LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England — Europe captain Anna Nordqvist finalized her Solheim Cup team Monday by adding veteran Leona Maguire and three rookies as her picks for the Sept. 11-13 matches in The Netherlands.
Charley Hull of England easily earned one of the two automatic spots from the Ladies European Tour points list. The other went to Esther Henseleit of Germany, who surged to No. 2 in the final two events.
Henseleit finished fourth in the Women's Scottish Open and then lost in a playoff at the Women's British Open (points are double in a major) to narrowly beat Chiara Tamburlini of Switzerland for the second spot.
Henseleit's 40-foot birdie putt to force a playoff with AIG Women's Open winner Shiho Kuwaki wound up costing Tamburlini a spot. Even without making it on points, Henseleit would have made her second straight team as one of the leading six players in the world ranking.
Those six spots instead fell to Solheim rookie Lottie Woad of England, Maja Stark and Linn Grant of Sweden, Carlota Ciganda of Spain, Celine Boutier of France and Nanna Koertz Madsen of Denmark.

#points

The women's golf major championship season is officially over, after Shiho Kuwaki earned $1.5 million for winning the AIG Women's Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club on Sunday.
But it was Nelly Korda who won the most prize money overall at the five women's majors this year, taking home a combined $4.59 million—boosted by her victories at the Chevron Championship and U.S. Women's Open, which came with $1.35 million and $2.5 million paydays, respectively. Korda missed the cut at the Amundi Evian Championship and did not earn any prize money. She did, however, cash in a $275,235 check for finishing tied for eighth at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship and made $465,601 for placing T4 at the AIG Women's Open.
Not only does Korda's major haul top all other women's golfers this year, it also surpasses all but two men's golfers—Rory McIlroy and Wyndham Clark—despite the five women's majors paying out a combined $53.6 million in prize money, compared to $83.25 million at the four men's majors. The top earners at this year's women's majors were as follows:
Nelly Korda: $4.59 million
Haeran Ryu: $3.72 million

#million #majors #money #golf

The 50th AIG Women's Open live from Royal Lytham & St Annes
-8 Noh (2), -5 Li (4)
Woad -2 (5) and Hull -2 (6) lead home hopes
Listen to BBC Radio 5 Live commentary from 15:00
Women's Open final round: Noh leads by three, Hull & Woad trailing

#woad #hull #live #annes

The 2026 AIG Women's Open concludes on Sunday, August 2, with the fourth round at Royal Lytham and St. Annes in England. You can find full AIG Women's Open tee times for Sunday's fourth round at the bottom of this post.
If you didn't have Yealimi Noh in your office pool this week, you're not alone. The 25-year-old Californian arrived at Royal Lytham and St. Annes with just two top-10 finishes in majors and one LPGA Tour victory to her name.
Now, after a tidy two-under 69 on a wind-swept Saturday, she heads into the final round at seven-under, holding a three-shot lead. It's the first time she's ever been the front-runner at any point in a major.
Can Noh hang on?
To do so, she'll have to hold off a pack of pursuers. Haeran Ryu, who teed off Saturday with the lead while seeking her third consecutive major ***** le, stumbled to a three-over 74 to fall back to four-under. She's joined there by fellow American Lucy Li, Germany's Esther Henseleit, ***** an's Shiho Kuwaki and World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand, who is seeking her first major championship.

#open

It has been a trying 2026 LPGA campaign for 25-year old Yealimi Noh.
The six-year pro entered play this week at the AIG Women's Open in Lytham St. Annes, England, with three consecutive missed cuts, two of which were in major championships.
Noh's fortunes have changed with a 2-under-par 69 in the third round of the Women's Open to lead the final major of the year at 7-under 206 through three rounds at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club.
Noh carded rounds of 67 and 70 to open the tournament to sit just two shots off the pace set by South Korea's Haeryn Ryu. Her status looked bleak Saturday after taking a bogey 6 on the par-5 seventh hole to fall six shots off the pace of the fast-starting Ryu.
However, Noh made an unlikely birdie at the par-3 ninth hole, which was the start of three consecutive birdies for the one-time LPGA Tour winner. The San Francisco-area native added a birdie at 16 while charging into the lead.

