Lottie Woad tapped in one final birdie, plucked the ball out of the cup, and gave a simple wave to the crowd at the Women's Scottish Open on Sunday as if she had done this before, the AP reports. But the English player was making her professional debut, a performance so dominant that the BBC described it as a "statement victory." Woad's approach remained low-key. "Links golf is really fun and it went fine," she said after winning. "My dad was here all week and my mum got the train up last night, so I was hoping I wouldn't mess it up."
The former Florida State star never flinched when Hyo Joo Kim made a charge on a windy day at Dundonald Links in Irvine, per the AP, closing with a 4-under 68 for a three-shot victory. She finished at a 21-under 267 and earned $300,000. Woad is the second player in three years to win on the LPGA Tour in her pro debut, following Rose Zhang in the Mizuho Americas Open at Liberty National in 2023. "I think it's quite hard to do that, but very special to win in my first event," Woad said. "Everyone was chasing me today, and managed to maintain the lead and played really nicely down the stretch and hit a lot of good shots."
The LPGA Tour now has had a different winner in all 19 tournaments this year, the longest stretch without a multiple winner in its 75-year history. Next, the 21-year-old heads to Royal Porthcawl in Wales for the final major of the year, the Women's British Open, with the focus on her. "Even if I hadn't won this week, I would still be trying to win the Open next week," Woad said, per the BBC. "It's still a learning curve getting used to the attention."
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