Browsing: LPGA

Sei Young Kim led the BMW Ladies Championship at the end of first, second and third rounds this week at Pine Beach Golf Links in South Korea, but in the final round the nerves set in.

The 32-year-old South Korean pro hadn’t won a tournament since 2020, but she was in position to end the drought on Sunday — and then she missed a makable birdie putt on the first hole and three-putted for bogey on the third.

“I was very nervous from the very beginning, since it has been a while since I played in the last group, I wasn’t sure whether this was real. So I really was questioning myself,” Kim said. “… My father always told me when I’m nervous, ‘Don’t back off’ and I tried to remember that mindset.”

Kim didn’t make another bogey and made birdies on 5, 6, 7 and 9. She added two more on 14 and 15 to sign for a five-under 67 and cruised to the finish line. At 24 under, she beat runner-up Nasa Hataoka by four. Celine Boutier and A Lim Kim tied for third at 18 under.

It’s Kim’s 13th career victory, and she’s now a record 27th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season.

“I think it shows how strong the LPGA Tour is at the moment,” Kim said.

Back in 2019, Kim won three times, including the CME Group Tour Championship. She won twice more in 2020, highlighted by her only major title at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in October 2020 (which pushed her to No. 2 in the world). A month later she won the Annika but hasn’t lifted another trophy since.

As the drought continued, her confidence dwindled.

“There wasn’t any victory for the past five years. I was worried that this was going to get longer,” she said. “I just wanted to try hard, whether it takes five years or 10 years. I think it’s very important that you find the momentum and keep on that track, and keeping on the right track is I think one of the biggest lessons that I have learned. I want to take this momentum to have more wins in my career going forward.”

Kim started the day with a four-shot lead over Yealimi Noh and Hataoka, but Noh played the final 14 holes in even par after she was two under in the first four. Hataoka was one under after 11 and then birdied four of her last five, and while that late surge was good enough for runner-up honors, it wasn’t near enough to scare Kim.

“I think it took me more than 10 years to win in front of my family and friends,” Kim said. “It means so much to me. It is a tournament that I really wanted to win, and I find that I can’t express my words to all of it. I really had good energy from all the fans.”

HAENAM, South Korea — Decade-long LPGA Tour veteran Sei Young Kim carded a final round 67 to hold off any final round challengers as she claimed a four-stoke victory at the BMW Ladies Championship on Sunday.

It was Kim’s 13th career title since joining the tour in 2015, and ended a five-year long drought since her last tournament victory at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in 2020.

Kim, 32, finished with a four-round total of 24-under-264 at Pine Beach Golf Links on the Korean peninsula, with the South Korean only dropping a shot at the par-3 third before finding six birdies through the remainder of the round to comfortably hold her closest rival, Nasa Hataoka, at bay.

Hataoka of Japan also had a final round 67 to finish at 20-under 268, with Celine Boutier (67) and Kim A-lim (66) a further two shots back in a share for third place.

Defending champion Hannah Green shot 66 and finished at 17-under 271 in a share for fifth with Yealimi Noh (70) of the United States. Fellow American Lindy Duncan (65) was a shot further back in a three-way tie for seventh with South Korean pair Hye-jin Choi (63) and Narin An (63) who shared the lowest round of the day.

Jeeno Thitikul last week became the first multiple winner on the LPGA this season with a five-hole playoff win in Shanghai over Minami Katsu. Thitikul did not play this week but will be part of Thailand’s team in the International Crown next week.

After the International Crown, two more LPGA events are scheduled on the five-event Asian swing — at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and in Japan.

Oct 19, 2025, 05:56 AM ET

HAENAM, South Korea — Decade-long LPGA Tour veteran Sei Young Kim carded a final round 67 to hold off any final round challengers as she claimed a four-stoke victory at the BMW Ladies Championship on Sunday.

It was Kim’s 13th career title since joining the tour in 2015, and ended a five-year long drought since her last tournament victory at the Women’s PGA Championship in 2020.

Kim, 32, finished with a four-round total of 24-under-264 at Pine Beach Golf Links on the Korean peninsula, with the South Korean only dropping a shot at the par-3 third before finding six birdies through the remainder of the round to comfortably hold her closest rival, Nasa Hataoka, at bay.

Hataoka of Japan also had a final round 67 to finish at 20-under 268, with Celine Boutier (67) and Kim A-lim (66) a further two shots back in a share for third place.

