ST ANDREWS, Scotland — After the final-round lead changed hands multiple times on Sunday at St Andrews, it was ultimately Lydia Ko who emerged victorious at the Old Course, leaving the foursome of Nelly Korda, Jiyai Shin, Lilia Vu and Ruoning Yin in her wake.
After she birdied the 10th hole, the AIG Women’s Open felt like it was Korda’s to win, as she had extended her advantage to two at that point and none of the chasers were making any impressive runs. But the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 1 double-bogeyed the par-5 14th hole and bogeyed the 17th hole to ultimately drop back to 5-under and finish in a share of second.
It was a disappointing way for Korda to cap off what had been an otherwise pretty solid week for the 14-time LPGA Tour winner, but the 26-year-old will take it all in stride and lean on the positives she gleaned from her performance at the Home of Golf as she readies herself for the Solheim Cup that is just a few weeks away.
“I made some good putts,” Korda said. “I think I putted really well this week. I hit the ball really well with the conditions. It will be interesting to see when I don't play in 30-, 40-mile-an-hour winds what my ball flight is going to be like, finally seeing it go straight.
“Listen, it's golf. I'm going to mess up, and unfortunately, I messed up over the weekend twice in two penalizing ways coming down the stretch. Theoretically, that's what kind of cost me the tournament, but I played well. I played solid. I even fought after that. I'm going to take that into the next coming events.”
Shin’s T2 showing at St Andrews is her third top-three finish in a major championship in the last two years. The 36-year-old was squarely in the mix at St Andrews until the last four holes, picking up a pair of bogeys on 15 and 17 that unfortunately spelled the end to her bid for a third major title. But Shin finished off her time at the Old Course with a birdie on the par-4 18th hole, a fitting end to a fun week for the two-time AIG Women’s Open winner.
Defending champion Lilia Vu had the best opportunity to put some pressure on Ko late, coming to the last needing a birdie to tie Ko and force a playoff as the sun began to set on Sunday afternoon at St Andrews. And after having a good look at birdie after nearly driving the green on the closing hole at the Home of Golf, it was ultimately a three-putt on the last that snuffed out Vu’s final chance to successfully defend a title for the first time in her LPGA Tour career at the AIG Women’s Open.
But despite the aggravating mistake on 18, Vu can take some solace in the fact that her tie for second at the Old Course is her second T2 or better performance in a major championship this season, as the five-time LPGA Tour winner also tied for second at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Sahalee Country Club back in June, the week after she won the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give in Belmont, Mich.
Yin was one of just 18 players to card a round in the red on Sunday, recording a 2-under 70 that saw her make one bogey and three birdies at St Andrews. It was a final-round effort that bumped the People’s Republic of China native up from a tie for sixth into a tie for second, her fifth top-15 result on the LPGA Tour this season excluding her victory at the Dow Championship alongside her playing partner Jeeno Thitikul.
The 21-year-old has been struggling with an injury as of late and had taken a hiatus from the LPGA Tour since winning in Midland, Mich., in order to rest and rehabilitate her injury as she worked to perform well at the 2024 Paris Olympics and the AIG Women’s Open at St Andrews.
It was a decision that ultimately paid off for Yin, who also finished in the top 10 at Le Golf National, and she’ll try and build off the positive momentum generated from her strong finish at the AIG Women’s Open as the young talent continues to search for her third Tour title in the coming weeks.
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