Lilia Vu has won her second major of the year, and her third tournament of 2023.
Vu, who captured the Chevron Championship earlier in 2023, bookended her major-championship season by winning the AIG Women’s Open.
Vu shot a final-round 67 to win by six shots over Charley Hull at Walton Health. In the process, she became the first American woman this century to win two majors in the same year.
The former top-ranked amateur has had an up-and-down season, by her own admission. She won twice in her first five events of the season, but then missed four of five cuts in mid-summer. She hasn’t notched a top-20 result, in fact, since her win at the Chevron.
“It’s just been a crazy year for me, just doing pretty well at the beginning of the season and just hit a lull in the middle, just struggling. I thought at the U.S. Open after I played so bad, I didn’t know if I could ever win again,” Vu said.
With the AIG Women’s Open win, Vu also became the first golfer to win two majors on the LPGA Tour in the same season – who had previously won zero majors – since Se Ri Pak in 1998.
Vu also captured the Rolex Annika Major Award thanks to her first-place result, recognizing the golfer on the LPGA Tour with the best major-championship record.
Vu was tied for the 54-hole lead but quickly separated herself from the pack on Sunday’s final round.
“It just comes down to not thinking about winning, just playing one shot at a time,” Vu said. “This golf course forces you to do that. It really tests you. That was my only goal. To drive the ball well and give myself chances for birdie.”
Vu will move to No.1 in the Rolex Rankings, jumping fellow American Nelly Korda who finished tied for 11th.
“Being the best in the world, that’s just crazy to me, just thinking about the struggle I had this year,” Vu said. “It’s just incredible.”
Two-time Women’s Open winner Jiyai Shin finished third, while Amy Yang and Hyo Joo Kim finished tied for fourth. Allisen Corpuz, who won the U.S. Women’s Open, Angel Yin and Ally Ewing finished tied for sixth, two shots further back.
For Hull, meanwhile, it was her best-career finish at a major.
Golf Town Athlete Brooke Henderson missed the cut by just one shot. She will take next week off to prepare for her return to Vancouver and the CPKC Women’s Open – where she’s eager to see the Brooke Brigade out in full force!
Fellow Canadian Maddie Szeryk also missed the cut but had a wild start to her week. She lost in a seven-hole playoff in the AIG Women’s Open Final Qualifier (which leaked from Monday into Tuesday) but got into the championship at 5 a.m. local time of the first round Thursday after a late withdrawal.