Defending champion Hannah Green shot 66 and finished at 17-under 271 in a share for fifth with Yealimi Noh (70) of the United States. Fellow American Lindy Duncan (65) was a shot further back in a three-way tie for seventh with South Korean pair Choi Hye-jin (63) and An Na-rin (63) who shared the lowest round of the day.

Jeeno Thitikul last week became the first multiple winner on the LPGA this season with a five-hole playoff win in Shanghai over Minami Katsu. Thitikul did not play this week but will be part of Thailand’s team in the International Crown next week.

After the International Crown, two more LPGA events are scheduled on the five-event Asian swing — at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and in Japan.

Oct 17, 2025, 06:22 AM ET

HAENAM, South Korea — Sei Young Kim followed up her opening 10-under 62 with a 66 Friday to take a one-stroke lead into the weekend at the BMW Ladies Championship.

Kim had a two-round total of 16-under 128 on the Pine Beach Golf Links. She had a bogey and seven birdies, including three in a row on the front nine.

“There’s a lot of pressure on the third and fourth day, but it’s not just me. Everyone will have the same pressure,” Kim said Friday. “But I just want to accept the fact and enjoy the rest of the tournament.”

American Brooke Matthews was in second place after a 64, the low round of the day. Hyo Joo Kim had a 68 and was tied for third with Rio Takeda (66), three behind Kim.

The bogey-free round by Matthews, a former University of Arkansas player, included birdies on her opening two holes and on 17 and 18.

“It’s kind of funny, I didn’t feel very comfortable coming into this week, playing China last week, didn’t really have my best stuff,” Matthews said. “But (it) made me go out there and play it shot-by-shot, lower expectations and I feel like I just managed it really well. Just kind of stayed in the moment, and ended up making some putts and racking up some good scores.”

Australia’s Minjee Lee shot 66 and was tied for sixth, six strokes behind Kim. Canadian Brooke Henderson shot 68 and was seven off the lead while defending champion Hannah Green had a 69 and was nine strokes behind Kim.

This is the first of consecutive LPGA tournaments in South Korea, with the International Crown team event scheduled for next week.

Jeeno Thitikul last week became the first multiple winner on the LPGA this season with a five-hole playoff win in Shanghai over Minami Katsu. Thitikul is not playing this week but will be part of Thailand’s team in the International Crown next week.

After the International Crown, two more LPGA events are scheduled on the five-event Asian swing — at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and in Japan.

Oct 16, 2025, 06:30 AM ET

HAENAM, South Korea — Two decade-long veterans on the LPGA Tour — 32-year-old Sei Young Kim and 34-year-old American Lindy Duncan — were among the leaders after the first round of the BMW Ladies Championship on Thursday.

Kim had eight birdies and an eagle for a 10-under 62 to top the leaderboard at the Pine Beach Golf Links. Duncan was two strokes behind after making birdies on three of her final five holes.

In between the pair was Hyo Joo Kim, who shot 63.

Sei Young Kim joined the LPGA Tour in 2015, a year after Duncan. The big difference is that Kim has 12 career LPGA victories and Duncan none.

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Kim moved to 9 under and the lead with a birdie on the par-3 15th hole.

“This is near my hometown, so I have lots of family, my cousins, a lot of fans,” Kim said. “So I had a great start from the first hole and all the way through 18th hole, getting a lot of support.”

Rio Takeda shot 65 and was in a group tied for fourth.

Canadian Brooke Henderson shot 67, while American Lucy Li, who had a hole-in-one on the par-3 13th and won a car, had a 68.

“It was a good number into the wind. I hit it right at the pin,” Li said of her ace. “Thought it might end up a little short, but it went in. I just started freaking out. I was like, this is the hole-in-one hole. I’ve been complaining all week to my caddie about having not holed out this year.”

Hannah Green, who is the defending champion, started off with consecutive birdies but stalled throughout her round and finished with a 68, as did fellow Australian Minjee Lee.

Green’s win last year was her third of the 2024 season, making her the first Australian player since Karrie Webb to win three times in a season on the LPGA Tour.

Green’s recent finishes on tour include a tie for 28th and a missed cut in Canada in August and a tie for 66th in Arkansas in September.

