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Jennifer Kupcho rises to the top: Takeaways from Chevron Championship

Jennifer Kupcho hoists the Chevron Championship trophy, the first of her LPGA career. (Harry How/Getty Images)

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. — Jennifer Kupcho, for her first LPGA victory, won the 51st and final Chevron Championship by two strokes at the Dinah Shore Course on Sunday.

Here are five takeaways from the historic moment in women’s golf.

1. A mixed farewell to the Dinah Shore Course

Golf Channel commentator Jerry Foltz welcomed a Chevron executive to the stand during the trophy presentation Sunday. The fans around Poppie’s Pond, in their final act of rebellion, booed the tournament host’s representative in frustration that so much history is being left behind in Rancho Mirage.

No longer will passionate volunteers like 80-year-old Judi Callaway, who makes 1,000 roses a year sitting alongside the 18th fairway, be a constant reminder of the stories of the tournament. Nor will players walk alongside the names of all the past champions of the event, on a path culminating in a statue of Dinah Shore, the tournament’s patron saint.

First tee announcer Ron Gilgallion, who’s called players’ names for the last 24 years, summoned three-time Chevron champion Amy Alcott on Sunday. Alcott started the tradition of the winner leaping into Poppie’s Pond in 1988, and she was on hand to call out the last name ever announced on the first tee, that of last year’s champion, Patty Tavatanakit.

“It’s bittersweet, but I’m glad the LPGA, I’m glad Chevron is stepping in,” Alcott said of the moment. “I’m glad they’re doing whatever they need to do to elevate the tournament for these great players. One door closes, another door opens.”

Judy Rankin, a television broadcasting pioneer, also wrapped up her final tournament working as a lead analyst for Golf Channel. Fans peppered the outskirts of the course with signs acknowledging her history at the course.

Since the event’s inception in 1972, Rankin has been an omniscient presence as both a player and a commentator. She finished tied for second in the inaugural edition of the tournament, which Jane Blalock won, and captured the title herself in 1976.

The Hall of Famer wasn’t willing to write off the LPGA returning to Mission Hills Country Club.

“I might be sticking my foot in my mouth — I believe the best golfers in the game will be back at Mission Hills in some shape or fashion,” Rankin said Sunday as Lexi Thompson walked onto the 18th green.

An hour before Kupcho’s final tap-in putt for victory, past champions Sandra Palmer (1975), Alcott (1983, 1988, 1991), Patty Sheehan (1996) and Patricia Meunier-Lebouc (2003) gathered to take a group winners’ leap into Poppie’s Pond. It served as a culmination of Chevron’s 51 years of history as title sponsor of the tournament.

“As a past champion, it is hard,” Meunier-Lebouc said, “because we have so many memories here, and I think it is an unbelievable tournament venue, people.

“We have to recognize that what the people in the community have done is tremendous. It’s not only what we lose, it’s what the community loses. I have to trust the LPGA and the Chevron people and what they’re doing. They better do a good job. If we go away from here, it has to be something big.”

2. Jennifer Kupcho’s putter delivers Chevron Championship

Kupcho walked to the first tee Sunday with a six-shot lead over Patty Tavatanakit, with her putter delivering 10 makes over 10 feet through the first three rounds.

The trend continued during the final round, with Kupcho making back-to-back birdie putts on the fourth and fifth holes to take the turn with the same six-stroke lead at 17-under par.

The 24-year-old’s momentum stalled briefly with bogeys on 10, 13 and 14. With four holes to go, Kupcho sat at 15-under par, while Jessica Korda, a group ahead of her, hit a bunker shot to two feet above the 15th hole.

After piping a drive down the 15th fairway, Kupcho arrived at her ball with a smile. She had the exact same yardage and pin location as she did when she holed out at this point two years ago.

“To be able to have that, that’s what I thought about, and I think that is what made me hit such a good shot into 15,” Kupcho said.

“Then I was able to just coast in.”

Korda missed her short par look, and Kupcho arrived at the 18th green with cheers of “Jennifer” echoing off Poppie’s Pond.

“One of the biggest things I’ve fought over the last year and a half is everyone is out here cheering for Nelly [Korda] or Lexi [Thompson] or someone else I’m playing with,” Kupcho said after her win. “I don’t ever hear, ‘Go Jennifer.’ That was really special today to have that.”

Three years after Kupcho became the first woman to win at Augusta, when she captured the Augusta National Women’s Amateur in 2019, she walked away Sunday as the last champion at the Dinah Shore Course. The Chevron Championship has been the LPGA’s closest equivalent to the PGA’s Masters at Augusta National, with its 51 years of history.

After Kupcho finished her press conference, she acknowledged the more than 20 girls standing outside the press room calling out, “Jennifer! Jennifer!”

After Kupcho’s performance this weekend, it’s hard to imagine those will be the last chants we hear for her.

