Ryu Hae-ran wins 2nd straight LPGA major; Tom Kim captures Scottish Open
Ryu Hae-ran captured her second straight LPGA major title in France on Sunday, prevailing in a playoff after blowing a five-shot lead in the final round.
Ryu beat Brooke Henderson of Canada on the first playoff hole to win the Amundi Evian Championship at Evia Resort Golf Club in the French town of Evian-les-Bains. The two rivals finished 72 holes at 19-under 265, before Ryu birdied the first playoff hole for her fifth LPGA title overall and the winner's check of $1.4 million.
Ryu, world No. 7, claimed her maiden LPGA major at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship two weeks ago and is now the first South Korean player to grab back-to-back major titles since Hall of Famer Park In-bee won three in a row in 2013.
The Evian Championship was elevated to a major championship status in 2013, and Ryu is the third South Korean since then to win at least two majors in a season.
World No. 1 Nelly Korda had won the two first majors of this year before Ryu reached the top at the next two. The fifth and the final major of the season, the AIG Women's Open, will tee off July 30 at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Course in Lancashire, England.
Ryu, 25, is the eighth South Korean LPGA player with at least two career major victories.
"This is just a dream. Three weeks ago, I didn't have a major title. And I have now won two in a row," Ryu said afterward. "I am so happy. I can't believe it right now."
Ryu soared to the top of the leaderboard Saturday after shooting an 11-under 60, the lowest 18-hole score in LPGA major history. It put the South Korean at 19-under, three better than Aki Iwai and seven ahead of Henderson.
Ryu's three-shot lead grew to five early in the final round. But the tournament took a stunning turn when Henderson eagled the par-5 seventh and then had a hole-in-one on the next hole to reach 17-under. Ryu, after making seven straight pars, bogeyed the eighth hole to fall to 18-under, her lead over the Canadian down to just one stroke.
Iwai also was not going away easily. She birdied the ninth to move to 16-under, while Ryu and Henderson both settled for pars there.
Ryu got a little more breathing room on the 11th, where Henderson three-putted for a bogey to give the South Korean a two-shot advantage.
Ryu kept making pars to stay two ahead of the pack but then Iwai birdied the 14th and 15th to pull even with Ryu at 18-under.
Henderson had birdies on the 15th and 16th to create a three-way tie at the top, while Ryu remained without a birdie in the final round with two holes remaining.
Henderson committed a three-putt bogey on the 17th, leaving Ryu and Iwai tied for first place going to the 18th hole.
Off the 18th tee, Henderson was the only one of the trio to find the fairway, while the other two sent their tee shots to left and had to lay up.
Henderson reached the green in two to set up an eagle putt. After Ryu made her birdie putt -- her first birdie of the final round -- and Iwai missed hers, Henderson sank her eagle attempt to send the tournament to the playoff.
Ryu and Henderson went back to the 18th for the playoff and there was a role reversal, with Ryu finding the fairway and Henderson missing it to the left.
It was Ryu who reached the green in two this time, and Henderson missed the putting surface with her third shot, giving the South Korean an opening she needed.
Ryu's eagle attempt fell a few feet short, but after Henderson's chip landed shy of the cup, Ryu made her birdie putt to clinch the title.
Ryu, the 2023 LPGA Rookie of the Year, had recorded one victory in each of her first three seasons on the tour and has now won twice this year.
Kim ends 33-month drought
South Korea's Tom Kim ended a 33-month title drought by winning the PGA Tour's Genesis Scottish Open on Sunday.
Kim secured his fourth career victory with a composed, bogey-free final round, picking up six birdies at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick, Scotland.
He finished at 17-under-par 263, two strokes ahead of Australian Min Woo Lee, who shot 15-under 265.
The 24-year-old, whose original Korean name is Kim Joo-hyung, had not won since the Shriners Children's Open in October 2023 but signaled a return to form with a third-place finish at last month's US Open.
"I have gone through a lot of tough times over the past few years and experienced some painful losses," Kim said after the victory, fighting back tears. "I am still trying to grow and continue learning."
After starting the final round tied for fourth, one shot off the lead, Kim cut three strokes off his score in the front half before moving into a two-shot solo lead with a 4.5-meter birdie putt at the 10th hole.
He extended his lead with another birdie at the 12th, where he placed his third shot within 1.8 meters, and added one more at the 16th to move within reach of the title. At the 18th, his second shot missed the green, but he chipped it close and finished with a par putt.
Fog delays earlier in the week forced players to complete multiple rounds on Sunday, with Kim finishing his third round before playing the final 18 holes.
The victory comes ahead of the British Open, set to begin Thursday, where Kim will challenge for another win.
Fellow South Korean Kim Si-woo finished tied for ninth at 11-under 269 after a four-under final round. (Yonhap)
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