Japan's golden era is here: Miyu Yamashita wins first major at AIG Women's British Open

USA Today

6 days ago

As golf's major season comes to end, the LPGA's historic march of champions rolls on. One day after Japan's Miyu Yamashita celebrated her 24th birthday, the petite Japanese star gave herself what she surely wanted most: a major victory.
Yamashita becomes the tour's 21st different winner this season, closing with a 2-under 70 to finish at 11 under and edge out English sensation Charley Hull and compatriot Minami Katsu by two strokes at the 2025 AIG Women's British Open.
The record number of champions to this point in the season stands in stark contrast to 2024, when Nelly Korda won seven times and Lydia Ko played her way into the LPGA Hall of Fame. From dominance to diversity, Yamashita becomes the fourth rookie to win on tour this season.
'To win such an historic tournament in front of all these amazing fans is such an incredible feeling,' said Yamashita with the aid of an interpreter.
A 13-time winner on the JLPGA, Yamashita is a rookie on the LPGA in name only given her vast success on home soil, including three majors on that tour. She came into the Women's British Open ranked 15th in the world. She leaves with a trophy and a big payday. The first-place prize this year was $1,462,500 out of a record total purse of $9,750,000.
The week began with England's newest star Lottie Woad the bookmakers' betting favorite in only her second professional start. A late triple-bogey on Friday halted Woad's bid to win two in a row, but a top-10 finish for a second straight year in this championship is a fine showing, given her recent whirlwind stretch.
'Just walking out from the first tee, I got a loud cheer,' said Woad, 'and I could tell everyone was rooting for me. That was nice.'
Woad ultimately took a share of eighth.
Yamashita's good fortune started with the pairings, when she found herself grouped with good friend and compatriot Rio Takeda for the first two rounds, a rare opportunity on the LPGA. That comfortable pairing along with the luck of the draw in weather going off late/early in the first two rounds, helped her build a three-shot lead heading into the weekend.
On Saturday, however, the straight player with the sweet short game suddenly turned crooked and her putter went ice cold, taking 34 putts.
NBC booth analyst Morgan Pressel summed it up best as Yamashita limped home at Royal Porthcawl: "Almost everything has gone wrong for Miyu Yamashita, and she's still in the lead."
She stayed on the range late Saturday evening with her father trying to straighten out a two-way miss.
Billed as the biggest women's sporting event ever staged in Wales, the crowds were strong all week, even when the weather started out rough on Sunday with rain, wind and cold keeping the early-goers from making much of a move.
Perhaps it was Yamashita's cheery yellow sweater that coaxed out the sun late in the afternoon as the leaders made their way along the coast.
Stanford's Paula Martin Sampedro showed what was possible down the stretch at Porthcawl, as she put an exclamation point on her week in Wales with a back-nine 30 that included five consecutive birdies. It marked the lowest inward nine for the week by two strokes.
The Spaniard, who played alongside two-time Smyth Salver winner Lydia Ko, closed with a 4-under 68 to zoom up the board and cap a summer that included victories at the British Women's Amateur and European Ladies' Amateur Championship in Germany.
South Korea's A Lim Kim entered the final round one back and was the only player on the board who'd previously won a major, the 2020 U.S. Women's Open. The powerful, aggressive Kim looked timid in back-to-back bogeys on the third and fourth holes and never posed a serious threat down the stretch.
Yamashita, meanwhile, played the first four holes better than most, picking up three strokes on the field with superior scrambling. Whatever ailed her game on Saturday had disappeared.
The always-entertaining Hull was 11 back to start the third round and pulled within one of Yamashita, much to the delight of the home crowd.
One of the most popular players in the game, Hull came into the week with lower than usual expectations given that she was carted off on a stretcher after fainting several times during the first round of the Amundi Evian Championship three weeks ago in France. The mystery virus caused her to lose both weight and swing speed as she took time off from the gym. Hull also tweaked her back getting something out of her car.
For a player who has long been honest about her disklike of links golf, Hull certainly took to Porthcawl and the chance to chase.
'I like hunting someone down,' she said.
As the fast-walking, fast-talking Hull electrified crowds with a rare birdie on the most difficult 14th, Yamashita stayed steady, pouring in par putts to keep her advantage.
Hull's chances began to wane after back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 16 and 17 as Yamashita's lead ballooned to three strokes with three to play.
Once again, the 4-foot-11-inch rookie towered over the field.
Yamashita, who leads the tour in scrambling and bogey-free rounds, dropped a shot on the 17th but, after Hull failed to make birdie on the closing par 5, headed to the 72nd hole with a two-stroke cushion.
Her two-stroke victory gives Japan bookend titles at the majors, with Mao Saigo winning the first at the Chevron Championship, and four titles on the season from four Japanese different winners.
Japan's golden era has only just begun.