01필드 위의 별들이 한자리에, 2026 월마트 NW 아칸소 챔피언십 주요 조 발표
2026 LPGA 투어의 열기를 이어갈 '월마트 NW 아칸소 챔피언십 presented by P&G'가 공식 조 편성을 발표하며 본격적인 대회 카운트다운에 돌입했다. 이번 대회는 세계 정상급 골퍼들이 대거 출전하는 만큼, 어떤 선수들이 같은 조에서 맞대결을 펼칠지가 최대 관심사로 떠올랐다. 대회 조직위원회는 팬들의 기대에 부응하기 위해 흥미진진한 '피처드 그룹(Featured Groups)' 구성을 마쳤다.
이번에 공개된 주요 조 편성에는 투어를 이끄는 스타 플레이어들이 대거 이름을 올렸다. P&G가 후원하는 이번 대회는 매년 아칸소에서 짜릿한 승부를 연출해 왔으며, 2026년 대회 역시 선수들의 기량을 극대화할 수 있는 조 배정을 통해 박진감 넘치는 경기를 예고하고 있다. 특히 특정 조는 세계 랭킹 상위권자들로 구성되어 대회 초반 분위기를 주도할 것으로 보인다.
대회 공식 채널과 방송 중계를 통해 생중계될 주요 조의 경기는 골프 팬들에게 차원이 다른 볼거리를 제공할 예정이다. 각 조에 배정된 선수들은 아칸소의 코스를 공략하기 위한 각자의 전략을 선보이며 우승 트로피를 향한 첫 발을 내딛는다. 팬들은 공식 플랫폼을 통해 실시간으로 업데이트되는 조별 상황을 확인하며 대회의 열기를 생생하게 즐길 수 있다.
02Original (English) — LPGA
Amy Rogers is an award winning multimedia journalist and freelance writer who has covered professional golf since 2007. She is a contributor to LPGA.com in addition to the Golf Channel and BBC's coverage of the LPGA Tour.
The Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G celebrates its platinum anniversary with the tournament’s 20th edition being played this weekend at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Arkansas. It’s one of the longest-running events on the LPGA Tour’s regular-season schedule and this year the 54-hole event will feature one of its strongest fields in recent memory with the addition of 18 Solheim Cup competitors to the field. Here’s a closer look at the players to watch this week as the Tour winds into the closing stretch of the season.
Friday, 7:48 a.m., 10th tee; Saturday, 12:48 p.m., 1st tee - Charley Hull, Rose Zhang, Jennifer Kupcho
A trio of Solheim Cup competitors reunite for the opening rounds of the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship with Europe’s Charley Hull competing alongside Americans Rose Zhang and Jennifer Kupcho. Hull is coming off a tie for 17th in her last start at the FM Championship and making a long-awaited return to Arkansas where she last competed in 2022 and was tied for fifth for the week. Zhang is making her tournament debut at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship and will look to build off her tie for fourth at the FM Championship where she picked up one of her best finishes of the year. Kupcho missed the cut in her last start at the FM Championship, but she certainly found a spark with her standout performance at the Solheim Cup. Kupcho was tied for seventh at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship in 2024.
Friday, 7:59 a.m., 10th tee; Saturday, 12:59 p.m., 1st tee - Auston Kim, Mao Saigo, Gaby Lopez
The opportunity to compete for the first time in the Solheim Cup has been known to give a boost to players, like Kim, who are seeking their first win on the LPGA Tour. The Solheim Cup rookie was tied for 44th at Pinnacle Country Club in 2024. Saigo returns to the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship where she was tied for fourth in 2024 and is coming off a tie for 27th in her last start at the FM Championship. Lopez, who played for the Razorbacks at the University of Arkansas, has deep ties to the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. The local fan favorite was tied for 27th in Arkansas in 2024 and had the same result in her last competitive start at the FM Championship.
Friday, 1:21 p.m., 1st tee; Saturday, 8:21 a.m. 10th tee - Jing Yan, Amy Yang, Nasa Hataoka
After enjoying a strong start to the year with two top 10s early in the season, Yan has struggled with missed cuts in three of her last four starts. She’ll look to get her season back on track as she returns to Arkansas where she was tied for 58th in 2024. Yang will return to action after dealing with an injury at the FM Championship where she was forced to withdraw in the first round. Yang was tied for 44th in Arkansas in 2024. Hataoka knows what it takes to navigate Pinnacle Country Club as a two-time winner of the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. Hataoka, who won in 2018 and 2021, was tied for 13th in her last start at the FM Championship.
Friday, 1:43 p.m., 10th tee; Saturday, 8:43 a.m. 1st tee - Mirabel Ting, Isi Gabsa, Camille Boyd
Ting earned one of two Monday qualifying spots to get into the field at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. Ting should get used to competing in the LPGA Tour ranks as the two-time winner this season on the Epson Tour leads the Race for the Card and has already secured membership on the LPGA for next season. Gabsa makes a rare return to Arkansas where she last competed in 2022 and was tied for 21st for the week. Gabsa is coming off a tie for 44th at the FM Championship where she was able to end a string of four missed cuts prior to teeing it up in Boston. Boyd will make her tournament debut in Arkansas as a rookie on the LPGA Tour. She last teed it up at the CPKC Women’s Open where she missed the cut.
Friday, September 25: 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. on Golf Channel
Saturday, September 26: 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. on Golf Channel
Sunday, September 27: 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. on Golf Channel