While Lexi Thompson made it clear throughout last year that she was not stepping away from the game of golf completely, it may have come as a surprise to many that she already has four appearances under her belt at the start of the season.
It was definitely a significant moment for the LPGA when Lexi Thompson announced that she would retire from playing a full-time schedule after the 2024 season.
The 30-year-old has been one of the biggest stars in the game for well over a decade. Meanwhile, she had spent her entire adult life playing golf at the highest level.
Admittedly, Thompson’s form had dropped off. Her most recent win on the LPGA Tour came back in 2019, while she missed the cut in five of her eight major appearances across 2023 and 2024.
Lexi Thompson was never looking to make up the numbers at The Chevron Championship
However, she rolled back the years at The Chevron Championship this past week, with Thompson finishing in a tie for 14th. She had gone into the final round just three shots off the lead before falling away over the final 18 holes in Texas.
But perhaps Thompson would take offence to the idea that she has taken her foot off the pedal since the turn of the year.
Speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Amy Rogers suggested that she was taken aback by how Thompson reacted to missing the cut at the JM Eagle LA Championship the week before the first major of the year.
“So I was out in LA for the tournament leading up to The Chevron Championship where she ended up missing the cut, and I saw her on the weekend and she was on the range for hours, grinding on the range with her brother that I almost wanted to go back and check the leaderboard, is she still in the field? She’s still out here working. I couldn’t believe it, I’m like I thought you were retired,” she said.
“If I had missed the cut, I would have headed on over to Texas or gone out to the beach in California, and she was just grinding away. I think there’s a little bit of still transitioning time happening here for Lexi Thompson. This is all she’s done. This has been her whole life for so long that I think right now she’s still very much in golf mode.”
Lexi Thompson shared how hard she was practicing after arriving in Texas ahead of The Chevron Championship
Remarkably, Thompson’s practice seemingly did not let up once she had arrived at Carlton Woods. In fact, she suggested after her second round at The Chevron Championship that she may not have ever worked harder.
“Coming into the week, if I’m being honest, I wasn’t hitting it great coming off last week. Didn’t really know what to expect,” she said.
“But Monday through Wednesday I don’t think I’ve ever practiced that hard and like worked with my brother Curtis on the bag and my dad, and just going back and forth with things that could possibly work.
“Sometimes you just got to go out there and focus in on one thing and let it go. So I’m very proud of myself, and been having fun the last two days.”
Thompson may be benefitting from being under less pressure from the outside. She was under so much scrutiny during the majority of her career, and it did appear that she, understandably, struggled to deal with that at times.
It remains to be seen whether she can sustain this form the longer her part-time schedule goes on. But there is absolutely no question that it is great news for the LPGA to have Thompson playing – and playing well.
Another major title is going to be a huge ask given the talent around right now. But certainly, there will be plenty of people tempted to back Thompson to put herself in the mix for the 2026 Solheim Cup team.
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