THE WOODLANDS, Texas — World No. 1 Lydia Ko came out early to the Chevron Championship and said she nearly ran out of balls in that first loop around the Nicklaus Course at the Club at Carlton Woods.
“To be honest, I struggled the first few times I played around this course,” Ko said earlier in the week, “and I was like, I don’t know how I’m going to do this.”
Turns out it didn’t get much better for Ko, who shot 76 with a birdie on the last hole in Round 2, finishing at 3 over for the tournament and missing the cut in a major for the first time since the 2019 AIG Women’s British Open.
Play was suspended on Friday evening due to darkness with 31 players still left to finish. They returned at 7 a.m. Saturday morning to wrap up play, with 68 players making the cut, which fell at 1 over.
While the field this week was larger than in past years (135) due to daylight savings, the cut was smaller at top 65 and ties. For the first time in tournament history, those who missed the cut received a $5,000 stipend of unofficial money.
The World No. 1 wasn’t the only big name to bow out early. Here’s a list at the other notables who missed the cut:
Lydia Ko 71-76–147
The Chevron marked Ko’s sixth start to the season and her first missed cut at an LPGA event in two years. Ko hit nine fairways, 10 greens and took 30 putts in her second-round 76 that stretched over two days.
Lexi Thompson 74-72–146
Lexi Thompson has teed it up in only two LPGA events this season and missed the cut in both. In the second round at the Nicklaus Course, Thompson took 31 putts en route to a 72. She revealed early in the week that she was experiencing pain in her right wrist from grinding too much on the practice range at home.
Jennifer Kupcho 72-78–150
Defending champion suffered a double-bogey and a triple on her back nine in the second round to miss the cut one year after making the final leap into Poppie’s Pond. A three-time winner last season, Kupcho’s best finish so far this season is a share of 16th at the season-opening Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
Stacy Lewis 73-74–147
Stacy Lewis never dreamed as a kid that a major championship would one day come to her doorstep. Lewis, of course, grew up in The Woodlands and her parents still live just a few miles down the road from the Nicklaus Course. This weekend off will be particularly difficult for the U.S. Solheim Cup captain, who had dozens of friends and family on hand to support.
Grace Kim 75-73–148
Grace Kim didn’t even think she should bother registering for the Chevron earlier this season because she didn’t think she had a chance to make the field. But after she heard several of her peers talking about it at the LPGA stop in Arizona last month, she did it anyway. Last week, the rookie Kim won the Lotte Championship in just her third LPGA start as a member.
A back-nine 39 at the Nicklaus Course in the second round, however, put a damper on the Aussie’s impressive momentum.
Charley Hull 79-71–150
Charley Hull started the 2023 season strong with a share of second at the TOC. She hadn’t finished outside the top 25 until the Chevron, where she shot 79 in the first round with seven bogeys and no birdies. Hull hit 19 greens in two rounds on the Nicklaus Course.
Hull enjoyed a number of successful starts as a teenager at Mission Hills, the previous site of the Chevron for 51 years. She never finished outside the top 26 as a pro in the event.
Stephanie Meadow 77-69–146
Stephanie Meadow came so close to pulling off an impressive turnaround. After an opening 77, Meadow played her last 10 holes in 5 under par, but missed the cut by a single stroke. Earlier this year, the LPGA announced that the cut line at official events would be moved to 65 and ties. Previously it was top 70 and ties.