“My golf game hasn’t been quite where I would like it to be. The last few months has been probably the most hard time I’ve had in my career,” Green said before the first round. “I was back in Australia for the last three weeks, so was able to reset.”

This is the first of consecutive tournaments in South Korea, with the International Crown team event scheduled for next week.

Jeeno Thitikul last week became the first multiple winner on the LPGA Tour this season with a five-hole playoff victory in Shanghai over Minami Katsu, who shot 68 on Thursday in South Korea. Thitikul is not playing this week but will be part of Thailand’s team in the International Crown next week.

After the International Crown, two more LPGA events are scheduled on the five-event Asian swing at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and in Japan.

SHANGHAI — Jeeno Thitikul came from four shots down with five holes to play to force a playoff with Minami Katsu, before producing another extraordinary shot on the fifth playoff hole to claim the LPGA Shanghai and become the first two-time LPGA tournament winner of the season on Sunday.

Top-ranked Thitikul’s 63 was the round of the day and included seven birdies and an eagle. The Thai player’s 24-under 264 closed what had appeared to be a comfortable margin for overnight leader Katsu of Japan, who had started the day two shots ahead and extended that to four after the 13th.

But the Thai player reeled that in with birdies on the 14th, 15th and 16th, before an incredible eagle with the ball bouncing along the mottled 17th green of Qizhong Garden Golf Club in Shanghai to draw level.

Katsu (65) could only respond with a birdie of her own at the 17th, but had another birdie chance on the final hole to claw back the victory only for the ball to slide past the hole and forcing the playoff.

Pars through the first four playoff holes, rotated between the 18th and the 10th, included Katsu having two birdie putts to win only to narrowly miss the hole on both.

On the fifth playoff hole the deadlock was broken as a brilliant approach by Thitikul placed the ball 3 feet away, while Katsu’s second shot fell short of the green at the par-4 18th.

Katsu’s chip for birdie was impressive but missed, leaving Thitikul a simple birdie putt to close out a remarkable victory nearly two years after losing in an epic nine-hole playoff to Celine Boutier at the LPGA Malaysia.

From disappointment to delight

It was Thitikul’s second win of the season after claiming the Mizuho Americas Open in May and helped ease the disappointment of her inexplicable four-putt meltdown on the final hole at the Kroger Queen City Championship last month.

“What happened on the last event (was) definitely still in my mind, but like to be able to prove myself again this tournament, which is … like a dream come true and you know, I’m not carrying a thing on my shoulder,†she said.

Minjee Lee, who won her third major title at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in June, shot 68 on Sunday for a 19-under 269 as her challenge faded through the middle part of the round for a third-place finish.

Jenny Bae had a round of 69 and finished in a tie for fourth with Miyu Yamashita (67) of Japan and Somi Lee (69) of South Korea at 17-under 271.

Defending champion Ruoning Yin of China carded a final round of 68 to finish in a tie for 26th.

The Shanghai event is the first of five tournaments in Asia. There are two weeks in South Korea, including the International Crown team event, and other tournaments in Malaysia and Japan.

Oct 12, 2025, 06:48 AM ET

SHANGHAI — Jeeno Thitikul came from four shots down with five holes to play to force a playoff with Minami Katsu, before producing another extraordinary shot on the fifth playoff hole to claim the LPGA Shanghai and become the first two-time LPGA tournament winner of the season on Sunday.

Top-ranked Thitikul’s 63 was the round of the day and included seven birdies and an eagle. The Thai player’s 24-under 264 closed what had appeared to be a comfortable margin for overnight leader Katsu of Japan, who had started the day two shots ahead and extended that to four after the 13th.

But the Thai player reeled that in with birdies on the 14th, 15th and 16th, before an incredible eagle with the ball bouncing along the mottled 17th green of Qizhong Garden Golf Club in Shanghai to draw level.

Katsu (65) could only respond with a birdie of her own at the 17th, but had another birdie chance on the final hole to claw back the victory only for the ball to slide past the hole and forcing the playoff.

Pars through the first four playoff holes, rotated between the 18th and the 10th, included Katsu having two birdie putts to win only to narrowly miss the hole on both.

On the fifth playoff hole the deadlock was broken as a brilliant approach by Thitikul placed the ball three feet away, while Katsu’s second shot fell short of the green at the par-4 18th.

