There will be a mix of three major winners and two US Women’s Open debutants among the Aussie contingent when the second LPGA major of the year tees off at iconic Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles on Thursday.
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Fresh off a two-week break at home and with four wins to her name already this season, West Australian Hannah Green will lead the Aussie charge in the US state where she has enjoyed most success.
A three-time winner of the JM Eagle LA Championship – including the 2026 edition in April – Green enters the week as the No.5 player in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking and seeking to add to her 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship triumph.
Major winners in 2025, Minjee Lee and Grace Kim also boast impressive championship pedigree while Sydney’s Stephanie Kyriacou lines up for her third US Women’s Open appearance.
Gold Coast pair Karis Davidson and Sarah Hammett will each make their US Women’s Open debuts having come through local qualifying.
Davidson was granted the final spot in the 156-player field, having finished as first alternate at the qualifying event in Seattle, while Hammett, a 19-year-old amateur, played her way into her first LPGA major by finishing as medallist at qualifying in Arizona.
Remarkably, four of the six Aussies in the field are staying together this week, Green, Kim, Kyriacou and Davidson all bunking in together while chasing major-championship glory.
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“Hopefully we’ll actually see one another,” Green said. “Sometimes during major weeks, you barely see one another just because everyone’s got different routines or schedules for the day.”
Admitting that maintaining the standard she has set for the first five months of the year will be a challenge, Green was buoyed by a tie for seventh at the Chevron Championship, her first top-10 in a major for almost four years.
“I am a top-six player in the world. I want to win major championships,” the 29-year-old said. “I want to have more tournaments on my belt, but sometimes when you play well, it doesn’t mean you have the trophy in your hands at the end of the week.
“[I’m] just limiting my expectations, just making sure that I’m not too ahead of myself and just hopefully hitting the ball where I want it to go.”
Host to the men’s US Open in 1948 when Ben Hogan was victorious, Riviera Country Club has been a happy hunting ground for Australians. It was the site of Steve Elkington’s 1995 PGA Championship victory while Adam Scott, Robert Allenby and Aaron Baddeley have each won PGA Tour events at Riviera.
All four rounds of the US Women’s Open will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 505 and Kayo Sports, with first-round coverage beginning at 4am (AEST) on Friday.
US Women’s Open
Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades, California
Defending champion: Maja Stark
Past Australian winners: Jan Stephenson (1983), Karrie Webb (2000, 2001), Minjee Lee (2022)
Prizemoney: $US12 million
TV times: Live 4am-12pm Friday, Saturday; Live 7am-12pm Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 505 and Kayo Sports.
Australasian player profiles
Karis Davidson
World ranking: 83
Age: 27
Major wins: 0
LPGA Tour wins: 0
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 0
Best finish at US Women’s Open: First appearance
The lowdown: The 27-year-old from the Gold Coast makes her US Women’s Open debut after being granted the final spot in the field. The already-exempt Celine Boutier’s victory at the ShopRite LPGA tournament yesterday opened the door for Davidson to take the spot as the first player on the re-allotment list after finishing as first alternate at local qualifying in Washington. Tied for fourth at the women’s Australian Open, Davidson’s best result on the LPGA Tour this year is a share of fifth at the Aramco Championship in Las Vegas.
Hannah Green
World ranking: 5
Age: 29
Major wins: 1
LPGA Tour wins: 8
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 7
Best finish at US Women’s Open: T-12 (2025)
The lowdown: A two-week break at home on the back of her first top-10 finish in a major in four years has one of the hottest players in women’s golf primed for a shot at a second major championship. Also aiding Green’s hopes of a fifth win this year is her history of success in Los Angeles, three of her eight career LPGA wins coming in the JM Eagle LA Championship.
Sarah Hammett (a)
World ranking: 1,654
Age: 19
Major wins: 0
LPGA Tour wins: 0
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 0
Best finish at US Women’s Open: First appearance
The lowdown: The Gold Coast amateur is nearing the end of her first year at the University of Southern California and was part of the team that lost to Stanford University in the final of the 2026 NCAA Championships matchplay final last week. Runner-up at the 2025 Australian Amateur, Hammett qualified for her first major championship by earning medallist honours in US Women’s Open qualifying at Arizona Country Club on April 27.
Grace Kim
World ranking: 32
Age: 25
Major wins: 1
LPGA Tour wins: 2
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 3
Best finish at US Women’s Open: T-13 (2023)
The lowdown: Like Green, Kim has recently spent time at home in Australia as she builds towards the heart of the LPGA season. The 2025 Amundi Evian champion missed the cut at the first major of the year in Texas but bounced back with a tie for 20th at the Mizuho Americas Open, her best finish on the LPGA Tour this year. Kim’s best US Women’s Open finish to date came at Pebble Beach in 2023 when she tied for 13th.
Lydia Ko (NZ)
World ranking: 10
Age: 29
Major wins: 3
LPGA Tour wins: 23
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 14
Best finish at US Women’s Open: T-3 (2016)
The lowdown: The Kiwi great can add the Career Grand Slam to her list of achievements with a first US Women’s Open in her 15th appearance. Ko has finished in the top-five at the US Women’s Open just twice in her career, but has three top-five finishes already this season on the LPGA Tour.
Steph Kyriacou
World ranking: 79
Age: 25
Major wins: 0
LPGA Tour wins: 0
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 2
Best finish at US Women’s Open: MC (2024, 2025)
The lowdown: Broke a run of seven straight missed cuts at last week’s ShopRite LPGA event in New Jersey for a much-needed confidence boost going into the exacting test set by a US Women’s Open. Has not made the cut in two previous US Women’s Open appearances yet boasts four top-10 finishes in majors across her career.
Minjee Lee
World ranking: 9
Age: 30
Major wins: 3
LPGA Tour wins: 11
Previous US Women’s Open starts: 12
Best finish at US Women’s Open: Won (2022)
The lowdown: Played all four rounds of the Chevron Championship despite battling an illness that forced her withdrawal from the JM Eagle LA Championship the week before. Celebrating her 30th birthday last week, Lee was top-five in two of her first three starts this year and has played just six events entering the busy part of the season.
