What to watch for at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship - ESPN

The second LPGA major of the year returns to a course that the women's game hasn't been to since 1961. Baltusrol's Lower Course in Springfield, New Jersey, was the site of the 1961 U.S. Women's Open, where Mickey Wright won a prize of $1,800 with a score of 5-over that beat the field by six shots.

But Baltusrol's history with the women's game goes even further back to 1901, when it hosted the seventh-ever U.S. Women's Amateur Championship. A lot has changed since 1961 and even more since 1901. Case in point: the winning prize money this week at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship is 5,000 times more than Wright won 62 years ago.

This year's field is also one of the deepest and strongest the tournament has ever had — a reflection of where the sport stands at the moment. It also makes this tournament one filled with a plethora of storylines that range from Rose Zhang to Nelly Korda to Lexi Thompson and even the course itself.

Here's what to watch for this week.

The Rose Zhang hype train arrives in Baltusrol this week for Zhang's first major appearance since she turned professional just a few weeks ago and won her first LPGA event at the Mizuho Americas Open. No big deal.

All eyes will be on Zhang as she tries to not only follow up that historic finish but also simply enjoy the excitement and expectations that surround her given her incredible amateur career. Her pro career isn't off to a bad start, but like any great golfer knows, success is often measured by the number of majors one can accrue.

The KPMG presents Zhang's first shot as a pro, but not her first major experience. She's competed in eight major championships since 2018 — her best finish was a T11 at 2020 Chevron Championship — but she's never teed it up at a PGA