Grace Kim with a stunning finish
wins Evian Championship for her first major
[July 14, 2025]
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France (AP) — Grace Kim always dreamed of
winning a major on the LPGA Tour. What happened Sunday in a wild
final hour at the Evian Championship was beyond her imagination.
“I don't know how it happened, really,” Kim said after an
eagle-birdie-eagle finish to win on the second playoff hole against
Jeeno Thitikul.
A final round at Evian Resort that nearly saw Lottie Woad become the
first amateur to win a major in 58 years ended with Kim standing
upright after her 12-foot eagle putt dropped, with her hand over her
mouth, motionless as she tried to digest what had transpired.
Two shots behind on the final hole, Kim hit a 4-hybrid so perfectly
that it slowed at the top of a slope behind the flag and rolled back
to 2 feet for an eagle and a 4-under 67 to force a playoff with
Thitikul.
Her approach to the par-5 18th in a playoff bounced off a cart path,
over rocks and into the water, while Thitikul was in good position
to make birdie. Tournament over? Not quite. Kim pitched over the
pond and across the green and into the cup for birdie to stay alive.
“I was pretty bummed to find out that my ball was in the middle of
the water. But, again, it’s not quite finished until the very end,”
Kim said. “Just wanted to make sure I got it there. Yeah, just
happened to have chipped it in. I don't know if I can do it again.”
Back to the 18th for a third time — twice in the playoff — the
Australian again hit 4-hybrid to 12 feet. Thitikul, who missed an
8-foot birdie putt in regulation for the win, missed the green to
the left and chipped to 5 feet. She never had to putt.
Kim holed the eagle putt to capture her first major, and second LPGA
title.
She is a four-time winner of Karrie Webb's scholarship, which
entails spending time with Australia's greatest golf champion. She
was at Hazeltine in 2021 when Hannah Green won the Women's PGA. She
is the second straight Aussie to win a major, following Minjee Lee.
“It's a huge achievement for me,” Kim said. “I’ve had a lot of
doubts early this year. I was kind of losing motivation. I kind of
had to get some hard conversations done with the team. Yeah, kind of
had to wake up a little bit. So to be sitting here next to this
trophy is definitely surreal.”
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It was a big setback for Thitikul, who along with
Ai Miyazato is the only woman to have reached No. 1 in the world
ranking without winning a major.
Thitikul's biggest challenge had been Woad, the No. 1 amateur who
was coming off a win in the Irish Women's Open and at one point had
the lead on the back nine of Evian Resort. She closed with 64 and
then waited to see if that would be enough.
Woad was bidding to become the first amateur to win
a major since Catherine Lacoste at the 1967 U.S. Women's Open.
Thitikul birdied the 17th to take the lead, and the Thai player was
on the verge of her first major when she laid up short of the pond
and hit wedge into 8 feet on the final hole.
But then Kim appeared with the sublime 4-hybrid to 2 feet for eagle.
Thitikul's birdie putt for the win just missed to the right and she
shot 67 to join Kim at 14-under 270.
“I think I’m so proud of myself on battling out there today,”
Thitikul said.
Woad tied for third with Lee (68) and now has secured an LPGA card
for the rest of this year and all of next year if the senior-to-be
at Florida State chooses to turn pro. Woad already is in the Ladies
Scottish Open and Women's British Open.
She had mixed emotions at the end, happy about her opportunity to
play the LPGA, bummed about not getting birdie on the 455-yard
closing hole.
“I’m going to be thinking about one shot probably for a while, but
I’m very happy how I played today,” said Woad, who won the Augusta
National Women's Amateur in 2024. “Great week.”
Kim's victory extended what already is a record streak in the LPGA
Tour's 75-year history, the 18th consecutive tournament to start a
season with a different winner. It also makes 13 different winners
in the last 13 majors.
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