3. Lorena Ochoa and founders earn overdue LPGA Hall of Fame induction

Last Tuesday, the LPGA announced it would remove the 10-year requirement for golfers to get into its Hall of Fame, making 27-time winner Lorena Ochoa eligible. The Mexican star is the first from her homeland to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

“It’s an honor to receive this recognition,” Ochoa said. “It was unexpected and very special to me.”

The LPGA also granted an honorary bid to the eight founders not currently in the Hall of Fame — Alice Bauer, Bettye Danoff, Helen Dettwiler, Helen Hicks, Opal Hill, Sally Sessions, Marilynn Smith, and Shirley Spork. Spork, 94, was the last remaining and living founder not in the Hall of Fame.

“Getting into the LPGA Hall of Fame is the highest honor ever in our profession, so I’ve climbed the whole ladder and gotten to the top,” Spork said. “I hope I can sit up on that ladder for a few more years and enjoy it.”

Stacy Lewis, the former world No. 1, said last week that she worked behind the scenes to try to make this possible.

“Since Shirley is getting older, we needed to do it before we lose all of our founders,” Lewis said. “They should be in the LPGA Hall of Fame. Without them we wouldn’t be where we are.”

Membership expanded from 25 to 34 with the update. Under the new roles, a gold medal won at the Olympics also earns a player a point, retroactively granting points to Inbee Park from 2016 and Nelly Korda from Tokyo last summer.

Still, there are questions about whether the tour went far enough with the changes. Since the turn of the millennia, only five players have passed the 27-point benchmark to earn their way in: Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Se Ri Pak, Inbee Park and Lorena Ochoa.

4. Jin Young Ko’s historic run ends

At the end of the first round Thursday, Ko sat a stroke outside of the cut line with her first over-par card in 35 rounds, marking an LPGA-record 34 straight rounds under par. After battling back with a second-round 68 to make the cut and sit two-under par and seven behind the lead, Ko opened up about how tired she felt after the JTBC Classic.

“I think last week was a tough course, so I used lots of energy on the course, and then [it was] hilly, so my body feels a little tired,” she said Friday.

Ko, the 2021 CME Group Tour Championship winner and LPGA Player of the Year, ended up at even par for a T-53 finish at Mission Hills. The result brought her run of 10 straight top-10 finishes to an end.

Ko hasn’t broken the top 50 now in her last two major starts, with this week’s finish following a T-60 at the Amundi Evian Championship last July. The South Korean said her goal is to accomplish the career grand slam of winning all five majors, and she checked two off the list in 2019: the Chevron Championship and the Amundi Evian Championship.

The World No. 1’s next event, as of now, is the DIO Implant Open in Los Angeles starting April 21.

5. Jessica Korda knocks on the major championship door

While the No. 2 player in the world, Nelly Korda, is out indefinitely with a blood clot, her sister took up the mantle over the weekend. Jessica pushed Kupcho with a Sunday 69 to finish in second, her best result at a major championship. For a brief moment, Korda trailed Kupcho by two with four to play, but she missed a short par putt on the 15th green to fall behind.

“Second place is not bad after being 3-over through 7, so pretty proud of myself,” Korda said.

The Kordas are one of three sister pairs to win on the LPGA, joining Annika and Charlotta Sorenstam, and Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn. The tour, however, has yet to have a pair of sisters win major titles — Annika, Nelly and Ariya are the major champions of the bunch.

Jessica Korda currently has the most victories of any active LPGA player without a major title. With her second-place finish, she’s trending in the direction of making history alongside her sister.

“I’ve always been hungry. If you’re not hungry, you’re in the wrong place,” she said.

“I’ve been close a bunch of times, and sometimes it just needs to be meant to be, and currently it hasn’t been.”

Kent Paisley is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering golf and the LPGA. He also contributes to Golf Digest. Follow him on Twitter @KentPaisley.

Phoenix Mercury Star Satou Sabally to Miss Unrivaled 3×3 Opener with Concussion

Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally controls the ball during Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA Finals.
Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally suffered a concussion during the 2025 WNBA Finals in October. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Sidelined Phoenix Mercury star Satou Sabally is still down for the count, with the 27-year-old set to miss the 2026 season tip-off of Unrivaled 3×3 Basketball as she continues to recover from lingering concussion symptoms.

Sabally suffered the head injury in the fourth quarter of Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA Finals on October 8th, requiring assistance in exiting the matchup after visibly swaying upon standing.

The concussion forced Sabally to sit out the remainder of the postseason series against the eventual 2025 WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces.

Both Sabally and Unrivaled planned her return to Phantom BC for the league's second season, with the German national impressing in the offseason venture's debut run by averaging 15.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game.

Sabally is under a multi-year contract with the upstart, with Unrivaled promising that while the forward will be out "indefinitely," medical personnel will reevaluate her fitness "at a later date" as both parties hope to see her on the 3×3 court this season.

In her stead, Golden State Valkyries guard Tiffany Hayes — who suited up for Unrivaled's Laces BC last season — will join Phantom BC as Sabally's replacement.