Katsu’s chip for birdie was impressive but missed, leaving Thitikul a simple birdie putt to close out a remarkable victory nearly two years after losing in an epic nine-hole playoff to Celine Boutier at the LPGA Malaysia.

From disappointment to delight

It was Thitikul’s second win of the season after claiming the Mizuho Americas Open in May and helped ease the disappointment of her inexplicable four-putt meltdown on the final hole at the Kroger Queen City Championship last month.

“What happened on the last event (was) definitely still in my mind, but like to be able to prove myself again this tournament, which is … like a dream come true and you know, I’m not carrying a thing on my shoulder,” she said.

Minjee Lee, who won her third major title at the Women’s PGA Championship in June, shot 68 on Sunday for a 19-under 269 as her challenge faded through the middle part of the round for a third-place finish.

Jenny Bae of the United States had a round of 69 and finished in a tie for fourth with Miyu Yamashita (67) of Japan and Somi Lee (69) of South Korea at 17-under 271.

Defending champion Ruoning Yin of China carded a final round of 68 to finish in a tie for 26th.

The Shanghai event is the first of five tournaments in Asia. There are two weeks in South Korea, including the International Crown team event, and other tournaments in Malaysia and Japan.

The 2025 Buick LPGA Shanghai got off to a rocky start after pictures of heat-torched greens surfaced on Wednesday. But the week will end Sunday with two of the Tour’s premier players — Minjee Lee and World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul — looking to go low in the final round at Qizhong Garden Golf Club to prevent history from transpiring.

Entering the week, the LPGA had seen 26 different champions across 25 events so far this season. Twenty-six unique winners in a season is a record mark set in 1995 before being matched in 2018, 2022 and this year. That mark is an impressive show of parity for the LPGA, but also leaves it without a clear Player of the Year candidate or dominant star to draw eyeballs. Nelly Korda, who won seven times in 2024, has yet to enter the winner’s circle in 2025.

That brings us to this week in Shanghai, where Japan’s Minami Katsu enters Sunday’s final round with a two-shot lead over Thitikul and Lee.

Katsu blitzed Qizhong Garden Golf Club, firing an 11-under-par 61 to vault into the lead. Katsu, who is still looking for her first LPGA win, backed up that 61 with a 68 on Saturday, but watched as Thitikul and Lee appeared in her rearview mirror. Thitikul fired a third-round 66 while Lee carded a 65 to get within two of Katsu with 18 holes to play.

“Obviously they’re two of the great players,” Katsu said of Thitikul and Lee, who she will be paired with Sunday. “Really looking forward to playing with them. I’m sure there is a lot of things I can learn from them. At the same time try to keep my game — focus on my game and really looking to play with them tomorrow.”

Katsu holes two-shot lead at Buick LPGA Shanghai

Thitikul and Lee have both already triumphed this season.

The World No. 1 won the Mizuho Americas Open in May and has recently been knocking on the door of win No. 2 in 2025. Thitikul carded back-to-back runner-up finishes in her last two starts at the FM Championship and the Kroger Queen City Championship. Last month, Thitikul four-putted on the 72nd hole of the Kroger Queen City Championship to hand the trophy to Charley Hull. Those near-misses haven’t scarred Thitikul, only sharpened her belief in herself.

“If you told me I can get second in every tournament this year for the whole season, 30-something, I’ll take it,” Thitikul said about her close calls. “What I’m learning is the five wins that I have on the LPGA is the past as well, so I don’t carry on my shoulder. I don’t carry it in my head.”

After a bogey-free 66 on Saturday, Thitikul is once again in a position to become the first multi-time winner on the LPGA this season.

“Every time that I play in contention on Sunday, it’s really excitement and then nervous for sure,” Thitkul said “Like 18 holes, 18 opportunities for everyone. Not just for me. So, I’m trying my best.

“I don’t think I’m doing anything special,” Thitikul said later. “I think it’s just golf, where it’s some of the day you play really good and some of the day you’re not that fancy. I think yesterday I had not a really good iron shots, so I think today I have better iron shots, which is giving me more opportunities than yesterday.”

The third part of Sunday’s equation is Lee, who won her third career major this year at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Fields Ranch East in Frisco, Texas. The Australian started the third round five strokes off the pace and in a tie for eighth. She opened with a sloppy bogey on the par-5 first but then got blistering hot during a 10-hole stretch that saw her make eight birdies, including five in a row from No. 7-11.

