So much has changed about golf the last few decades. This week, at the 69th Jennie K. Wilson Invitational, we celebrate what has stayed the same.

That begins with the challenge and beauty of Mid-Pacific Country Club and its Lanikai setting. It ends — always — with the MPCC ladies who have somehow sustained the remarkably warm ambience of the last women’s major remaining in Hawaii.

“The women, and men, who organize this tournament are phenomenal and so passionate about this tournament and I think that’s why it has lasted so long,” says Anna Murata, who won the first of three Jennie Ks in 1995, when she was 16-year-old Anna Umemura. “They have made sure the history of this tournament doesn’t diminish.

“I love that this tournament has the special blessing on the first day, they decorate the registration table with beautiful flowers. They put so much aloha into this tournament and it really shows and to be part of it is really special.”

It has kept the high quality of the Jennie K. field intact, along with an ability to look into the future.

A few years ago, organizers offered merit scholarships to Hawaii juniors who played Jennie K. and invited some of Japan’s best amateurs. This year, they decided to “pay it forward equally” and replace scholarships with $150 junior entry fee discounts to encourage more to play.

“Their participation provides an opportunity for the junior golfers to compete in Hawaii’s premier ladies golf event,” says Jennie K. committee member Kerry Schuman. “It also encourages their continued dedication to this important sport and provides the chance to be part of a tournament which caters to ladies golfers of all ages.”

The changes coincide with the Hawaii State Golf Association’s recent efforts to provide more opportunities for the state’s best female golfers. It now offers women’s flights in many of its events.

This year, the HSGA is also introducing a State Women’s Player of the Year Award. It offers a $1,000 travel stipend and is based on a point system just like the guys’ award.

Women can earn points at 11 events, including Jennie K., Manoa Cup and State Amateur Stroke Play — a trio that is now, basically, the new Hawaii women’s triple crown.

Murata, who got her amateur status back a few years ago and returned to Jennie K. last year, is all in. She captured her third Jennie K. championship in 1997. Adding the state women’s match and stroke play championships later in the year made her the only golfer to win the triple crown of Hawaii women’s golf.

Those last two events are only open to Hawaii State Women’s Golf Association members now.

“Winning the the Jennie K. was amazing, and winning the triple crown,” she says. “But honestly, the biggest win for me was just being able to come back to this game after so many years of being away. And then being able to compete again has been really special.”

Last year Natsumi Nakanishi, an 18-year-old from Okinawa, became the seventh to win back-to-back Jennie K. titles, then turned pro right after.

This year’s 120-player field has a waiting list, with nearly 30 in Championship Flight and half of those receiving the reduced rate.

Murata, who played for the University of Tennessee, will be on the tee Friday along with Kaci Masuda, who just closed her University of Hawaii golf career and was runner-up the last two years.

They will be surrounded by junior golfers who aspire to those collegiate heights, and beyond. Murata’s advice is simple.

“Work hard, study hard, embrace the change, and enjoy the journey,” she says. “The four years go by very quickly, but you make lifelong friends.”

Golfers from Japan have won five of the last eight Jennie K’s, with only Nicole Sakamoto (2012) and Mariel Galdiano (2014 and ’15) breaking the streak. Galdiano, now a UCLA All-American, set the tournament scoring record of 10-under 206 in 2014. She won by 24 shots the year after, when she shot 212.

Only seven others have broken par over the three days in the last 68 years. The latest was Nakanishi in 2017 and the list includes a trio of runners-up — Masuda in 2017, Ciera Min in 2014 and current LPGA player Stephanie Kono (behind Amanda Wilson) in 2004.