The second season of Unrivaled 3x3 Basketball will tip off in Miami on January 5th, 2026.

Angel Reese Confirms Plans to Re-Join the Chicago Sky in 2026

Chicago Sky star Angel Reese looks on before a 2025 WNBA game.
The three-year rookie contract of Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese runs through 2026 with an option for 2027. (Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images)

Chicago Sky star Angel Reese is running it back, with the 23-year-old confirming plans to return to the Windy City for the 2026 WNBA season while participating in a USA Basketball training camp over the weekend.

"I'm under contract, so yes, I plan on returning to the Sky," Reese told reporters. "[I'm] continuing to talk to [head coach] Tyler [Marsh], and building that relationship with [GM] Jeff [Pagliocca] and Tyler."

Her future with the Sky came into question in September, after the front office suspended Reese for half a game for making comments deemed "detrimental to the team" in a Chicago Tribune interview — comments she later apologized for, both publicly and privately.

Drafted by the Sky as the overall No. 7 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, the LSU alum remains under a rookie contract through 2026, with an option to extend through the 2027 season.

After leading the WNBA in both double-doubles (23) rebounds-per-game (12.6) in the 2025 season, Reese's late-season availability waned due to a back injury — though the forward now reports a full recovery from the knock.

"Angel is an ascending young talent in this league who's had two very, very good seasons here in Chicago," said Pagliocca after September's suspension. "Obviously, we went through what we did. I feel like we closed the chapter on it."

Texas A&M Volleyball Books 1st-Ever Final Four by Ending Nebraska’s Perfect Season

Texas A&M volleyball celebrates the win over Nebraska that sent the Aggies to the 2025 Final Four.
Two No. 1 seeds fell in Sunday's Elite Eight action of the 2025 NCAA volleyball tournament. (Dylan Widger/Imagn Images)

Overall No. 1-seed Nebraska's perfect season is officially over, after No. 3-seed Texas A&M volleyball ousted the Huskers in a five-set Elite Eight thriller on Sunday, booking the Aggies a program-first trip to the Final Four.

Undaunted by Nebraska's 33-0 record, the Aggies jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Huskers stormed back to force a fifth-set tiebreaker — which A&M won 15-13, stunning a home crowd that hasn't seen a Cornhusker loss in Lincoln in more than three years.

"A lot of us are seniors, and we've been doing this for a really long time," said Aggie senior opposite Logan Lednicky. "And I think all the newbies came in ready to work, ready to grind."

Though Nebraska boasts five national titles — good for third on the all-time NCAA volleyball championship list — the Huskers haven't won an NCAA volleyball tournament since 2017, falling three times in the final and once in the semifinals in recent years.

With fellow No. 3-seed Wisconsin's Sunday Elite Eight upset win over four-time champ No. 1 Texas, the 2025 Final Four will now feature two squads — A&M and No. 1-seed Pitt — hunting a first-ever title.

Meanwhile, No. 1-seed Kentucky and the Badgers will be aiming for a second national trophy after earning their debut Division I championships in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

How to watch the 2025 NCAA volleyball Final Four

Texas A&M will kick off the 2025 Final Four against Pitt at 6:30 PM ET on Thursday, before Kentucky takes on Wisconsin at 9 PM ET.

Both semifinals will air live on ESPN.

WSL Title Race Tightens as Manchester City Shoots Up the 2025/26 Table

Manchester City celebrates a goal from forward Aoba Fujino during a 2025 WSL match.
Manchester City sits atop the WSL with 40 total points after Sunday's 6-1 win over Aston Villa. (James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)

The WSL appears to have a serious 2025/26 title race on its hands, after No. 1 Manchester City cemented their six-point lead on six-time reigning champs No. 2 Chelsea with Sunday's lopsided 6-1 win over No. 8 Aston Villa.

City striker Bunny Shaw scored four times in the victory, bringing her all-time club tally to 103 goals — and becoming the first woman to reach the century scoring mark in the team's modern era.

"Coming into this game, I knew that if I scored it would have been a really good milestone for me," she told BBC Radio.

Manchester City have been perfect since dropping their 2025/26 season opener — a 2-1 loss to six-time champions Chelsea — with the Citizens now carrying a 10-match WSL winning streak into 2026.

While Chelsea and No. 3 Arsenal have ample ground to make up on the WSL table, both managed to keep pace by snagging their own multi-goal wins over the weekend.

After No. 10 Everton snapped the Blues' 34-game WSL unbeaten streak last week, goals by France international Sandy Baltimore and USWNT star Alyssa Thompson shot Chelsea past No. 7 Brighton 3-0 on Sunday.

Arsenal is also back to their winning ways, taking down Everton 3-1 on Saturday to hold off No. 4 Manchester United as captain Leah Williamson returned from injury.

How to watch the WSL in 2026

Now on holiday break, the WSL will return at 7:30 AM ET on January 10th, when Arsenal will kick off 2026 play against Manchester United at Emirates Stadium, airing live on ESPN+.