A women’s championship with deep roots

The San Francisco City Championship is not just another spring event. It is one of the foundational traditions of public-course golf in America.

Inaugurated in 1916 with the opening of Lincoln Park and later associated closely with Harding Park after its opening in 1925, “The City” has developed a reputation unlike any other municipal championship. It has long been described as the oldest consecutively played competition in the world, surviving the interruptions that halted many of golf’s most famous championships during wartime.

Although the men’s championship traditionally draws the biggest galleries, women have always held an important place in the event’s identity. The women’s division has produced champions who went on to star nationally and professionally, and the list of winners reflects the Bay Area’s deep connection to elite women’s golf.

That history is part of what makes Friday meaningful. The Women’s Championship is not simply opening another bracket. It is adding another chapter to an event whose winners include local legends, LPGA standouts, and some of the most decorated amateur players the region has produced.

Women’s championship score history and notable winners

The women’s side of the City has long rewarded players who can handle both the emotional demands of match play and the specific challenge of San Francisco’s public-course rota. Past winners include local standouts, future professionals, and players who returned again and again to build their place in tournament history.

Beyond the recent winners, the deeper historical record is even more impressive. Juli Inkster won the title twice before her LPGA career took off. Jan Ferraris, later an LPGA player, won it four times. Shelley Hamlin, another LPGA standout, won it three times. Dorothy Delasin also appears among the event’s notable champions, and former Curtis Cup player Pat Cornett-Iker captured the women’s title three times.

Above them all stands Sally Krueger, the most successful female competitor in championship history. Krueger won the women’s title an astounding 10 times, a mark that remains one of the defining records of the San Francisco City Championship.

Women’s Senior adds another layer to championship week

The Women’s Senior division gives the championship another important dimension. Open to players 50 and older, it reflects the same spirit that has always defined “The City”: broad participation, local pride, and a format that still makes players earn every round.

The senior bracket is smaller, but that only heightens the urgency. With just eight players advancing out of qualifying, there is very little room for error. A player who gets off to a steady start can lock in a seed and begin thinking about match play. A player who stumbles early may find there is almost no time to recover.

It also adds generational depth to the week. The same championship that once launched future stars and local icons now continues to create meaningful competition for senior players who still want the tension, structure, and prestige of match play at Harding Park.

Lincoln Park starts it. Harding Park decides it.

The City’s character is inseparable from its courses.

• Lincoln Park: Friday’s qualifying site, where wind, uneven lies, and exposed conditions can put pressure on every shot.
• TPC Harding Park: The championship stage, where the bracket tightens and match play feels bigger with each round.

That progression matters. Qualifying at Lincoln Park demands control and patience. Match play at Harding Park demands nerve. Together, they give the championship its identity — one rooted not just in history, but in the public-golf idea that a great event should test every part of a player’s game.

Why this championship still matters

Professional golf has passed through Harding Park at different moments, but it is amateur golf that has kept the course’s legend alive. The City remains the event locals speak about with unusual reverence because it still feels connected to place, community, and golfing identity in a way many tournaments no longer do.

That feeling carries into the women’s divisions as much as any part of the championship. Today’s qualifiers are competing for more than spots in a bracket. They are competing to join a line of champions that includes Hall of Famers, LPGA winners, regional greats, and the Bay Area players who made this event matter long before national tours ever arrived.

As the women’s and women’s senior divisions begin, the test is straightforward: one round to earn a seed, then a week of match play to earn a title. The format is simple. The history behind it is anything but.