Kroger Queen City Championship 2025 Betting Tips: Jamie’s Five-Each-Way Picks

The LPGA Tour is making its way to TPC River's Bend in Cincinnati this week for the Kroger Queen City Championship. $2million is available in total prize fund for this tournament with 500 CME Points also up for grabs.

Our LPGA golf expert Jamie Worsley is on-hand with a comprehensive preview for the tournament. Check out his Kroger Queen City Championship Betting Tips below, where he has picked out five players to know each-way ranging from 22/1 to 125/1...

You can bet on the tournament and check out the latest Kroger Queen City Championship Odds over on betfred.com

Following a week's break after Miranda Wang earned her maiden LPGA victory at the FM Championship, the LPGA returns to action for the Kroger Queen City Championship at TPC River's Bend. 

TOURNAMENT HISTORY 

Debuting in 2022, the Kroger Queen City Championship is one of the newest events on the LPGA.  

The first two editions were played at Kenwood Country Club, with Ally Ewing winning the inaugural 2022 renewal before Minjee Lee beat Charley Hull in a playoff in 2023. 

It moved to TPC River's Bend last year, where Lydia Ko ran out a comfortable five-shot winner, and she returns to defend at the same course this week. 

THE COURSE 

Opening in 2001, TPC River's Bend was designed by the team of Arnold Palmer and Ed Seay. It has previously hosted tournaments on both the Korn Ferry Tour and Champions Tour, whilst, from 2018 to 2021, it staged the Prasco Charity Championship on the Epson Tour – the feeder circuit to the LPGA. 

The course will be over 170-yards longer this year, with this par 72 now measuring a super-lengthy 6876 yards. It possesses 4x par 3s (166-189 yards), 10x par 4s (353-438 yards) and 4x par 5s (493-578 yards). 

Scoring was typically low here on the Epson Tour, with the first two editions of that 54-hole contest won in scores of -15. That theme continued into this event last year, as Lydia Ko shot 23-under-par to claim the trophy. 

TPC River's Bend is tree-lined yet open, with towering mounds framing holes, creating perfect vantage points for fans. It's hilly, with frequent elevation changes – which result in blind shots into both fairways and greens – and water is in-play on six holes. 

The undulating, doglegged fairways are extremely wide and sloping. The fescue rough is long, punishing the ultra-wayward, and whilst there aren't an abundance of bunkers, they're generally large and penal. 

Average-sized bentgrass greens are subtly contoured and will run at 11.5-12 on the stimp this week. Many are shallow in shape, which makes distance control vital when approaching these tricky pin positions. 

The course features numerous risk/reward chances, including the drivable par-4 4th. The two par 5s on the back nine come in at under 500 yards and will be gettable for most in the field, whilst water protects the front of the shallow greens on the two front-nine par 3s. 

That added length could slightly increase the difficulty at TPC River's Bend this week, but unless it is accompanied by high winds, we will be in for another low-scoring edition of the Kroger Queen City Championship. 

THE WEATHER 

The conditions are forecast to be perfect this week. Bright and warm weather awaits, with temperatures consistently hitting close to 30C. There is no rain on the cards and with nothing but a gentle 5mph breeze, it's all systems go in Ohio.  

KEY STATS 

• SG: Approach/Greens-in-Regulation 

High-quality ball-strikers dominated the top of the leaderboard last year and with players attacking these putting surfaces from the fairways more often than not, it was no surprise to see iron play carry the most importance. 

Lydia Ko ranked 3rd in approach and greens-in-regulation (GIR) on her way that dominant five-shot success. Runner-up Jeeno Thitikul ranked 4th in GIR and 14th in approach; 3rd-place finisher Haeran Ryu ranked 1st in approach; Nelly Korda ranked 2nd in GIR and 11th in approach to finish 5th; and fellow 5th-place finisher Hyo Joon Jang ranked 3rd in approach and 4th in GIR. 