#open #lead #rounds

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England — Yealimi Noh took advantage of a surprising collapse by Haeran Ryu and found her rhythm at just the right time Saturday, with four birdies over the last 10 holes for a 2-under 69 that gave her a three-shot lead going into the final round of the AIG Women's Open.
Noh, the 25-year-old Californian with only one LPGA **** le, played bogey-free on the back nine at Royal Lytham & St. Annes and finished at 7-under 206 to lead over five players.
One of them is Ryu, who is trying to become the first player since fellow South Korean Inbee Park to win three straight majors in the same year. Ryu was headed in that direction with a pair of birdies on the front nine to build a four-shot lead.
Her slide began with a bogey on the par-5 seventh, the start of five bogeys in an eight-hole stretch that cost her the lead and put her in a chasing mode the rest of the sunny day along the Lancashire coast of England.
Ryu finished with four straight pars for a 74 and saw the bright side. She kept double bogeys off her card, including the 10th hole when she was against a back lip of a pot bunker. She chipped it forward in the sand and got up-and-down from there for bogey.

#bogey #birdies #three

AIG Women's Open - round three
-7 Y Noh (US); -4 E Henseleit (Ger), L Li (US), J Thitikul (Tha), Ryu (Kor), S Kuwaki (Jap); -3 L Woad (Eng)
Selected others: -2 C Hull (Eng); -1 L Ko (Nz); +1 N Korda (US), L Coughlin (US); +2 C Boutier (Fra), M Rhodes (Eng)
Full leaderboard
England's Lottie Woad and Charley Hull are both in contention heading into the final round of the AIG Women's Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes.

#open #kuwaki #korda

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England – For Georgia Hall, the fairytale finish wasn't meant to be, though she will certainly have memories and photos to cherish.
Hall returned to Royal Lytham and St. Annes, site of her major championship triumph eight years ago, with infant son Conor and fiancé Paul Dunne by her side. It was a lovely family event, even if her golf at the 2026 AIG Women's British Open didn't get her to the weekend. Hall shot 76-72 to finish at 6 over for the championship. The cut fell at 4 over, with 66 players advancing.
"I had a picture with him on 18 and that will definitely be my screen saver," said Hall. "I have my whole life there with Paul. It's lovely. It's a shame he's not a bit older, but I'm really grateful that I kind of made it back here and everything went well enough in the birth to allow me to play."
It was a tough week for moms, in fact, as only Alison Lee (4 over) has a Saturday tee time. Royal Lytham was the site of Catriona Matthew's incredible feat in 2009, when she triumphed only 11 weeks after giving birth to daughter Sophie.
Perhaps the most shocking player to miss the cut this week was defending champion Miyu Yamashita, who made a quadruple-bogey eight on the par-4 18th after bunker trouble and a triple on the par-4 third. Yamashita shot 77 on Friday to finish at 7 over for the tournament. It marked her first missed cut in a major since the 2024 British Open.

#lytham

AIG Women's Open
-7 H Ryu (Kor); -6 S Kuwaki (Jpn); -5 Y Noh (US), A Thitikul (Tha); -3 S Joo (Kor); -2 L Woad (Eng), C Hull (Eng), C Wannasaen (Tha), L Li (US), J Yan (US), L Coughlin (US), P Martin (Esp), M Katsu (Jpn)
Selected others: -1 L Ko (NZ), M Rhodes (Eng); +2 A Hewson (Eng), +6 G Hall (Eng), +7 M Yamashita (Jpn)
Full leaderboard
South Korea's Haeran Ryu birdied the 18th to bounce back from a poor start and end the second round as leader of the AIG Women's Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