In June at Fields Ranch East, Lee survived sweltering temperatures to pull away from Thitikul on the weekend to win her third major.

Sunday in Shanghai will be a similar story, with Katsu’s two-shot lead serving as an added wrinkle.

It will be Lee and Thitikul in blistering temperatures expected to be in the mid-90s. It will be two of the LPGA’s best trying to end a historic run of parity. And there will be Minami Katsu, looking to become the 27th unique winner on the LPGA this season and enter the winner’s circle for the first time in her career.

SHANGHAI — Minami Katsu holed a long putt on the 18th to finish with a course record 11-under 61 on Friday and take a two-shot lead at the halfway point of the LPGA’s Shanghai tournament.

Katsu had six birdies on the front nine and, after a bogey at the par-4 10th, she finished with six more birdies at the Qizhong Garden Golf Club.

The 27-year-old Japanese player moved to 13-under 131 after two rounds in search of her first victory on the tour.

“It was pretty flawless round — couple luckies I think but really good round overall,†Katsu said. “My career-best was 10 under, so new (personal) record today.â€

Katsu said she wasn’t thinking about any records as she carded 12 birdies, and just concentrated on the basics. She lowered by one stroke the record here for 18 holes set by Sei Young Kim last year.

“Honestly I’m very happy with the record that I made today,†she said. “Obviously we still got two more days to play, so probably no celebration. I’ll try to keep it simple.â€

Katsu also set the 36-hole scoring record.

Ina Yoon had 68 on Friday and was in second place at 11 under, a shot ahead of Americans Jenny Bae and Lindy Duncan (67).

Bae was vying for the lead at 13 under in the last group going into the 18th but her round unraveled at the finish.

She hit into a bunker, took a drop in the hope of getting a better lie and then hit her next shot into the water. Bae finished with a triple-bogey 7 and settled for 69. Her mixed second round contained eight birdies, a pair of bogeys and the triple bogey.

Overnight leader Arpichaya Yubol had a 71 and was in a tie for fifth at 9 under with Somi Lee (67) and Jeeno Thitikul (70).

The Shanghai event is the first of five tournaments in Asia. There’s two weeks in South Korea, including the International Crown team event, and other tournaments in Malaysia and Japan.

Last week, Youmin Hwang extended the incredible streak on the LPGA of having different winners at each of the 25 official tournaments this year. Hwang was the sixth player from South Korea to win on the LPGA this year.

Oct 10, 2025, 06:03 AM ET

SHANGHAI — Minami Katsu holed a long putt on the 18th to finish with a course record 11-under 61 on Friday and take a two-shot lead at the halfway point of the LPGA’s Shanghai tournament.

Katsu had six birdies on the front nine and, after a bogey at the par-4 10th, she finished with six more birdies at the Qizhong Garden Golf Club.

The 27-year-old Japanese player moved to 13-under 131 after two rounds in search of her first victory on the tour.

“It was pretty flawless round — couple luckies I think but really good round overall,” Katsu said. “My career-best was 10 under, so new (personal) record today.”

Katsu said she wasn’t thinking about any records as she carded 12 birdies, and just concentrated on the basics. She lowered by one stroke the course record here for 18 holes set by Sei Young Kim last year.

“Honestly I’m very happy with the record that I made today,” she said. “Obviously we still got two more days to play, so probably no celebration. I’ll try to keep it simple.”

Ina Yoon had 68 on Friday and was in second place at 11 under, a shot ahead of Americans Jenny Bae and Lindy Duncan (67).

Bae was vying for the lead at 13 under in the last group going into the 18th but her round unraveled at the finish.

She hit into a bunker, took a drop in the hope of getting a better lie and then hit her next shot into the water. Bae finished with a triple-bogey 7 and settled for 69. Her mixed second round contained eight birdies, a pair of bogeys and the triple bogey.

Overnight leader Arpichaya Yubol had a 71 and was in a tie for fifth at 9 under with Somi Lee (67) and Jeeno Thitikul (70).

The Shanghai event is the first of five tournaments in Asia. There’s two weeks in South Korea, including the International Crown team event, and other tournaments in Malaysia and Japan.

Last week, Youmin Hwang extended the incredible streak on the LPGA of having different winners at each of the 25 official tournaments this year. Hwang was the sixth player from South Korea to win on the LPGA this year.