• SG: Off-the-Tee/Driving Distance 

The driver was another significant club for Lydia Ko and her nearest challengers last year. She ranked 16th off-the-tee (OTT) and although she isn't blessed with power, the other top finishers were. 

Jeeno Thitikul ranked 14th OTT and was 11th in driving distance and Haeran Ryu ranked 5th OTT. In 4th, Yuka Saso ranked 6th OTT and 15th in driving distance, whilst Nelly Korda led the field OTT, thanks to ranking 3rd in distance and accuracy. 

• Birdie-or-Better % 

Finally, with another birdie-fest on the cards it will be helpful to focus on the most prolific birdie-makers on tour. 

CORRELATING EVENTS 

The top-class leaderboard that developed in 2024 doesn't really help in identifying correlating events, as the best players can show up and perform just about anywhere. That said, there were three courses I felt would be a useful guide pre-event and they look worth sticking with this year. 

First up is the FM Championship at TPC Boston. This is a fellow Arnold Palmer design that has undulating and largely generous fairways, and bentgrass greens that are similar in size to TPC River's Bend. 

Bentgrass is also the grass of choice on the putting surfaces at Pinnacle Country Club – host of the Arkansas Championship. This is another tree-lined but spacious course, with frequent elevation changes and wide fairways. 

My last suggestion is the Chevron Championship at Carlton Woods. The grass types are different there but it's a very lengthy layout (6911 yards) and has wide, tree-lined fairways that have favoured big hitters. 

THE FIELD 

This high-quality field features 20 of the world's top 25 players. This includes each of the top four: Jeeno Thitikul (No. 1), Nelly Korda (No. 2), Lydia Ko (No. 3) and Minjee Lee (No. 4). 

Lydia Ko and Minjee Lee have of course won the last two editions of this event – Ko last year and Lee in 2023 – and in the absence of the retired Ally Ewing, they're the only former winners in attendance. 

All five of this year's major champions are also teeing it up at TPC River's Bend, with KPMG Women's PGA Championship winner Minjee Lee joined by Mao Saigo (Chevron Championship), Maja Stark (U.S. Women's Open), Grace Kim (Evian Championship) and Miyu Yamashita (Women's Open). 

SELECTIONS 

Market leaders: Jeeno Thitikul 7/1, Nelly Korda 10/1, Minjee Lee 14/1, Lottie Woad 16/1, Rio Takeda 18/1, Miyu Yamashita 20/1 

Akie Iwai 

Akie Iwai got the rewards for an impressive rookie season by winning the Portland Classic three starts ago. She's won multiple titles in each of the last two years in Japan and as a strong, lengthy ball-striker who makes more birdies than most, she has the tools to double her LPGA tally this week. 

Iwai has threatened to break through at this level all season, recording runner-up finishes in the Honda LPGA Thailand and JM Eagle LA Championship. She finally went one better in the Portland Classic a month ago, shooting 24-under-par for a four-shot victory, and she has continued to play well since, finishing 4th in the CPKC Women's Open and 24th in the FM Championship on her two latest outings. 

The Japanese youngster does everything well, but it's her iron play that stands out, ranking 6th in approach and 12th in greens-in-regulation. She ranks a handy 37th in driving distance and currently sitting 3rd in birdie-or-better %, her statistical profile is ideal. 

Iwai hasn't played here before, nor does she have much form on the comp courses mentioned. That being said, with her three best results this year all coming in events where the winning score reached -20 or better, she's a proven birdie-fest performer. 

Haeran Ryu 

Haeran Ryu is the best ball-striker on the LPGA. Although her form has slipped since winning the Black Desert Championship in May, there's little to cause concern and having finished 3rd here last year, she can get back into the mix in Ohio. 

Ryu's win in Utah five months ago immediately followed a 6th-place finish in our first major of the year, the Chevron Championship. She's only missed one cut since then – in the Evian Championship – but has just the one top-10, finishing 7th in Portland three starts ago. 

