Major champion’s historic streak set to end

An LPGA Tour veteran is set to lose her impressive run in major championships.

By playing on a sponsors invite at the Chevron Championship, the longest active major streak in professional golf was extended.

Currently, Jack Nicklaus has his name on the crowns for most major titles and consecutive majors played.

The ‘Golden Bear’ competed in 154 straight majors, for which he was eligible, en route to six Masters wins, five PGA Championships, four U.S. Opens and three Open Championships.

The run, from 1962 to 1998, included 146 major starts in a row.

• Rory McIlroy emphatically shuts down LIV Golf rumours

• Luke Donald names second Ryder Cup vice-captain for 2025

However, no player had a longer active streak than Angela Stanford, who competed in her 98th consecutive major in Texas.

The 46-year-old moved one step closer to Nicklaus when invited to play in the championship by the tournament’s title sponsor and had her sights on reaching the three-digit mark.

“Even if it wasn’t me, I would still want one of our players to cross the line. I wouldn’t care who it was,” Stanford said on reaching 100 consecutive majors.

“I would want an LPGA player to get to 100 because I think it is going to be a historical once-in-a-lifetime kind of deal because Jack Nicklaus is the only human to ever do this.

“When I look at the streak, I think, ‘what a blessing.’ God knew in 2002 what was going to be happening in 2024. So, for me, I just think I’m so grateful that He’s given me the blessing of that.”

• McEwan’s 36 random thoughts and takeaways from The Masters

• The Masters TV ratings ring alarm bells for golf

But it’s unlikely that Stanford will reach the century of consecutive starts, as she failed to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open and was denied a special exemption.

She failed to qualify after two rounds at Soboba Springs Golf Course in San Jacinto, California.

“While a handful of people did not believe the road to 100 was a worthy pursuit, I feel like most did,” Stanford wrote. “Thank you to the LPGA media, golf media, the fans, Chevron, and I believe KPMG and PGA of America would’ve embraced 100.

“As I was standing on my 36th hole today, I was overcome with pride. I haven’t been that proud of myself in a long time. My body held up, thank you Dan. My game held up, thank you Todd. My caddie help up, thank you John.

“Sometimes we don’t get the results we want in this game, but I went after it. I put myself out there and went for a goal that was really hard.”

The 398th-ranked golfer can still gain entry into the championship by winning an LPGA event or climbing into the top 75 in the Rolex Rankings before May 27.

In a statement, the USGA said: “Unlike most other events, our field is quite literally, “open.”

“We allocate roughly 50 percent of our field to open qualifying, which provides an opportunity for any player (not exempt) to earn their way into the championship. We rarely offer special exemptions, as they remove “open” spots from the field, that thousands are competing to earn.

“We don’t have “sponsor invites” nor do we think about our exemptions as media stories and/or “local favorites.” Rather, when we do extend a special exemption, we do it purely based on a player’s extraordinary performances over the years, especially in USGA championships, additional major championships, time spent as World No. 1, Tour wins, as well as recent performances/ranking.

“We wish Angela the best of luck over the coming weeks as she tries to earn a place in the field and hope to see her in Lancaster and in USGA championships for many years to come.”

Since joining the LPGA Tour in 2001, Stanford has won seven times and logged 93 top-ten finishes.

In her 24 years on tour, the Texan has amassed $12,217,650 in career earnings, last winning in 2020 and recording a sole major win at the Evian Championship in 2018.

Signing off her social media post, Stanford wrote: “I’ve been told I should smile more on course.

“I’m going to try that the rest of the year. Play some of my favourites and call it a career on this tour. #Roadto100 #Exit98.”

John Turnbull A graduate of the University of Stirling, John joined the bunkered team in 2023 as a Content Producer, with a responsibility for covering all breaking news, tour news, grassroots content and much more besides. A keen golfer, he plays the majority of his golf at Falkirk Golf Club. Top of his 'bucket list' is a round of Pebble Beach... ideally in the company of Gareth Bale.