It’s going to be much tougher for Grace Kim to keep her expectations low entering an LPGA golf tournament.
The 22-year-old rookie from Australia, playing in just her seventh LPGA event, showed the poise and maturity of an experienced veteran, closing birdie-birdie to join a three-way playoff she won on the first extra hole to win the LPGA Lotte Championship Saturday evening at Hoakalei Country Club.
Kim, who with the victory earned a spot in next week’s first major of the season, The Chevron Championship, left her phone in the media tent after hurrying out of the winner’s press conference to catch a flight.
She was that dialed in for her final round to become the first rookie to win this season and the first Australian to claim a tournament title since Minjee Lee won the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open.
“I did have low expectations for myself,” said Kim, who shot a 4-under 68 on Saturday. “I didn’t want to get too excited or too down on myself and making sure I’m staying in the present. I kind of had to put my phone on mute so that I don’t get distracted.”
Kim played in the final group with third-round leader Yu Jin Sung, who was on a sponsor’s invite, and Georgia Hall, a two-time winner who had placed runner-up in the past two LPGA events.
China’s Yu Liu, who began the final round five shots of the pace, quickly put herself into contention with birdies on four of her first five holes.
She entered the clubhouse well before the final groups with an 8-under 64 to set the pace at 12 under for a number of golfers who had their opportunities.
Eventually it came down to Kim, who was two back with two to play, and Sung, who was one back on the 18th tee, to come up clutch and force a playoff.
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Kim made just the fifth birdie of the day on the difficult par-4 17th to get to 11 under and then stepped up to the 18th tee to put her drive in the fairway along with Sung, who could have earned a season-long tour membership with a victory.
Their second shots landed in different greenside bunkers, but neither were fazed as both got up-and-down for birdie to set up the playoff after they finished at 12 under.
“The birdie on 17 was definitely the big momentum changer,” Kim said. “Definitely gave it an aggressive go on 18 and yeah, birdied it twice, which is good.”
All three golfers failed to reach the green in two in the playoff, but Kim’s chip was easily the best of the three as it nestled 5 feet from the cup.
Sung, who shot a 3-under 69, chipped her third shot over the green and missed a par putt. Liu, who pulled her first two shots left after the long break, had a 15-foot look for birdie but missed, setting the stage for Kim’s clinching putt.
“Having that putt before during my actual round, had a little left-to-righter, but it was a little further left than the original putt,” Kim said. “Seeing Yu miss it left, Yu Jin miss it right, I’m like, ‘I think this is straight,’ so I went straight and got it done.”
Kim gladly started scrambling to change her plans for next week and did eventually run back to the media tent to grab her phone.
After showing shocking poise for such an inexperienced player all week, it was a rare slip-up for Kim.
“I think I’ve learned a lot through the Epson Tour last year. Just being in contention every week, week in, week out, you know, living out of a suitcase, being on tour, life I think has really, I guess, hit reality for me,” Kim said. “Kind of just the taste tester of what life on the LPGA Tour is like.”
Sung, who is also 22, came so close to earning that LPGA lifestyle for the rest of the year. She held at least a share of the lead after the second and third rounds and made only one bogey on Saturday, at the par-3 ninth. Her missed par putt ended a string of six one-putts, but she held it together with birdies on the back nine bookending seven consecutive pars.
“Very good experience, but very closer to winning. I have to get this next time,” Sung said.
Sweden’s Linnea Strom, who knocked Sung out of at least a share of the lead for the first time in two days with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 10 and 11, lost her drive on 14 and settled for a double bogey. She had a birdie putt she just missed on 18 to finish at 11 under in a tie with Peiyun Chien, who shot 67.
“I mean, I did look at the leaderboard before I putted it, so I knew I had to hole it,” Strom said. “Hit a good putt, just misread it a little bit. So not much I can do about it. Obviously there were some nerves getting to me and I had a bad swing that cost me a double unfortunately.”
Hall, who struggled all round with the putter, managed to shoot 71 to sit in a three-way tie for sixth at 9 under and earn her fifth top-15 finish in as many tournaments this season.
Brooke Henderson, who won the Lotte in 2018 and ’19, shot a final-round 1-under 71 to finish in a tie for 11th place at 7 under.