Ranking 1st in greens-in-regulation and 1st in approach this season, she is untouchable with her irons. She's also 7th off-the-tee – combining power with accuracy, ranking top-35 in both – and although the putter continues to be her weakness, each of her three LPGA wins have come on bentgrass surfaces. 

Ryu shot rounds of 69-65-70-67 to finish 3rd at TPC River's Bend in 2024. When added to her eye-catching comp form – having won the FM Championship, Arkansas Championship, and recorded two top-six finishes in the Chevron Championship – there are few players with a case as alluring as the Korean.  

Nanna Koerstz Madsen 

Nanna Madsen is another power-packed player who excels when the landing areas are a little more generous off the tee. She put that to effective use here in 2024 to finish 9th and having made recent gains in approach, this heavy scorer looks primed to challenge at TPC River's Bend. 

Madsen has enjoyed a largely consistent season, recording eight top-25 finishes in 18 appearances. Her best results came when 4th in the Saudi Ladies International at the start of the year, 4th in the Meijer LPGA Classic, and just four starts ago she finished 6th in the Women's Scottish Open. 

The Dane teed it up in the FM Championship two weeks since and finished a solid 15th. She was typically strong off-the-tee, ranking 3rd – an area in which she ranks 15th season-long – but it was her approach play that really caught my attention, gaining strokes for the third time in four starts. 

She ranks 3rd for the season in greens-in-regulation, 8th in driving distance, and sitting 6th in birdie-or-better %, Madsen has an appealing group of stats for the demands of this setup. 

Jenny Bae 

I selected Jenny Bae two starts ago at TPC Boston and whilst she didn't quite deliver, there was still a lot to take from her performance. She's appeared comfortable at this level for most of her rookie season and as a quality ball-striker who doesn't lack for power, she is worth another shot this week. 

Bae only turned pro in 2023 after a successful amateur career that took her to No. 16 in the rankings. She won three times on the Epson Tour before gaining her LPGA card this year and has continued to progress. She recorded a runner-up finish in the Riviera Maya Open and just two starts ago she picked up her second top-10, finishing 10th in the CPKC Women's Open. 

Her long game has looked great in her most recent starts, ranking 7th in approach at the CPKC Women's Open. Furthermore, her 35th-place finish in the FM Championship last time out was engineered by rankings of 10th off-the-tee and 26th in approach. 

It is the driver that has been her biggest weapon this year, ranking 33rd off-the-tee and at 25th in driving distance, she has the firepower to tackle this lengthy layout. 

Bae didn't play in this event last year and has no comp form of note. However, having finished 2nd in the Augusta National Women's Amateur in 2023, she's certainly capable of performing on undulating, tree-lined courses with wide fairways and bentgrass greens. 

Julia Lopez Ramirez 

If formidable drivers are the way to go, who better than the best and longest driver on tour, Julia Lopez Ramirez. Although lacking consistency, the Spanish rookie has displayed plenty of positives this season and after making improvements in approach on her last start, she is an exciting contender. 

Ramirez is a former No. 1 amateur and turned pro at the end of 2024. She immediately headed off to the LPGA Q-Series, where a 10th-place finish was enough to secure her spot on the tour. 

Following four missed cuts in her first five starts, she's gone on to miss just a further four in her next 12. Her best result came courtesy of a 3rd-place finish in the Women's Scottish Open and she also impressed in the majors, finishing 19th in the US Women's Open, 28th in the Evian Championship and 36th in the KPMG Women's PGA Championship. Meanwhile, when we last saw her, she finished 28th in the FM Championship. 

The driver is a serious weapon, ranking 1st off-the-tee and driving distance in 2025. She's also a strong 34th in putting and though her irons have been a concern, it was encouraging to see her gain strokes with the clubs at TPC Boston, where she ranked 37th in approach. 

We've had 10 first-time winners on the LPGA this season and possessing the potential to become one of the stars of the tour, Lopez Ramirez can become the 11th maiden winner at TPC River's Bend. 

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