Cover Story – KPMG Women’s PGA Preview
PGA Frisco and the two Fields Ranch golf courses were not only developed for those who love top-notch golf, amenities and dining, but also to host major championship tournaments for decades to come. The Senior PGA Championship took place at Fields Ranch East in 2023, with Steve Stricker outdueling Padraig Harrington in a playoff to capture victory.
Now, just a little over two years later, and with less than two years to go before the PGA Championship comes to Fields Ranch East, the KPMG Women’s PGA is set for June 19-22, and the best women golfers in the world will test their games on this Gil Hanse behemoth.
AG has the scoop on where to get tickets, who’s in the field and where you should watch all the action for the first women’s major in Frisco.
Who’s going to be in the field?
You will see plenty of past champions in the field in 2025 at Fields Ranch East. Defending Champ Amy Yang looks to make it two in a row. The 2023 champion, Ruoning Yin, is also in the field for 2025, as well as 2022 champion In Gee Chun, and 2021 KPMG winner and world No. 1 Nelly Korda. In addition, other past champs include Sei Young Kim, Hannah Green, Sung Hyun Park, Danielle Kang, Brooke Henderson, Yani Tseng, Kristi Kerr and Anna Nordqvist.
Other major championship winners in the field include Mao Saigo, Lilia Vu, Jennifer Kupcho, Patty Tavatanakit, Mirim Lee, Yuka Saso, Allisen Corpuz, Minjee Lee, A Lim Kim, Ayaka Furue, Celine Boutier, Lydia Ko, Ashleigh Buhai and Sophia Popov.
Other notable Americans in the field for the KPMG Women’s PGA are Rose Zhang, Alexa Pano, Megan Kang, Lexi Thompson, Bailey Tardy, and Katelyn Sepmoree.
Other international stars in the field include Grace Kim, Leona Maguire, Jeeno Thitikul, Madelene Sagstrom, Gaby Lopez and Charlie Hull.
Where are the best spots for spectating?
Fields Ranch East is a large piece of property. Getting from one hole to another can take some time, so for that reason, it might be best to post up and watch multiple groups come through. Of course, the area near the PGA District is always an option, as this gives patrons access to the first tee, ninth green, 10th tee and 18th green all within a short walk. Watching groups finish on the par-5 18th will be a great place to focus on as the final few groups come in on Sunday. In addition, the stretch of par 4s at 10, 11 and 12 isn’t a bad walk, as they eventually lead to the long, uphill par-3 13th hole. From there, spectators can make their way across the par-5 14th, post up next to the elevated green at No. 15 and watch as players dance wedges around on the putting surface. The short par-3 17th will also be a great spot to watch as players try to make one final two before heading to the daunting par-5 finishing hole.
What’s the ticket situation?
Daily tickets begin at $35 and provide access to the grounds of Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco, for the chosen day(s). Includes bottled water at multiple course locations. These can be purchased for Thursday through Sunday. The Any Day Flex Grounds ticket begins at $50 and gives flexibility to attend the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship on any one day of your choice, Thursday through Sunday. Inclusive of the water program onsite.
Club PGA tickets are available individually and by day; Club PGA is the Championship’s most flexible hospitality experience. Climate-controlled with an open-air patio, Club PGA is located overlooking the 18th green of the Championship. These start at $475.
The ”Be There for Both” package includes two Championship Rounds ticket packages, which provide access to the grounds of Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco. Also includes the exclusive opportunity to bypass the registration process and directly purchase tickets for the 2027 PGA Championship at Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco. Visit www.kpmgwomenspgachampionship.com for more information and pricing on this package
Minjee Lee
Minjee Lee is a two-time major winner, having captured the 2021 Evian Championship and the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open. With those two wins, a T3 at the Chevron, a third-place finish at the Women’s British Open and a T2 at the Women’s PGA Championship, she is just a few shots here and there from completing the career grand slam.
However, in the last couple of years, things have been a bit slower for Minjee, as she has struggled with her game a bit. As she continues to get her confidence back, and with some wholesale changes to her equipment and a newfound philosophy, the now 29-year-old Aussie is looking to do some damage in the upcoming KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Fields Ranch East Course in Frisco.
This is a home game for Lee, who lives in the area, and she sat down with AG Editor Eli Jordan to discuss her recent equipment changes, her sibling rivalry with Min Woo, and her overall thoughts about the upcoming Women’s PGA.
AVIDGOLFER: At what age did you realize golf was going to be a passion for you, and at what age did you think it might be something you could do professionally?
