With many of the top players in Paris preparing for the Olympic Women’s Golf Competition, it presents an excellent opportunity for the 144-player field at this week’s Portland Classic.
Chanettee Wannasaen will defend her maiden LPGA Tour title at the Columbia Edgewater Country Club, where she beat Xiyu Lin by four shots last year. Wannasaen set the tournament scoring record of 26-under 262 in the process.
Players know they have to go low to be a factor at Columbia Edgewater, where Andrea Lee won with a score of 19 under two years ago and birdies come in bunches at the 6,480-yard track. Before a two-year spell that saw the tournament reduced to 54 holes in 2021 due to weather and in 2020 due to wildfires, Hannah Green won the event at 21 under in 2019.
Wannasaen returns to Portland as a two-time winner on tour, having claimed the Dana Open title earlier this month. She said the win here last year to secure her LPGA Tour card for two additional seasons has allowed her to play stress-free.
“Life after I won is changed because, like, mindset is change, everything is change,” Wannasaen said Tuesday. “This year I can like play better than last year because I won in here.
“I can play without the pressure, like I can play, like enjoy the golf game. And so I think I can control my mind, control stress better than last year.”
Lee also returns to Portland this week, as does 2017 champion Stacy Lewis.
However, Wannasaen will be joined by only one other winner on tour this year, Lauren Coughlin, who is coming off her maiden victory at the CKPC Women’s Open last week. Meanwhile, 20 of the 26 rookies on tour have made the trip to Portland seeking critical points in the Race to the CME Globe standings.
The $1.75 million event begins Thursday, with $262,500 going to the winner.
In it’s 52nd year, the Portland Classic is the longest-running event on the LPGA Tour outside of the majors. It began in 1972 as the Portland Ladies Classic, and expanded to a 72-hole event in 2013.
–Field Level Media