What Are The Five Women's Majors?
The women's game is different from the men's in that there are five majors. Here we take a look at each one
A Major championship is the most coveted title in the sport of golf. Winning a Major is seen as the pinnacle of a golfer’s career, the ultimate accolade. The list of the women’s Majors has changed several times over the years but as of 2023, the order in which they are played is as follows:
The Chevron Championship
The first Major of the season takes place in the spring and this year it was won by American Lilia Vu in dramatic style in a playoff. The 25-year-old Californian finished with two birdies to get into the play-off then yet another birdie putt rolled in from 10 feet at the first play-off hole against Angel Yin. The Chevron Championship, formerly the ANA Inspiration was until this year played at Mission Hills in the California desert and was famous for the celebratory leap into Poppie's Pond that the winner always took, usually with her caddie and family members. Not wanting to let that tradition die, Vu took a giant leap into the water at The Club at Carlton Woods to celebrate her victory!
KPMG Women's PGA Championship
This year's championship, played at Baltusrol Golf Club in New Jersey, was won by Ruoning Yin, who became only the second Major winner from China and received a payout of $1.5 million from the record-breaking $10 million purse. This is another Major that has no set ‘home course’ so to speak and has changed venue every year since the PGA of America partnered with the tournament in 2015 and it became known as the Women’s PGA Championship. Before then the tournament was formerly known as the LPGA Championship and it was held at a consistent venue every year. As part of the change a new title sponsorship agreement with KPMG boosted the winning purse and a commitment from American broadcaster NBC now guarantees TV coverage of the weekend rounds, dramatically boosting its global profile.
U.S Women's Open
The oldest of the five women’s Majors, established 77 years ago in 1946, the U.S Women's Open is the only event to have been recognised as a Major by the LPGA since the group's founding in 1950. Organised and run by the USGA, the 78th edition of the tournament will be played this year from July 6-9 at Pebble Beach, California.
Like the AIG Women's Open, the U.S. Women’s Open is is open to any professional or amateur female golfer with a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 2.4 to attempt to qualify (if not already exempt). Interestingly there is no upper age limit for qualifying, so in recent years the tournament has had its youngest-ever qualifiers, namely 11-year-old Lucy Li in 2014, and 12-year-old Lexi Thompson in 2007. There have been a record-breaking number of applicants for this year’s tournament. The USGA has accepted a record total of 2,107 entries, including 13 champions and all top 25 players in the world. The U.S. Women’s Open has only ever had two British winners. The last time it was won by a Brit was way back in 1997 when English professional Alison Nicholas took the title. Dame Laura Davies won it 10 years earlier in 1987.
The Amundi Evian Championship
This relatively new women’s Major is named after the tournament’s host course, the Evian Resort in Evian-Les-Bains, France. It’s organised and run by the Ladies European Tour and takes place from July 27-30. See our “Why Does The Women’s Game Have Five Majors?” for the explanation of its addition to the major rota.
The Evian Resort course is arguably the most dramatic of the major venues. The average elevation of the course is approximately 480 metres (1,575 ft) above sea level with spectacular sweeping views overlooking the nearby Lake Geneva to the north. There are 120 places for the world’s best players to take part in this year’s championship. It has never been won by a British competitor before. Last year’s champion was Canadian Brooke Henderson who narrowly took the title by one shot and in doing so picked up the $1 million winner’s cheque.
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AIG Women's Open
Organised and run by The R&A and traditionally played on one of the best British courses. In the early days is was harder to attract the most prestigious host venues so Woburn Golf Club became the home of the event for seven straight years - 1990 to 1996, as well as in 1984 and 1999. However, as its prestige increased, more of the links courses that are in the rotation for The Open Championship, such as Turnberry (2002) and Royal Lytham & St Annes (1998, 2003, 2006) hosted the tournament, in addition to Royal Birkdale (2000, 2005, 2010). In 2007, the tournament took place at the Old Course at St Andrews for the first time.
Unlike its male counterpart, the AIG Women's Open has not adopted a links-only policy, which is why this year the caveat goes to Walton Heath Golf Club, a classic heathland course in Surrey, which will host the 47th edition of the tournament from 10-13 August. South Africa's Ashleigh Buhai will be the defending champion after claiming her maiden Major title in exciting style at Muirfield last year, edging out In Gee Chun on the fourth hole of a sudden-death play-off completed in fading light.
Carly Frost is one of the golf industry’s best-known female writers, having worked for golf magazines for over 20 years. As a consistent three-handicapper who plays competitive club golf at Parkstone and the Isle of Purbeck courses in Dorset every week, Carly is well-versed in what lady golfers love. Her passion for golf and skill at writing combine to give her an unbeatable insight into the ladies game.
Carly’s role at Golf Monthly is to help deliver thorough and accurate ladies equipment reviews, buying advice and comparisons to help you find exactly what you are looking for. So whether it’s the latest driver, set of irons, golf ball, pair of shoes or even an outfit, Carly will help you decide what to buy. Over the years Carly has been fortunate to play some of the greatest courses in the world. Her view ‘from the ladies tee’ is invaluable. She ranks Sea Island, Georgia, USA, where she met her husband, world-renowned golf coach Dan Frost, among her favourite golf resorts. Their aptly-named eight-year-old son Hogan is already hitting the ball as far as Mum and will undoubtedly be a name to watch out for in the future. Carly is a keen competitor and her list of golfing achievements are vast. She is a former winner of the South West of England Ladies Intermediate Championship, a three-time winner of the European Media Masters and she once beat an entire start-sheet of men to the title of Times Corporate World Golf Champion. She has played for both the Dorset and Surrey County Ladies first teams and is known for her excellent track record at matchplay.
Carly holds the ladies course record (68) at her home club Parkstone and her lowest competition round (seven-under-par 65) was carded in the pro-am of the Irish Ladies Open at Killeen Castle, playing alongside Solheim Cup superstar Anna Nordqvist. Although her current handicap index has crept up to 3.7 since Covid she has her sights firmly set on achieving that elusive scratch handicap and hopefully playing for her country when she’s 50.
Carly’s current What's In The Bag?
Driver: Callaway Epic Max, 10.5°
Fairway wood: TaylorMade SIM2, 15°
Hybrids: Titleist TS2, 19°, 21°, 24°
Irons: Mizuno JPX900, 5-PW
Wedges: Cleveland RTX, 52°, 56° and 58°
Putter: Scotty Cameron Futura X5
Ball: 2021 Callaway Ladies SuperSoft
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