Eleven players are traveling straight from the Solheim Cup to the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G, but the excitement of winning or losing one of the most prestigious events in women’s golf cannot be carried over for too long.

The LPGA Tour’s best have eight regular-season events left before the CME Group Tour Championship, with only the top 60 players in the season-long Race to the CME Globe getting to compete in the final event of the year. As the Tour descends on middle America for two weeks, many in this 144-player field in the third edition of this popular event have a great chance to improve their positions in the points race.

The last two editions of the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G were held at Kenwood Country Club. The venue is now TPC River’s Bend., located in Maineville, Ohio. The top 65 and ties will compete over the weekend for a share of a $2 million purse and a winner’s check of $300,000.

The Cincinnati region has been warm and dry this summer, like much of the Northeast. Players are going to experience very firm and fast course conditions at the par-72 layout. Playing a little over 6,700 yards, those with serious ball speed should have a considerable edge.

Designed by Arnold Palmer in 2001, TPC River’s Bend features 40 acres of fairway. To put that number in perspective, that’s over 10 more acres than these athletes have weekly on Tour. Mr. Palmer loved swinging the driver, and his design provides this field with a wide-open area to land the ball off the tee, and in doing so, has ultimately rewarded those who hit it the farthest. Nelly Korda is the first long hitter that comes to mind and who is no doubt the betting favorite this week. Linn Grant, Charley Hull and Yuka Saso are three other players who top the rankings in distance and strokes gained off the tee.

The longer the player, the shorter her approach shots will be into these putting surfaces that average 6,000 square feet in size. Minjee Lee is our defending champion and leads the LPGA Tour in strokes gained approach, so if it was just an accuracy contest from approximately 150 yards, one should definitely take her. But Lee is ranked 140th in strokes gained putting, meaning that an accurate iron player will likely also need to be an opportunistic putter.

Ball speed, scoring iron acumen and a fabulous flatstick – who checks all those boxes? Mao Saigo is certainly attention-catching when looking through the rankings and is coming off two straight top-20 results. A brilliant ball-striker, her game is peaking at a very good time.

Or how about an undefeated (4-0-0) Rose Zhang, who also helped the U.S. wing the Solheim Cup? Zhang’s putter tends to hold her back, but not last week in Virginia. This star might be ready to take her career to another level with a third victory this week in the Buckeye State.

Madelene Sagstrom was tied for second on the European Solheim Cup Team for most points won. One of the longer players on Tour, the Swede is also one of the best putters, a promising combination for success at TPC River’s Bend. Haeran Ryu is the only player who can win back-to-back after her playoff victory in Boston over Jin Young Ko at the FM Championship. Her ball striking fits the blueprint, but can she keep that putter going after a couple of weeks off?

The next two weeks are going to reward those who can score, as both events allow players to go low and entertain the audience. Keep an eye on Jeeno Thitikul and Esther Henseleit. They both have played great this summer and know how to go low. Their power and putter combo is perfect for the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G. Henseleit’s confidence is still bolstered by her silver-medal performance at Le Golf National, and her stock continues to soar as one of the premiere young stars on the LPGA Tour.

Even though it is a new venue, ball strikers like past champion Minjee Lee still fit the bill. Before the event begins, write down a couple of players you believe will contend come the final round. Then sit back and let the action play out.

There’s nothing better than a Sunday watching your favorite LPGA Tour stars competing at the highest level.

Keith Stewart is an award-winning PGA Professional. He covers the LPGA and PGA TOUR for Golf Digest, SportsGrid, The Sporting News, LPGA, and PGA TOUR. If you are looking to raise your golf acumen and love inside information about the game, check out his weekly newsletter called Read The Line.

Length Will Translate to Scoring at TPC River’s Bend

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