Haeran Ryu, the rising Korean star in her fourth season on the LPGA Tour, won the 2026 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine National in Minneapolis, her first major title.
Ryu came into the final round with a one stroke lead over two-time major champion Brooke Henderson, but had a bit of a shaky start to begin the day. Ryu made three bogeys in her first five holes with just one birdie in that stretch.
The good thing for Ryu though, was nobody was making a serious move. Henderson started the day with five pars and Ina Yoon, despite a quick start with two birdies, made a double bogey and a bogey also in the first five holes.
The tough conditions, brought on by extreme rain fall and heavy rains, made the leaderboard incredibly volatile in the early stages. Birdies were tough to come by and the wind in particular was making club selection difficult. Players were, for the most part, going well past the green all day.
Ryu overcame that tough start to hit her stride in a mid-round burst that really gave her a strong lead. Despite a strong run by world No. 1 Nelly Korda during this time, that brought her within two strokes of the lead, Ryu stayed composed.
Between holes seven and 12, Ryu made four birdies without any bogeys. From there, Ryu did a strong job of playing safe for pars and making everyone else chase in tough conditions. Dewi Weber actually offered perhaps the best run, giving herself a chance to cut the lead to one on 18, but she three putted for bogey.
Ryu walked into the 18th hole with a three-stroke lead, and played that final hole to perfection. Tee shot right in the middle of the fairway. Approach to the middle of the green. Putt to about a foot. Tap-in par. Major championship.
This is Ryu’s fourth win of her LPGA Tour career. The 2023 LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year has been a top-10 finish machine, with 25 since the start of 2024. That is third on the LPGA Tour in that timeframe behind just the top two players in the Rolex Rankings, Nelly Korda and Jeeno Thitikul.
All of this comes after a lengthy break from the LPGA Tour, where Ryu had a minor operation that kept her out of the U.S. Women’s Open. Her ability to come back with little to no rust was impressive. Ryu is the first player to win a women’s major after trailing by 10 strokes after the first round since Carol Mann in 1964.
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