Out of the Rough: Dow Championship (2026)

The LPGA Tour will head to Michigan for the lone team-event on the schedule for this week’s Dow Championship.

First played in 2019, the event emulates the Zurich Classic of New Orleans on the PGA Tour. Teams of two alternate playing foursomes and fourballs across the four day event. There is a 36-hole cut following the first two rounds.

The Midland Country Club in Midland, Michigan has played host to the previous six installments and will host the seventh edition this season.

Although a team event, a purse of $3.3 million is still on the line.

The Field

The uniqueness of this event allows for some rather interesting teams to be established.

We’ve seen plenty of sisters team up for the Dow Championship, just as Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn have done in years past, winning the event in 2021. They’ll be back this season looking for a second Dow Championship title.

We’ve also seen plenty of countrymates team up, just as Somi Lee and Jin Hee Im did a season ago to claim the title. The South Korean duo comes into this week as the defending champions.

We’ve also been lifelong friends, college teammates and other connections form teams over the years.

World No. 1 Nelly Korda will be teeing it up this week alongside Olivia Cowan. Korda last played this event in 2022 alongside sister Jessica.

Hall-of-Famer Juli Inkster will return to the LPGA for the first time since August of 2025, playing alongside Angel Yin this week.

Other notable pairings include Lydia Ko and Danielle Kang, Alison Lee and Lilia Vua as well as Lexi Thompson and Meghan Kang

The Course

The Midland Country Club plays as a par-70 at 6,301 yards

It was opened in 1929 and designed by Gilbert Currie. Recent renovations, performed in 2016, were spearheaded by George Dillon.

Off-the-tee, golfers will face narrow, tree-lined fairways. Well-placed sand bunkers are also in play off-the-tee.

Water hazards play as the main line of defense at this venue. Snake Creek does just as its name suggests, it snakes its way through the course. Snake Creek comes into play on multiple holes.

The greens are a combination of Poa Annua and Bentgrass. They are rather undulating as well.

The course is headlined by its 18th hole. The 18th hole is an island green that is visible from the dining rooms and back patios.

In all, this is a straight forward rather simply golf course that uses water and well-placed bunkers are its main line of defense.

The Weather

As of the time of writing this, Thursday is calling for a 25-percent chance of precipitation. Friday and Saturday are both calling for a 20-percent chance and Sunday a 25-percent chance. Temperatures will be the highest on Thursday at 86-degrees before dropping to 80-degrees on Friday. From there, temperatures will continue to drop to 79-degrees on Saturday and will finish the week at 73-degrees on Sunday. Winds will begin at 12 miles-per-hour on Thursday before jumping to 16 miles-per-hour for both Friday and Saturday. Winds will drop to 13 miles-per-hour for Sunday. 

Key Stats

• Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: Approach)

• Strokes Gained: Putting (SG:Putting)

• Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (SG: TTG)

• Driving Accuracy Percentage

• Ball Striking

• Sand Saves Percentage

• Scrambling

• Birdie or Better Percentage

Betting Card

Megan Kang/Lexi Thompson (+2200)

I’m starting things off with the runner-ups from a season ago. There are two ways as a bettor to attack team events in my opinion. One is to find players who have the same strengths, the other is to find a team that off-set each other's weaknesses. I’m going with the latter here, which has proven successful with a runner-up performance last season. Thompson is 42nd on Tour in SG: PUTT as Khang is 116th. Khang is seventh in driving accuracy percentage as Thompson is 144th. Khang is 37th in ball striking as Thompson is 82nd. Both are quality approach players. Khang is 39th in SG: APP as Thompson is 22nd. I also like that these two have played this event together previously, especially with success. 

Arpichaya Yubol/Pornanong Phatlum (+4000)

Continuing on with the ideology of golfers who offset each other’s weaknesses, we have Yubol and Phatlum. Yubol is 49th on Tour in SG: APP as Phatlum is 122nd. Yubol is 18th in SG: PUTT as Phatlum is 48th. Phatlum is tenth in sand saves percentage as Yubol is 144th. This pairing has also played each of the last two installments together. They placed 14th last season and 29th in 2024. This proves that they’ve improved from year-to-year and have developed a strong connection.

Soo Bin Joo/Narin An (+7500)

An is sixth on Tour in driving accuracy percentage while Joo is 109th. An is ninth in ball striking as Joo is 40th. Joo is 43rd in sand saves percentage as An is 83rd. Joo is 69th in scrambling while An is 118th. Again, I’m going with the teammates that offset each other’s weakness. These two are also quality approach players. Joo is 34th in SG: APP as An is 51st. This is a new pairing, which may be reflected in their price point. An placed 18th last season with teammate Ayaka Furue. Joo missed the cut a season ago with teammate Jeongeun Lee6.