#open #woad #coughlin

The Women's British Open continues on Friday with second-round action, as the field of 144 players faces the pressure of the cut. After 36 holes, only the top 65 competitors and ties will advance to the weekend at the Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club in Lancashire, England.
Shiho Kuwaki and Yealimi Noh sit comfortably atop the leaderboard after two rounds, both with a six-under overall score and heading into the weekend leading the field.
Jeeno Thitikul, currently ranked second in the world, also made a strong start after two rounds, securing her spot for the weekend. Thitikul impressed in the opening round, carding a 7-under 64 with seven birdies and no bogeys. Although her second round was more challenging, producing just one birdie against three bogeys, Thitikul remains at five under par overall and will continue the battle for the top of the leaderboard on Saturday.
As the second round draws to a close, the projected cut line sits at four-over par. Here is a closer look at the bubble players, those hovering around the cut line, who are fighting to keep their championship hopes alive.
More: PGA Tour suspends Trey Mullinax for anti-doping violation

#overall

Golfer Charley Hull has told critics to "lighten up" after receiving backlash for a scratchcard prank she played on her caddie.
In the lead up to the ongoing Women's Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes, Hull revealed she had purchased the ticket in a Blackpool joke shop and used it to trick caddie Adam Woodward into believing he had won £100,000 – a moment she caught on camera.
While many people have seen the funny side of the incident, Hull has faced criticism both on social media and from figures within golf, including four-time major winner Dame Laura Davies, who described the stunt as "extremely cruel" when asked about it on commentary.
However, Hull has refused to apologise for her actions, with the 30-year-old stating she would "100%" do it again.
Thitikul leads Open as Ryu and Kuwaki chase

#hull #caddie #golfer

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England — Jeeno Thitikul took the first step toward the missing prize of her career Thursday when she opened with a 7-under 64 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes for a two-shot lead over Haeran Ryu and Shiho Kuwaki of ***** an in the AIG Women's Open.
Thitikul, one of only two players to have been No. 1 in women's world ranking without ever having won a major, made three straight birdies early in her afternoon round and kept bogeys off her card the rest of the way.
The 23-year-old Thai has been overlooked during the LPGA major season dominated by Ryu and Nelly Korda, who have split the four majors. Korda, who replaced Thitikul at No. 1 in April, won the first two majors and Ryu won the next two.
Ryu put herself in good position to make it three in a row — not since Inbee Park in 2013 has anyone claimed three straight majors — with two birdies on her last three holes for a 66. She won the Women's PGA at Hazeltine and closed with 60 to win the Evian Championship.
"I was so amazed, and I asked my caddie why I'm playing well this week," Ryu said. "I think it's because I'm more calm and enjoying the golf more, that's why these days my golf is going pretty well."

#lytham #korda #major

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, ENGLAND – Nelly Korda put a 4-iron into the bag for the first time at a British Open this week at Royal Lytham. There won't be many drivers off the tee for her at this bunkerfest. Maybe four or five, tops, she said.
Like many, Korda has a love/hate relationship with links golf, depending on the day and the bounces. It doesn't help that it's the fifth major of the year in a packed summer schedule. She typically finds herself more on edge at this point in the season.
"I would say with it being kind of in a condensed part of our schedule, I get pretty agitated," she said, "and I think what I learned is I just need to take a step back and hit the reset ***** on sometimes."
Korda comes into the season's final major at the 2026 AIG Women's British Open with a chance to both qualify for the LPGA Hall of Fame and complete the career grand slam. After a missed cut at the Amundi Evian Championship, her first time missing a weekend in two years, the world No. 1 took some time off in Prague and then headed to the ISPS Handa Scottish Open, where she finished on a high note to jump into the top 20.
"There will be weeks you just don't have it," said Korda of France, "that's the reality of it."

