Grace Kim Shields First Major is a dramatic finish with Evian
Grace Kim won the No. 1 award for $1.2 million, while runner-up Jeeno Thitikul deposited over $720,000 in the bank.
LPGA
The course brought her to tears when Grace Kim first played Evian Golf Club. Two years later, the 24-year-old will make France a major champion and author of the most extraordinary finish in major championship history.
It was, in a nutshell, magnificent.
“I couldn’t breathe, Tom,” Kim told Tom Abbott of Golf Channel after draining the Eagle Put on the par 5 18th to close the 30.th Performance at the 2025 Amundievian Championship.
For most Sunday, the picturesque coast of Lake Geneva was focused on Lottiwade. Lottie Ward was the first Lottie Ward, with Catherine Lacoste winning the majors in 1976 and Catherine Lacoste winning the US Women’s Open.
After Kim hits a four-hybrid from about 190 yards into tap-in range, it was revealed that if there is a playoff on the shores of Lake Geneva, the Florida senior would not be there. Still, Woad’s third share secured LPGA cards for the rest of 2026 and all of the 2026 and 2026. Woad said it will announce decisions on future plans for next week.
The British’s 72-hole 271 score is besting the amateur record for Evian with an astounding 10 shots. It’s been two weeks in a row that she has left a massive check on the table. Minjee Lee tied for Woad in the Evian, earning $523,761. This is in addition to not receiving a nearly $79,000 winner check after winning the Let’s KPMG Women’s Irish Open last week.
After Thitikul lying slowly at 72nd Hall, she missed the 8 footer for birdie. Instead, she joined Kim at 14 under, and the pair returned on the 18th in overtime.
Kim locked her four-hybrid into a greenside pond in the first playoff hole. And it looked poised to eventually throw away the best labels in Mayor and to rank first in the world.
The Australian was playing the final four holes with a 4-under 4 to enter the playoffs, but her momentum disappeared with one bad swing ripple.
But then something miraculous happened.
Kim didn’t panic. She gathered herself and holed up a chip shot from across the green for a birdie, bringing all the pressure back to the titanium in line with her efforts. The talented Thai player responded, pouring an 8-foot birdie putt.
The pair has returned to 18th Tea for details.
When the 4 Hybrid regained his hand for the third time, Kim hit the green with two, giving the advantage with Eagle’s 12 footer. Thitikul’s second shot was lengthened near the bunker and after calling out a Rule official to check for ants who swarmed the ball, she tipped down to six feet.
But that doesn’t matter as Kim poured on another eagle on the 18th and placed her hand on her mouth to cover her surprise. She played the final six holes, including the playoffs, under the age of seven, and won $1.2 million.
“I had a lot of questions earlier this year,” Kim said. “I was unmotivated. I had to have a tough conversation with my team. I had to wake up a little.
“It’s definitely surreal to be sitting next to this trophy.”
The doubts were sometimes snowballed in places where Kim was suffering from burnout. In a short time on the tour, the Australian realized that her technical skills were less successful in how she handled the hottest battles, not skills in scope.
“You’re never going to tell a flat, perfect lie to the range and the specific direction of the wind and all of it,” Kim said.
No one deals with adversity this week, including coughing.
The former applause Citikul, who had front row seats for all Kim’s Sunday heroics, held her head high through another close call.
“I think today I’m very proud to be fighting there,” said Thitikul, who now wins five top-five finishes in the majors.
The Australians on the tour gathered round 18 along with a bulging kangaroo named Skippy to celebrate their second consecutive major after Minjee Lee won the KPMG Women’s PGA last month. Kim was in Hazeltin as a guest of Curry Webb six years ago when Australia’s Hanna Green won KPMG. Kim won Webb’s scholarships multiple times, so Webb took him on a trip himself, using money as a reward.
“I’m not very sure about the golf course, but I played pine needles. Sorry, I played Pine Valley,” Kim said at a post-round press conference.
Evian marks 18th Sequential events in the LPGA have no repeated winners. This is a record of the tour’s 75-year history.