Minjee Lee: I started at about [age] nine, but I have always been around golf because my whole family played. My mom used to teach, so I was always around the game. I knew I wanted to try to take it up as a profession at about 15 or 16. It was the first time I traveled to the United States to play in the U.S. Girls Championship and the U.S. Amateur. That opened my eyes to the world of golf more. That’s when I met all the women who are on tour with me now. That’s really when I decided I wanted to pursue it professionally.
AG: Who are some of the players you idolized growing up? Anyone you feel like you pattern your game after?
ML: Not really anyone in particular. I always heard Karrie Webb’s name a lot, as she had a national program in Australia with some scholarships and those kinds of things. She also had a program where the top couple of finishers in points got to attend the U.S. Open and watch her play. I was able to go to the U.S. Open one year and watch her play and prepare. That was really a priceless experience at the time. Karrie has always been a great supporter of mine, and she’s a friend now. I always watched Lorena [Ochoa] a lot on TV, and she was so amazing to watch when she was winning in those few years.
AG: The men’s and women’s game are a little different in the fact that many of the male competitors don’t enter their primes until their late 20s or even early 30s in some cases, whereas we see a lot of the women who are nearing the end of their career in their early 30s because many of the top players do begin playing professionally at a very young age. Is that something you think about … or do you feel like you want to keep playing as long as you can?
ML: I think about it much more now. I am about to turn 29, so my 30s are right around the corner. I have been on tour for almost 11 years. From 18 to now, all I have known is playing on tour and all the travel. I think little by little, I am starting to think more about settling down or doing other things besides golf that are outside my comfort zone. I have thought about what I want to do outside of golf, but I still feel I am competitive, and I still have goals I have set for myself, so I still want to play as much as I can competitively. I don’t have a specific timeline, but if I feel like I am not competitive or my body can’t be maintained to my standards, then I will start to think about those things. But at the moment, golf is still a priority.
AG: How often do you get to catch up with Min Woo? Do you two play competitive golf when you get to play together? Or do you keep it casual?
ML: I wish we got to play a bit more. Every time I see him, I am playing or he’s in the area or vice versa. We support each other when we can. In the offseason, I think I only saw him for a week and a half. So, our schedules don’t allow us to see each other or play as much as I would like.
AG: Do you own a “let him cook” T-shirt?
ML: I might have one from the Good Good Collection, but I don’t have a Lululemon one.
AG: You have won a couple of majors. So, you have been to the top of the mountain. Once you have accomplished winning a major championship, is there any additional pressure to do it again. Or do you just like to keep it business as usual?
ML: That’s a good question. Evian wasn’t really expected. I was just playing, and then the playoff happened, and it just flowed. The U.S. Open was different because I was leading going into the final round, and I ended up winning by a few shots, so that one was a little more fun to digest. I found that after you win a major and you’ve gotten to that point, I feel like I struggled a bit after the U.S. Open, because I just couldn’t get the juices flowing. Performance-wise, things weren’t clicking. I felt like I was constantly chasing that feeling, and I found it tough to lock in. So, I do think that it can go both ways after a major. Now, after a few years, I have a renewed vision and motivation to win the other majors and win more tournaments.
AG: You recently made some wholesale equipment changes. How are you feeling about your current setup, and how is your game shaping up as we head toward the U.S. Open and KPMG Women’s PGA?
MJ: I switched my wedges to the Opus. I was with Cleveland for a while, but I didn’t switch right away, I did a lot of performance testing, but after switching to the Opus, I have a good feel with the ball and how it’s interacting with the club. I changed the putter to a broomstick, which has been good. Right now, I am feeling comfortable with my setup, and I am loving the Elyte driver. So, I am feeling really comfortable where I am with my equipment.
AG: Since you live here locally, I’m assuming you have had a chance to play and scout Fields Ranch East a little bit? What do you think of the course?
ML: I have had the chance to play it once, but it was just coming out of the dormant season.
AG: Even having just seen it once, do you think that gives you an advantage over some of the other players who may be seeing it for the first time during tournament week?
ML: I think the more you see a course, there can be a comfort level there. Fields Ranch East has some greens that have a lot of slope, so there is an advantage there. Tee to green, it’s not bad, but seeing those greens as much as possible could really be an advantage.
AG: What does a typical day look like for you?
ML: I like doing my practice in the morning and early afternoon. I hit some balls and then work some short game. I try to work on every aspect of my game in the mornings, and then I’ll usually take an hour break and then hit the gym. I usually only hit the gym every other day, though.