#korda #first

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England – Catriona Matthew celebrated her 2009 Women's British Open victory with a 3 a.m. feeding of daughter Sophie at the kitchen table and a cup of tea. At age 39, she became the first Scot to win the ****** le 11 weeks after giving birth.
"You just get on with it, don't you," Matthew said, rather matter-of-factly, of her remarkable feat 17 years ago at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.
As the AIG Women's British Open returns this week to Royal Lytham, Matthew's victory has become a kind of championship lore, a feat new moms like Alison Lee can't even fathom.
"It's just so incredible and almost unbelievable to me," said Lee, who made headlines contending at the U.S. Women's Open at Riviera earlier this summer with her 13-month son Levi. "It's so, so crazy. For me, comparing it to my own experience, I couldn't even swing a club until six, seven weeks, and by the time I was 11 weeks, like I was still so slow. I couldn't hit the ball anywhere. And for her to come out here and win a major, I mean, I'm just trying to survive, and I feel like I'm doing pretty good, you know?"
There are five moms in the field this week at Lytham, including Ryann O'Toole, who is expecting her first child.

#like #royal #first

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England — Their journeys to professional golf couldn't have been more contrasting. Lydia Ko was a child prodigy; Ryan Fox was a late bloomer who didn't turn pro until age 25. Ko rose to fame when, at 14, she became the youngest winner of a tour event and, at 18, became the youngest major winner. Fox was 39 when he won his first major at the British Open two weeks ago.
But they are united by their homeland of New Zealand and by shared experiences in team rooms. Those moments began with pranks at the 2010 World Amateur Teams Championships. These days, the New Zealand bonding sessions play out on a far bigger stage—at the past three Olympic games.
"We went to World Team Ams when I was 14," Ko recalled on Wednesday at the AIG Women's British Open at Royal Lytham. "I don't know if I'm allowed to say it, but he may or may not have tricked me to think my ***** e glass was—I thought it was my ***** e glass—but it was red wine. He's always been the same."
Which is why, two weeks ago, Ko was in tears watching from the U.S. as Fox took the British Open by the scruff of the neck with weekend rounds of 62-68 at Royal Birkdale. Fox stole the claret jug from clubhouse leader Cameron Young with three-under performance in his final six holes, including a walk-off birdie on the 72nd to win by one.
"I was on the West Coast in the U.S. so there was quite a bit of time difference," Ko said Wednesday. "I went to go work out and everywhere I went I was like, 'Please turn on the Open.' It ended up not working on the TV, so I had my trainer turn it on my cell phone and I [also] had it on my cell phone. I can't remember my work out at all."

#british

Darcey Harry says she has come to "hate" calls for patience during what has been a more challenging second season on the Ladies European Tour (LET).
After her successes as a rookie in 2025, Wales' number one golfer hopes this week's return to the Women's Open could spark an upturn in form.
Harry has a place in the field at Royal Lytham & St Annes courtesy of her performances last year, when she finished a lofty 14th in the LET order of merit despite the fact she had only just turned professional.
But 2026 has been more of a struggle for the 23-year-old from Dinas Powys, who has missed the cut in three of her past four tournaments and was forced to withdraw from the other because of injury after only a handful of holes.
"My results are definitely reflecting that it's harder second time around [on tour] because the expectations are just so high," Harry told BBC Sport Wales.

#only #ladies #open

The AIG Women's Open Championship is set to begin at Royal Lytham & St Annes in Lancashire.
Since it first began in 1976, the championship has become one of five majors in professional women's golf and it returns to Royal Lytham and St Annes for its 50th staging from 29 July to 2 August.
Thousands of spectators are expected to attend the championship, where 144 elite golfers will compete alongside the world's leading amateur players for the Smyth Salve cup.
As Royal Lytham & St Annes hosts the tournament for the sixth time, here is all you need to know about the championship.
The 50th AIG Women's Open Championship will run from 29 July to 2 August [Getty Images]

