The final round of the 2026 U.S. Women’s Open kicks off today. With a crowded leaderboard and fantastic course setup, there are storylines galore. Here are the five most intriguing storylines from Riviera Country Club:
No. 5 – Pursuits of second majors – There are a handful of LPGA stars toward the top of the leaderboard looking for their second major. Sei Young Kim, Jennifer Kupcho and Ruoning Yin have each had at least a share for the lead at some point this week and have combined for 22 LPGA Tour wins. All three have one major and an additional one would take their careers to the next level.
No. 4 – Amateurs in contention – The strong amateur field is living up to its hype with Maria José Marin, Aphrodite Deng, Asterisk Talley, Kiara Romero and Farrah O’Keefe all in the top 25 on the leaderboard. All amateurs who finish in the top 25 earn two LEAP points that go toward eventual LPGA Tour membership.
No. 3 – Another In Gee Chun major – In Gee Chun has one of the most interesting careers in modern women’s golf. Over the last 11 years she has just four wins on the LPGA Tour, but three of them are in major championships. She sits just one stroke back and hasn’t won since the 2022 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, her only win of the 2020’s. Chun is still just 31-years-old and could enter rarified air this week.
No. 2 – Nelly Korda’s legacy – Nelly Korda has a pretty secure legacy to say the least, with wins at a rate unseen by any other player over the last decade. A win this week would take that legacy to the next level. This would be Korda’s fourth major championship, 20th win overall and would essentially guarantee her a second Player of the Year award. She would be just one win shy of the LPGA Hall of Fame and would continue one of the great all time LPGA Tour seasons. She shares the lead with Sei Young Kim.
No. 1 – Alison Lee winning in her hometown – Alison Lee is three strokes back, which feels like it may be a bit too far back. That being said, if she can pull off the comeback, it would be one of the most popular wins in recent history on the LPGA Tour. Lee is from Los Angeles and was a superstar for UCLA, but still hasn’t won in a decade on the LPGA Tour. Despite this, she has been one of the fan favorite names with two Solheim Cup appearances under her belt. She also gave birth just over a year ago and is still in the midst of her comeback. It would be a story worthy of its own movie in the City of Angels.
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