The LPGA has constructed a temporary 15-by-10-foot plunge pool beside the 18th green at Memorial Park in Houston to preserve the Chevron Championship's pond jump tradition during the 2026 event. Organizers plan a permanent pond redesign after this year's tournament. Players like Stacy Lewis and Nelly Korda praised the effort to maintain the 40-year custom started by Amy Alcott.
The Chevron Championship, the LPGA's first major of the year, moved to Houston's Memorial Park municipal course for 2026, lacking a natural pond on the 18th hole. To honor the tradition of winners jumping into the water—a spontaneous act by Amy Alcott after her 1988 victory at the former Nabisco Dinah Shore—tournament officials built a 4.5-foot-deep temporary pool off the right side of the green. Players receive free relief if their ball lands in it during play, similar to grandstand rules, the LPGA stated in a release to GOLF.com. A permanent pond will follow a redesign by architect Tom Doak post-event, enhancing the finishing hole with water on the last four holes, according to Stacy Lewis, the 2011 champion who is retiring after this week. Lewis, speaking Tuesday at Memorial Park, recalled her own jump most vividly from that victory. 'I don’t remember getting the trophy... But I remember the jump and what that felt like and how cold that water was,' she said. She acknowledged the temporary setup's imperfections but stressed its importance: 'Somebody is still going to jump in there... we’ve got to get through this year, but it has to continue.' Nelly Korda, the 2024 winner, vowed to jump if victorious. 'If I’m hoisting the trophy, like I’m going to jump in,' she said Tuesday, crediting Chevron and the LPGA for sustaining the player-originated ritual amid the venue change.