AG: What are some of your other hobbies you enjoy, and what are some of your favorite places to frequent around DFW? Any favorite restaurants or anything like that?
ML: I enjoy going to different restaurants. I like going to Dallas. I don’t live right there, but we go to the Oak Lawn and Highland Park areas quite a bit for dinners. I really like the scenery and the people watching over there. It gets busy on the weekends, so there is a good vibe.
AG: Are there any similarities between Australia and Texas?
ML: No. They are very different, especially where I grew up on the coast. There is one thing similar to Perth, and that’s the wind. I came to Dallas originally because it was easy to travel in and out. It was usually only one stop back to Australia, but I fell in love with it over the years. It is very different from home, though.
AG: You are part of a long list of professional players who live in DFW. Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau, and even one of the LPGA legends in Angela Stanford. Is there a sense of pride that you live and compete amongst so many top-level players?
ML: I feel like the windy states produce great golfers. Maybe there is something about DFW that helps mold great players.
AG: As a professional golfer, you have a lot of young players who admire what you do. What are some of the things that you feel would help continue to grow the game of golf?
ML: I think, obviously, social media is big these days. We can have such a big impact on younger people through those platforms. We can use them to engage and show a little bit of personality as well as the golf. There are also so many different aspects to golf. There is fashion, the courses, the players, the travel … it’s all very trendy. I am with Malbon Golf, and they are really trying to collab with companies that aren’t even related to golf. I think reaching a different audience is key. Maybe reach some of the youth that maybe really aren’t interested in golf, you might reach them based on other collaborations. For me, I am a bit more traditional, so I like to reach youth by having a small chat with them or signing an autograph at tournaments. To me, those things are great for engagement.
Katelyn Sepmoree
Katelyn Sepmoree has always loved the game of golf. From the age of five, she developed a talent that eventually took her to competitive golf around the state and into high school at Robert E. Lee (now Tyler Legacy), where she helped lead the Red Raiders to back-to-back district 12-5A championships in 2008 and 2009. Sepmoree took her game to Austin to tee it up for the Texas Longhorns after high school, a move she claims was happening with or without golf. As a member of the UT golf team, she saw plenty of success and enjoyed her time bleeding burnt orange amidst a long line of Longhorn golf legends such as Jordan Spieth and Tom Kite.
COVID, however, threw a monkey wrench in a promising start to a career, as in 2020, Sepmoree planned to play a full schedule on the Symetra Tour (now the Epson Tour). But when COVID struck, she was left with few options other than to head home to Tyler and begin working at Willow Brook Country Club, the very course she played as a child.
Fast forward to present day … Sepmoree has been able to continue to stoke the competitive flames while continuing her work at Willow Brook, entering PGA of America-sanctioned events, including the Women’s Stroke Play Championship, contested at PGA Golf Club’s Ryder and Wannamaker Courses in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
Needing a seven-footer to win, Sepmoree poured it dead-center, to claim a one-shot win over Sandra Changkija and an invitation to the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Fields Ranch in Frisco later this month.
Sepmoree sat down with AG to chat about her career, her love of helping people and her goals for her first major championship.
AVIDGOLFER: Tell us your golf story. I understand you started playing at age 5. How did you get introduced to the game and at what age did you realize you have a natural talent for it?
Katelyn Sepmoree: My father played, and he would take me to the driving range when I was little. I started with those plastic clubs, and I would whack it around out there. So, he really got me started.
AG: You got hooked up with your coach, Chris Hudson, pretty early on. How did that happen?
KS: I met him at [age] six or seven. He is now my head pro here at Willow Brook Country Club, but he has been my coach my whole career. I met him at a junior camp, and he noticed some talent and mentioned to my dad that he recognized some natural talent. I played some other sports, too. I played some basketball, but I think by 11 or 12, I realized I was naturally talented at golf and thought it was something I would want to do in high school and college.
AG: Who are some of your golf heroes? Are there any particular players you try to pattern your game after or who you looked up to?
KS: Lorena Ochoa and Annika Sorenstam were two that I really looked up to. I didn’t have the career they had, obviously, but it has been a lifelong dream to keep playing this sport.
AG: The University of Texas has a rich golf history with guys like Harvey Penick, Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Betsy Rawls, and now Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler … you got to be a part of that. Was Texas your first choice? Was it a goal of yours to be a Longhorn? And what was your time like in Austin and what are some of the things you learned along the way.
