The final major championship of women's professional golf this season, the AIG Women's Open, will be played on the Old Course at St. Andrews Links in Scotland on Thursday.
In addition to battling Hell Bunker and the infamous Road Hole, the world's top female golfers may have to contend with strong winds and rain on the Old Course.
It is the first time in more than a decade that the AIG Women's Open has been played at the “Home of Golf.”
“Yeah, it definitely feels different,” said defending champion Lilia Vu. “We're at St. Andrews, which is the place everyone wants to play. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There's a bit of pressure, but I think it's going to be a battle for everyone, not just me.”
Here's what to watch for in women's golf's final major:
AIG Women's Open
When: Thursday-Sunday
Where: Old Course Golf Course, St. Andrews, Scotland
Defending Champion: Lily Vu
Briefcase: 9 million dollars
Who to look at
Nelly Korda: The world's No. 1 golfer won six times in seven tournaments earlier this season but has cooled off a bit of late. She missed the cut at the U.S. Women's Open, Meijer LPGA Classic and KPMG Women's PGA Championship and tied for 26th at the Amundi Evian Championship. Her best finish at the Women's Open is a tie for ninth in 2019.
Lydia Ko: Ko earned her place in the LPGA Hall of Fame after winning a gold medal at the Paris Olympics. A 20-time winner on the LPGA Tour, Ko has finished in the top 25 five times in 12 starts at the Women's Open, including a tie for third in 2015.
Hannah Green: The Australian golfer earned two victories this spring at the HSBC Women's World Championship and the JM Eagle LA Championship. The 2019 Women's PGA Championship winner has never finished in the top 15 at the Women's Open.
Ally Ewing: Ewing’s consistent play this season has helped her earn a spot on the U.S. Solheim Cup team for the fourth time. Her six top-10 finishes this season include a tie for 10th at the Amundi Evian Championship, a fifth-place finish at the Women’s PGA Championship and a third-place finish at the U.S. Women’s Open.
Minjee Lee: The two-time major champion is right at home on links courses. She has finished in the top 10 four times in her last six starts at the Women's Open.
Lauren Coughlin: Coughlin has been the hottest female golfer in the world of late, earning her first two LPGA wins at the CPKC Women's Open in Calgary on July 28 and the ISPS Handa Women's Scottish Open on Aug. 18. She ranks third on tour in greens in regulation (73.4%).
Return to St. Andrews
For the third time, the AIG Women's Open is being played on the Old Course. Lorena Ochoa won by four strokes in a wire-to-wire victory at the inaugural tournament at the “home of golf” in 2007, and current US Solheim Cup captain Stacy Lewis won by two strokes in 2013.
“Obviously it's the birthplace of golf,” said England's Charley Hull. “It would be a special win. Something you always dreamed of when you were a baby. So yeah, it would be very special.”
Hull played the back nine on Monday morning and admitted he felt chills walking around the 17th and 18th holes.
Defending champion Lilia Vu played the Old Course for the first time on Monday. She played with Korda and two other golfers. They stopped for a photo at the iconic Swilcan Bridge, between fairways 1 through 18. It's where Tom Watson, Jack Nicklaus and others have stopped to pay tribute to the course.
“It was really surreal,” Vu said. “You can never get over the feeling that other players from the past were there and that so much golf has been played here. So, yeah, it's a surreal feeling and I'm trying to soak it up as much as possible, while also focusing on playing the tournament.”
The Old Course will be 6,784 yards this week. Weather could be a factor, as forecasts predict highs around 60 degrees and 26 mph winds in Thursday's opening round. There's a good chance of rain Friday morning.
Vu's defense
Vu's reward for claiming her second major championship win at the 2023 AIG Women's Open was a cat. She named it Walton, after the Walton Heath Golf Club in Surrey, England, where she finished 14 under to defeat Hull by a whopping six strokes.
“I don't want to be cliché, but I got a cat because of it,” Vu said. “That was the bribe I gave my father last year. We get another bribe to get another cat if I do another race, so I hope I can do that. Hopefully, I'll be able to get another cat and maybe give it another name.”
Andrews sounds great.
Vu is coming off a tie for 25th at last week's Scottish Open at Dundonald Links. She was battling illness following the Paris Olympics, where she tied for 36th at 5 over par. She won the Meijer LPGA Classic and tied for second at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship in June.
She's looking to get back to that form at St. Andrews.
“I feel like I always fall back into my old habits and I don’t know how I won tournaments before,” Vu said. “I think I felt that a little bit at the Olympics this year, I just wasn’t playing well and I was like, ‘How did I get here and earn this spot?’ almost. But I’m doing my best here. I got sick at the Olympics. I was sick all last week. It was kind of hard to recover, with this cold and this rain, but I love it here.”
Solheim Cup Clock
The rosters for the upcoming Solheim Cup, to be played Sept. 13-15 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia, will be finalized after Sunday's final round on the Old Course.
Five players – Korda (2,649), Vu (2,067.5), Coughlin (1,676), Ewing (1,607) and Allisen Corpuz (1,493) – have already qualified for the U.S. team on points. Two other golfers will join the team on points, as will the top two golfers in the Rolex Women's World Golf Rankings who have not qualified for the team otherwise. Lewis will also make three captain's picks.
Megan Khang (1,391.5), Andrea Lee (1,197.5), Rose Zhang (1,092.5), Alison Lee (1,034) and Sarah Schmelzel (1,024) round out the top 10. Solheim Cup veteran Lexi Thompson, who is retiring from the LPGA Tour after this season, is 14th in points (708.5).
Zhang (No. 9) and Lee (No. 25) are said to be the highest-ranked players in the Rolex World Rankings. The next two players are Angel Yin (No. 34) and Thompson (No. 43).
It will be the first Solheim Cup for Coughlin, who grew up in the state and attended the University of Virginia.
“There's probably not a more hot player on the LPGA Tour right now than Lauren Coughlin,” Lewis said. “It's been incredible to see her win two of the last three events and play the way she has all year. She got on our radar late last year and it's been great to see her game continue to improve in 2024.”
The top two players in the European Solheim Cup points standings will automatically qualify, along with the top six players in the world rankings who are not already eligible. European team captain Suzann Pettersen will make four captain's picks.
England's Hull (202.25) and Germany's Esther Henseleit (179.82) occupy first and second place in Solheim Cup points. Sweden's Linn Grant (139.55) and Maja Stark (132.63) and Germany's Alexandra Forsterling (132) complete the top five.
Frenchwoman Celine Boutier (No. 8), Stark (No. 24), Grant (No. 26), Irishwoman Leona Maguire (No. 32), Spanishwoman Carlota Ciganda (No. 33) and Swedishwoman Madelene Sagstrom (No. 35) are the six best players in the world ranking who are not yet on the team.
