ANA Inspiration


The ANA Inspiration is one of the five major championships of professional women's golf. An event of the LPGA Tour, it is held yearly at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California.
Currently, in the United States, it is the only one of the five women's major golf tournaments not to have broadcast network exposure on the weekend; all four rounds are currently televised by the Golf Channel cable television network.

History

Founded in 1972 by Colgate-Palmolive chairman and entertainer the tournament has been classified as a major since Since its inception, it has been held annually at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California, southeast of Palm Springs. It is the first major of the year, usually played in late March or early April. All Nippon Airways became the title sponsor in late 2014, and IMG manages and operates the event for ANA.
At its debut in 1972 as a 54-hole event, it was the richest event in women's its purse was more than double that of the LPGA Championship or the U.S. Women's Open. The first edition invited all winners of tour events from the previous

Tournament names

"Poppie's Pond"

Since 1988, the winner traditionally celebrates her victory by jumping in the pond surrounding the 18th green. The pond is known as Champions Lake or "Poppie's Pond" as it was dubbed in 2006 honor of Terry Wilcox, the tournament director from 1994 through 2008; Wilcox is known as "Poppie" to his
Amy Alcott started the practice in 1988 to celebrate her second win here, and repeated in 1991, including tournament host It was not embraced by others until 1994, when Donna Andrews made the leap, followed by Nanci Bowen the next year, and it became an annual In 1998, winner Pat Hurst waded in only up to her knees, as she could
Originally a very natural water hazard, the portion near the bridge it is now lined with concrete and has treated water, more like a swimming pool.

Lesbian tourist destination

The tournament has become a popular tourist destination for some lesbians and bisexual women, drawing thousands of lesbian spectators each year to the golf events and It has been referred to as "spring break for lesbians."

Winners

^ Play extended one day due to darkness.
Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.

Winners as a non-major

Multiple champions

Multiple winners of the event as a major championship.
ChampionCountryTotalYears
Amy Alcott31983, 1988, 1991
Betsy King31987, 1990, 1997
Annika Sörenstam ‡32001, 2002, 2005
Juli Inkster ‡21984, 1989
Dottie Pepper21992, 1999
Karrie Webb ‡22000, 2006
Brittany Lincicome22009, 2015

Through 2018, the only successful defense of the title was by Sörenstam in 2002.
Major titles in this event, by nationality.
NationalityWins
21
5
5
2
1
1
1
1