KS: Part of my family went to Texas A&M. I remember going to a game at Kyle Field when the Aggies played Texas when I was about 10 or 11. I knew I was supposed to be rooting for the Aggies, but I found myself clapping along to the Texas fight song, and I was drawn to the burnt orange for some reason. I had a friend invite me to a game in Austin a couple of years later, and the moment I stepped on campus, I knew that is where I needed to be. With or without golf, I was going to UT. But I was fortunate enough to get to play there and not only meet the best friends of my life, but also cross paths with so many golf greats. I overlapped with Jordan [Spieth], so that was really cool. Tom Kite helped me with my short game a lot while I was on campus, and Chuck Cook, who teaches out at UT Golf Club, also taught me a lot.
AG: You are now an assistant pro in Tyler at Willow Brook CC. Was being a PGA Professional part of your plan?
KS: No. It was never my intention. I told a lot of people that if I weren’t playing golf professionally, I wouldn’t be in the industry at all. I never saw myself as a teacher, but I have also always been the type of person who wanted to help people. What happened was, I was fully expecting to play a full season on the Symetra Tour in 2020. Obviously, COVID changed that. Inevitably, they shut us down for a while, and Willow Brook was my home and I was always here practicing. Chris Hudson offered to let me host a few women’s clinics, not only to make a little money, but to see if I liked it. Of course, I fell in love with it and began to feel like I could do it as a career. I also found out that through the PGA, you can also still compete at the sectional and national levels. So that helped me keep the bug of being competitive, and that to me is a win-win. I had a little more stability and could help people, so what’s not to love?
AG: How proud are you to be able to compete in your first major championship not too far from where you grew up?
KS: It’s very surreal. I was thinking earlier this year that I have checked a lot of boxes in my career, but I have never played in a major. I found that you could potentially qualify in the winter series in the Women’s Stroke Play Championship. I figured I would give it a shot. I won and got the exemption, and then found out it’s up in Frisco. I am super excited to be able to play.
AG: Are you going to have a large contingent following along in Frisco?
KS: Of course, my family will be there. We also have a lot of members planning on going. I am really excited to know I am going to have so many people following along. I am working hard, and I look forward to making Willow Brook, Texas, and the PGA of America proud.
AG: You will be playing against the top players in the world in your first major championship. What kind of goals and expectations do you have for your week at the KPMG?
KS: It’s an honor to play against the best in the world. First and foremost, I would love to walk away after winning it. I think that would be an amazing story. But making the weekend would be awesome, and top 25 would be amazing. I have always said I just don’t want to make the cut, I want to be competitive. So, a top 25 would really check a major box for me. But one of the personal goals is just to enjoy every moment and take it day by day and realize that I do belong and I earned that spot to be there.
AG: What have the last few weeks and months been like as you prepare?
KS: Definitely been grinding. I have played Fields Ranch almost a half dozen times since I qualified. I am using off days to run up to Frisco and play as much as I can. I am trying to use that to my advantage. A typical day would be getting all my administrative stuff done at the club in the morning, maybe give a couple of lessons, and then try to carve out some time to practice in the afternoon. I am trying to do as much as I can to prepare, which makes for some long days, but it will be worth it in the end.
AG: You mentioned you have seen Fields Ranch East a few times now. What were your initial thoughts, and how are you feeling it will fit your game?
KS: It’s very interesting. I think the best way I can describe it would be he [Gil Hanse] uses a lot of visual disturbances. He has hidden a lot of the greens’ surfaces with massive bunker structures. When I first played it, I felt like I couldn’t see anything. Some of the tee shot angles are also wonky. Now that I have played it a handful of times, I am getting more comfortable and realize there is some more room in places, and I can trust my yardages and ignore some of the visual elements.
AG: Do you have a particular number in mind of what you would consider a good round out there?
KS: I don’t see super low scores, but, of course, it all kind of depends on the wind. I really feel like if I can keep it around even or a couple under on that stage, I would feel really good about it.
AG: What are some of the things you enjoy when you aren’t on the golf course?
KS: I love to hike. I love Colorado. I climb peaks over 14,000 feet. I have knocked out four of those so far. So, I love doing that. I love traveling with friends, and I love the outdoors. The outdoors is my happy place. I also enjoy working out. I know some people wouldn’t consider that a hobby, but it’s something I look forward to.
AG: What’s on your current playlist?
KS: I am kind of weird. Maybe some Beyonce when I am warming up. Right now, my favorite band is called Caamp. If you know them, they are a little folky, but I love the lyrics and they have a song called “Let Things Go” that is pretty prevalent in my life right now, so they have been on repeat for me for a bit.