RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- Hinako Shibuno's first impression of Mission Hills Country Club was far from confidence-inspiring -- and, in hindsight, mistaken.
"It was a hard course for me. I couldn't even imagine I could play here," the 23-year-old from Japan said through a translator Friday, recalling the initial time she played the event now known as The Chevron Championship.
A year and a half after tying for 51st in her debut, she took a one-stroke lead into the weekend on the mountain-framed course hosting the major championship for the last time. The tournament that started in 1972 and became a major in 1983 is shifting to Houston next year after failing to attract a sponsor willing to keep it at Mission Hills.