Only two birdies were recorded on the par-4 18th hole during the final round of the Chevron Championship, the first major tournament of the LPGA Tour season.
The first birdie belonged to Liu Yan of China. The birdie brought her to 12-under par, finishing in sole fourth place. However, her ranking changed to tied fourth once all players completed their rounds, as another player also secured a birdie on the 18th hole to join her.
The second birdie on the 18th hole came from none other than Yoon Ina of South Korea, who has been on a hot streak. On what played as the second-most difficult hole of the day, Yoon placed her second shot within 4 meters of the pin and sank a thrilling final birdie despite a severely undulating line. The birdie lifted Yoon from sole fifth to tied fourth, earning her $393,221 (approximately 580 million won) in prize money.
The final round of the Chevron Championship, held Sunday (Korea time) at the par-72 Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston, Texas, was a day that fully showcased Yoon's capabilities.
Her first birdie came on the par-5 third hole. Though her second shot flew just past the green, she chipped it close to the pin for a tap-in birdie. On the par-4 fourth hole, she drained a 3-meter birdie, and on the par-4 fifth, a 7-meter birdie putt found the bottom of the cup. Riding the momentum of three consecutive birdies, Yoon faced trouble again on the par-3 seventh hole, where she had collapsed with a double bogey on the opening day. Her tee shot hooked left into a bunker so deep that she was barely visible, and her bunker shot left the ball 3 meters from the pin, putting her in bogey danger. But she rolled in the putt to save par. On the par-5 eighth hole, where she had bogeyed the day before, she added a birdie from 2 meters out.
After trimming four strokes on the front nine, Yoon headed to the back nine with strong momentum, but "a trial of bogeys" awaited her.
On the par-3 11th hole, she had her first three-putt of the tournament for her first bogey of the day. Bogeys begot bogeys. On the par-4 12th hole, though she missed the green, it was not a particularly difficult chip shot. However, she played too aggressively, sending the ball more than a meter past the hole, and missed the comeback putt for another bogey. On the par-4 13th, her second shot sailed over the green for a third consecutive bogey.
Fortunately, she turned the tide on the par-5 14th hole, placing her third shot within 1.5 meters and converting the birdie. The challenge was that the final four holes included the three most difficult on the course. The par-4 17th was the toughest, the par-4 18th was the second toughest, and the par-3 15th was the third toughest.
Yet on the 15th hole, a birdie putt of roughly 10 meters mysteriously disappeared into the cup — a birdie so stunning it surprised even Yoon herself.
On the 17th hole, which produced only one birdie all day, she comfortably made par. Then, with the dramatic birdie on the final 18th hole, Yoon trimmed four strokes to complete her best-ever major performance at tied fourth (12-under 276). Over her last four tournaments, Yoon has posted "tied sixth — tied 17th — sole fourth — tied fourth," reflecting a formidable upward trend. As a result, she now ranks fifth in scoring average (70.29), sixth in prize money ($793,478), and 14th in CME points (571), firmly establishing herself among the LPGA's top contenders.
"I tried to focus on what I can do, and it seems to have translated into results," Yoon said after the round. "I am proud of myself."
National team member Yang Yun-seo, who started the day in tied 16th, faltered with a 4-over 76 to finish in tied 38th (even-par 288).
As expected, the trophy went to Nelly Korda of the United States.
Korda, who shot a 2-under 70 on the day, finished at 18-under 270 to win comfortably by five strokes over Yin Ruoning of China and Patty Tavatanakit of Thailand. The winner's prize money was $1.35 million (2 billion won). Claiming her third career major, Korda has posted a remarkable record across the five tournaments she has entered this year: "win — 2nd — 2nd — 2nd — win." Currently ranked second in the world, Korda is expected to reclaim the top spot, overtaking world No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand, who missed the cut in this tournament.
World No. 3 Kim Hyo-joo trimmed three strokes to finish in sole sixth (7-under 281), while Yu Hae-ran and Hwang Yu-min tied for 12th (4-under 284).
