The best female players in the world have descended upon Lancaster Country Club for the U.S. Women’s Open as the LPGA gears up to crown another major winner.
Coined the toughest test in women’s golf, these ladies are excited, including young phenom Rose Zhang.
“I love it here,” Zhang said on Wednesday.
“The course is playing difficult. There’s high demand in hitting fairways, greens, and around the rough—it’s pretty penalizing. The greens themselves are very undulating… It’s challenging and very deserving to be a U.S. Open course.”
The last time she completed a full event, Zhang won the Cognizant Founders Cup, her second LPGA victory in less than a year on Tour. She defeated Madelene Sagström, a veteran player from Sweden.
Zhang made four birdies in her final five holes to complete the insane comeback victory.
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Photo by Elsa/Getty Images
“A lot of things clicked for me,” Zhang said.
“I was very committed to my game, and I had the feels in me to be able to attack pins when I needed to and make putts when I needed to.”
However, she could not defend her title the following week as she withdrew from the Mizuho Americas Open due to an illness.
That time away from the golf course does not deter her from accepting the challenge ahead of her at Lancaster. She still feels confident in where her game is as she eyes her first major title.
“I feel like the game is trending in the right direction,” Zhang said.
“Regardless of the results, I think there’s a lot of improvement from where my game stood before the last two weeks.”
This week, the LPGA will have even more eyes on their players. NBC Sports will air 26 hours of live coverage, including on network television late on Saturday and Sunday for the third and final rounds.
“These are things I think we’ve slowly become more accustomed to, especially when we’re out there and trying to prepare and do our work,” Zhang said.
“It’s almost better because there’s more attention to the women’s game, and everyone feels encouraged and obligated to come out here and play their best— do their best. I think there’s a positive side to that.”
Zhang is among the many names to watch this week, along with Nelly Korda, Brooke Henderson, and Lexi Thompson. She will have some heavy hitters to compete against, but the youngster has the game to win.
Korda is looking to win her second straight major and seventh victory in her last eight starts. Will fans see the world number one truck through another field, or will someone like Zhang take home the U.S. Women’s Open?
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, be sure to follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.