Grace Kim faded from a tie for second to equal 13th at the Buick LPGA Shanghai, but as the leading Australian she moved inside the top 60 in the race for the season-ending Tour Championship. Ruoning Yin won by a shot.
Grace Kim was the only Australian to break par in round one in Shanghai, carding a four-under 68 to share third, four shots behind leader Hye-Jin Choi. Minjee Lee opened with a four-over 76.
China’s Ruoning Yin has ended a two-year wait for an LPGA Tour victory, holding off Hyo Joo Kim to win the FM Championship at TPC Boston for her sixth career title. Australia’s Karis Davidson was the leading Australian, finishing tied for 17th.
Karis Davidson surges 30 spots up the leaderboard with a bogey-free 5-under 66, putting a first major top 10 within reach at Evian. Fellow Queenslander Cassie Porter also moves into position for her best major finish.
Karis Davidson has continued a strong run of form, recording a career-best major finish with a tie for 12th at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship as South Korea’s Haeran Ryu secured her first major title at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
Australia’s Karis Davidson remains in the hunt heading into the final round of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, but will need to chase down a five-shot deficit after South Korea’s Haeran Ryu surged into the lead at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
Karis Davidson has posted the lowest round of her LPGA Tour career to sit just two shots off the lead after day one of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Defending champion Minjee Lee leads seven Australians into the 2026 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine, a venue that already holds a special place in Australian golf history.
The final chance for golf major-championship glory in 2025 arrives this week at the AIG Women’s Open, held for the first time at the renowned Royal Porthcawl Golf Club in Wales, where nine Australians will attempt to make it a hat-trick of major wins by Aussie women.
Karis Davidson has credited a refreshing, extended break from professional golf last year for catapulting the Queenslander into career-best form in time for her first major start in over a year at this week’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Australia will have its strongest representation in tournament history with nine Aussies to tee it up at the Chevron Championship in Texas starting tonight (Australian time).
With the exception of an appearance at the flood-affected Melbourne International at Latrobe Golf Club, Davidson will make her WPGA Tour of Australasia 2024 debut at this week’s Vic Open ahead of her return to the US for her third season on the LPGA Tour.
Australian Golf Digest
