Haeran Ryu‘s 2026 didn’t look like a breakout season through the spring. She opened with a top-10 finish at the Tournament of Champions and a sixth-place finish at the HSBC Women’s World Championship. She soon missed the cut entirely at the Aramco Championship in April. The following month didn’t help. Though she had climbed back into runner-up finishes, one of the best results of the year, by mid-May, a back procedure kept her off the course for roughly five weeks. Despite the setback, she came back strong and clinched two consecutive wins over world No. 1 Nelly Korda at major tournaments, issuing a warning to the world that she is here to win.

The South Korean closed out the Amundi Evian Championship on Sunday by beating Brooke Henderson in a close playoff. She finished the playoff by holing a birdie on the first extra hole. That playoff, however, came after a hard final round, which contradicted her third-round heroics.

She played the front nine at one over, including a bogey on the par-3 eighth. She needed a birdie on the 72nd hole to force a playoff after Henderson made an eagle of her own on 18 to pull level at 19 under. This victory marks Ryu’s second major title in just three weeks, following her win at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in June. For context, before the 2026 season, a golfer had not achieved this feat on the LPGA Tour since 2013. Now, there are two.

🤔 golf trivia

This Should Be an Easy One, Right?

01/10

In Which Year Did Tom Kim Match a Tiger Woods Record?

2020202220262025

Oops, bogey!

But don’t worry, there’s still the back 9 to prove your high golf IQ

PLAY GOLF TRIVIA

Asked afterward what it means to be just the third South Korean player to win two majors in one season, joining Inbee Park and Jin Young Ko, Ryu didn’t reach for a rehearsed answer.

“I told you, it’s an unreal dream right now. It’s a lot of great names on the trophy, and I am so happy I see my name is on here. I think it feels just like a fake cartoon because it’s so much history this week. It’s so hard to tell something, just so happy right now,” she said at the press conference.

Fans will also remember her accomplishments in the third round of the Amundi Evian Championship. She shot an 11-under 60, the lowest round in the history of any major championship, men’s or women’s, making nine birdies and an eagle along the way. What makes the round even more remarkable is that Ryu was not counting. She said afterward that she did not know the course played to par 71 and had no proper sense of where she stood relative to history as she kept making birdies.

In the third round, Ryu made nine birdies and an eagle, including a hole-out approach on the par-4 sixth. She left herself a putt for 59 on the 18th before settling for a two-putt birdie. The 25-year-old finished her third round one stroke short of a record of 61. Hyo-Joo Kim had shot the score three times at Evian in 2014, as did Jeongeun Lee and Leona Maguire in 2021. She broke their records with her score in the third round.

The Amundi Evian Championship became her second major victory of the season. The magnitude of that victory is notable as it came after the crucial health injury Ryu faced in May. A minor back procedure followed her runner-up finish at the Kroger City Championship. Notably, she returned to the course at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine. She trailed by 10 shots after the opening round but converted that to her first win of the season.

This wasn’t the first time this year Ryu has played through discomfort. Back in February, she battled neck pain at the HSBC Women’s World Championship. Despite barely being able to turn her head, she recorded a sixth-place finish in the championship.

“This is golf. It’s not too perfect, and I just think about it. Just keep on the fairway and keep on the green, and then I just want to make some more chances and make a lot of birdies,” Ryu said at the HSBC press conference.

That patience is reflected in her game this season. She currently ranks first on the LPGA in driving, greens in regulation, ball striking, and par-4 scoring average. Only her putting is lagging behind the rest of her game, and in her words, she agrees. She currently ranks 141st in the category. Her strength on tee-to-green could help her perform on a course like the one hosting the AIG Women’s Open. The firm, tough, and demanding approach could reward her sharp ball-striking.

Moreover, Ryu’s growing game reads as a warning sign for the rest of the field. The 25-year-old has converted the Evian Championship to her advantage under pressure, closing a playoff against a proven major champion, Brooke Henderson. Moreover, she outraced Nelly Korda at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, which is remarkable since Korda is having her best-performing season. Her back-to-back majors despite a debilitating injury solidify her as a growing competitor in the field.

On the other hand, World No. 1 Nelly Korda is left with only one chance to complete her career Grand Slam at the AIG Women’s Open this year.

Nelly Korda’s Career Grand Slam Is Down to One Chance

Korda arrived at Evian needing one major to complete her career Grand Slam. She had already won the Chevron Championship and U.S. Championship in 2026, plus the 2021 KPMG Women’s Championship. However, she missed the cut at the Evian Resort Golf Club by a single shot, which means the AIG Women’s Open at the end of July is now her only chance this season to complete a career Grand Slam.

Korda’s putter was the problem for her at Hazeltine. She came into the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship with a chance to complete the third leg of her slam. But she repeatedly missed important putts throughout the tournament. She was candid afterwards about the frustration, saying she was leaning on rest and recovery to reset before her next start, admitting the weight of the season’s expectations was catching up to her.

After a winless 2025, Korda has won twice in 2026 and had two chances to add a third victory, but Ryu stood in the way. She might need to draw strength from her previous wins if she is to triumph later this month.