The Kraft Nabisco Championship is one of the four major championships on the LPGA Tour. It was founded in 1972 by Dinah Shore and has been classified as a major since 1983. The annual tournament has been held at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California since its inception. The sponsors are Kraft Foods and Nabisco.
Tournament names through the years:
- 1972-1980: Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle
- 1981: Colgate-Dinah Shore
- 1982: Nabisco Dinah Shore Invitational
- 1983-1999: Nabisco Dinah Shore
- 2000-2001: Nabisco Championship
- 2002–present: Kraft Nabisco Championship
The tournament is still sometimes called the Dinah Shore, even though Shore's name was removed from the tournament title in 2000.
Beginning in 1988, the tournament winner has celebrated her victory by jumping in the pond surrounding the 18th green. The pond is known as Champions Lake or "Poppie's Pond" as it was dubbed in 2006 honor of Terry Wilcox, the tournament director from 1994 through 2008; Wilcox is known as “Poppie” to his grandchildren. Amy Alcott started the practice but it was not fully embraced until 1994 when Donna Andrews took the leap and it has since become a yearly tradition. One of the most memorable jumps was in 1991 after Alcott won for the third time and made the jump with then tournament host Dinah Shore. In 1998, winner Pat Hurst jumped in only up to her knees, as she could not swim. Today, the pond jump has become the Green Jacket of the LPGA.
The tournament has become a popular tourist destination for some lesbians and bisexual women, drawing thousands of lesbian spectators each year to the golf events and associated parties. It has been referred to as "spring break for lesbians."
Read more about Kraft Nabisco Championship: Winners, Winners Before The Event Became A Major in 1983, Multiple Champions, Champions By Nationality