi

 

Jin Young Ko

 

Lizette Salas

Hye-Jin Choi

 

Lydia Ko

 

Yuka Saso

In Gee Chun

 

Jessica Korda

 

Jodi Ewart Shadoff

a-Monet Chun

 

Nelly Korda

 

Hinako Shibuno

Carlota Ciganda

 

Jennifer Kupcho

 

Jiyai Shin

Allisen Corpuz

 

Brittany Lang

 

Annika Sorenstam

Gemma Dryburgh

 

Bronte Law

 

Angela Stanford

Ally Ewing

 

Alison Lee

 

Maja Stark

Ayaka Furue

 

Andrea Lee

 

Patty Tavatanakit

Linn Grant

 

Da Yeon Lee

 

Atthaya Thitikul

Hannah Green

 

Minjee Lee

 

Lexi Thompson

Georgia Hall

 

Mirim Lee

 

Momoko Ueda

Mina Harigae

 

So Mi Lee

 

Lilia Vu

Nasa Hataoka

 

Jeongeun Lee6

 

Michelle Wie West

Brooke Henderson

 

Hee Joeng Lim

 

Miyu Yamashita

Charley Hull

 

Xiyu Lin

 

Amy Yang

Mone Inami

 

Gaby Lopez

 

Angel Yin

Chisato Iwai

 

Nanna Koertz Madsen

 

Ruoning Yin

Eun-Hee Ji

 

Leona Maguire

 

Yuri Yoshida

Ariya Jutanugarn

 

Jill McGill

 

a-Yana Wilson

Danielle Kang

 

Yuna Nishimura

 

a-Rose Zhang

 

Bold – U.S. Women’s Open champion   a-amateur
 

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