Top 6 golfers to watch at the 2023 CPKC women's open ft. Lilia Vu and Celine Boutier
The LPGA Tour will move to Vancouver, British Columbia, for the 2023 CPKC Women's Open, which will take place from August 24 to August 27 at Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club.
While the European Team's automatic picks for the Solehim Cup have been finalized with the conclusion of the ISPS Handa Women's Invitational last week, the CPKC Women's Open will be the last chance for the US golfers to make it to the upcoming biennial event.
The CPKC Women's Open field will be star-studded, with 34 of the top 50 players in the Rolex Women's World Golf Ranking featuring at this week's event. Lilia Vu, Nelly Korda, and Celine Boutier are some of the big names appearing this week.
Six names to watch at the 2023 CPKC Women's Open
1) Celine Boutier
The five-time LPGA Tour winner has been in remarkable form recently, emerging as a consistent threat every time she steps onto the golf course. Earlier this year, she secured victory at the LPGA Drive-On Championship, solidifying her status as the most successful French player in LPGA history.
At the beginning of August, Boutier achieved a significant milestone by clinching her first major title at the Amundi Evian Championship. This victory made her the first local player to triumph at the event.
Following her major win, Boutier continued to impress by securing the Women’s Scottish Open title, becoming the first player in two years to win back-to-back events.
Celine Boutier is making her fourth appearance at the CPKC Women’s Open, an event where her track record hasn't been particularly strong so far. However, fans have good reason to anticipate a change in her performance in the coming days.
2) Nelly Korda
Nelly Korda will make her fifth start at the CPKC Women's Open this week. She has never finished outside T28 and has also registered a joint runner-up finish alongside Hye-Jin Choi in 2022.
Korda missed a couple of cuts at the Cognizant Founders Cup and KPMG Women’s PGA Championship this season but also made eight top-11 finishes in 12 starts this year. Her best result was a solo third at The Chevron Championship.
3) Linn Grant
Linn Grant clinched her inaugural LPGA Tour title at this year's Dana Open. In addition to her LPGA victory, she also claimed a title at the LET's Jabra Ladies Open, a feat that contributed to her selection for the European Solheim Cup squad.
Alongside her two top-10 finishes this year, the 24-year-old golfer has also achieved five top-20 finishes, including a T11 placement at the AIG Women’s Open.
4) Lilia Vu
After her victory at the AIG Women's Open, Vu ascended to the world's No. 1 golf ranking, displacing Korda, who had taken over from Jin Young Ko earlier this month. The CPKC Women's Open will mark her first start as the top-ranked golfer.
Besides the AIG Women's Open and Chevron Championship victories, she also claimed the Honda LPGA Thailand in February, her maiden LPGA Tour win. Vu will be looking to put in a solid performance this week to solidify her position as No. 1.
5) Rose Zhang
Rose Zhang impressed everyone right from the beginning as a professional as she won the Mizuho Americas Open, her first start as a pro. She has already made it to the 2023 United States Solheim Cup squad, given her Rolex Rankings.
Besides one victory, The 2023 rookie has also made three more top-10 finishes, all of which came in majors. She will make her Canadian Women’s Open debut this week.
6) Lydia Ko
Lydia Ko started the year as World No. 1 and finished T6 at the Honda LPGA Thailand in February. No one would have anticipated that this would be her only top-10 finish in the season so far. In fact, she couldn't get inside the top 30 in her next 11 starts either.
Despite the stars not being on her side, Ko can't be kept out of contention at the Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club, given her past record at the event. The 26-year-old Kiwi golfer has earned three victories here, the joint-most in the history of the Canadian Women's Open.