#annes #Lancashire

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England – Charley Hull admits she never watches YouTube golf but nevertheless has decided to launch her own YouTube channel.
"Sweet Spot Golf" makes its debut this week with a tour 'round Royal Lytham and St. Annes, site of this week's AIG Women's British Open. Hull hosts the channel alongside good friend Ryan Evans, the guy she bet 10,000 pounds that she could quit smoking.
"Ryan is one of my very good friends, my best friends, and he's played golf with me since I was 10, 11 years old," she said during a pre-tournament press conference. "We was just playing loads of golf rounds last year, and like some of the rounds I was – I think one of the rounds I was 8 under through nine holes and then he birdied six of last seven holes to then be all square.
"I turned around to him I was like, oh, my gosh, like we have like played so well and like had so much banter in this round. Imagine someone recording this. It would be hilarious. He was like, yeah, and I was like, maybe we should start our own YouTube channel like joking around.
"I actually never watched YouTube golf, just to let you guys know. So then we've just thought, screw this, go ahead with it, and, yeah, launched it the other day."

#lytham

Charlotte Naughton's golfing career was already on an upward trajectory, but the teenager will hit fast forward.
That is because she is preparing to tee up in the AIG Women's Open - the first major of her career.
Still 18, Naughton only secured her spot at Royal Lytham & St Annes this week by virtue of winning the European Ladies Amateur Championship in Sweden on Sunday.
Now the young amateur heads to Lancashire to take her place alongside Charley Hull, Nelly Korda and the other star names of women's golf when the tournament begins on Thursday.
"I've always dreamed about it," Naughton told BBC Radio Newcastle. "I never really knew it would come this quick but I'm so happy and so proud to be able to play."

#Career #open

The First Coast and Georgia's Golden Isles will be sending a sizable contingent of players to the 154th Open Championship, July 16-19 at Royal Birkdale, in Southport, England.
The group is led by three past champions: Jacksonville native David Duval (2001, Royal Lytham and St. Annes), Cameron Smith of Ponte Vedra Beach (2022, St. Andrews) and Brian Harman of St. Simons Island, Ga. (2023, Royal Liverpool).
Duval, now with the PGA Tour Champions, will make his 25th start in the Open, and his first since 2022. Harman, Harris English of St. Simons Island and Billy Horschel of Ponte Vedra Beach are all making their 11th starts in golf's oldest championship.
At the other end of the experience spectrum will be Nease graduate Marcus Plunkett, who has been playing on the Asian Tour, Michael Brennan of Jacksonville and Michael Thorbjornsen of Jacksonville. They are playing in their first British Open and in Plunkett's case, his first major.
Primary qualification category: Top 30, 2025 FedEx Cup.

Take a look at some answers to frequently asked questions about The Open:
What you call it has historically depended on where you were. If you were in the U.S., you called it the British Open, just as Europeans refer to the PGA Championship as the U.S. PGA. Outside the U.S. it generally has been referred to as The Open Championship. The preferred name of the organizers is The Open.
It's the oldest golf championship, dating back to 1860.
There is a rotation – or "rota" – of courses used. Currently there are nine: Royal Birkdale, Royal St. George's, Royal Liverpool and Royal Lytham and St. Annes, all in England; Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland and St. Andrews, Carnoustie, Royal Troon and Muirfield, all in Scotland. Muirfield was removed from the rota in 2016 when members voted against allowing female members, but when the vote was reversed in 2017 it was allowed back in. Turnberry, site of Tom Watson's 1977 "Duel in the Sun" win over Jack Nicklaus and Watson's loss to Stewart Cink in 2009, is effectively not part of the rota. Then-R&A chief Martin Slumbers said in 2021 that The Open would not return to Turnberry "under current circumstances" (with Donald Trump as its owner).
Royal Birkdale in Southport, England. Birkdale has previously hosted 10 Opens. The winners have been: Jordan Spieth (2017), Padraig Harrington (2008), Mark O'Meara (1998), Ian Baker-Finch (1991), Tom Watson (1983), Johnny Miller (1976), Lee Trevino (1971), Arnold Palmer (1961), Peter Thomson (1954 and 1965).