Lexi Thompson last missed the U.S. Women’s Open when she was just 11. At 12, she qualified for the tournament at Pine Needles in 2007, with her father Scott as her caddie. She was a young player who seemed out of place but had earned her spot. Nineteen years later, at 31, she has worked hard to keep her streak going.

On Wednesday, Thompson missed the chance to qualify. According to Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols, she withdrew from the 36-hole qualifier at Wilderness Country Club in Naples, Florida, before playing any rounds. No official reason was given. This puts her streak of 19 straight Women’s Open appearances, which she shares with South Korea’s Amy Yang, at risk for the 81st tournament at Riviera Country Club in June.

The Rolex Rankings reflect the reality: Thompson’s decision to step back from full-time play after 2024 led to a drop in ranking points and limited her chances to remain inside the top 75 needed for automatic exemption. With her last LPGA Tour win in 2019 and now ranked 94th, she was forced to play Wednesday’s qualifier to maintain her streak.

“Pine Needles, when I teed it up, that’s when I realized I want to play against the best,” Thompson said before her 18th straight appearance in 2024. That drive kept her competing for two decades, earning a major title, seven Solheim Cups, and even led her to reverse her retirement announcement. Even as she steps back from full-time golf, she could not leave this championship behind.

“Being out here, it can be a lot. It can be lonely.”

She made her position clear at the Lancaster press conference in 2024, and since then, she has kept showing up. At the 2026 Chevron Championship, Thompson delivered a bogey-free 66 in the third round. It was her first clean major round since the final round at the same event in 2022. She finished tied for 12th, with her husband, Max Provost, and her family in the gallery. Her performance was solid, but her ranking still did not reflect it.

There are only two ways left for Thompson to qualify for Riviera. She must either win an LPGA event or move into the top 75 of the Rolex Rankings by May 25. Three tournaments remain before that deadline: the Mizuho Americas Open, the Kroger Queen City Championship in Cincinnati, and the ShopRite LPGA in Galloway, New Jersey, from May 29 to 31. That is the last LPGA event before the 81st U.S. Women’s Open begins at Riviera Country Club on June 4. The implications go beyond just the leaderboard.

Lexi Thompson’s 19-Year Women’s Open Streak and What Amy Yang’s Parallel Run Tells Us

Thompson has played in 19 straight championships from 2007 to 2025, tying South Korea’s Amy Yang for the longest active streak. Yang ended her run with a win at the 2024 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in her 75th major. Thompson, however, has not capped her streak with a title. The Women’s Open was her entry into professional golf, so the thought of missing it this year means more to her than just a drop in the rankings.

Climbing the Rolex rankings is tough with a limited playing schedule. Players ranked 75th to 94th have played many more events in 2026. Winning any of the remaining LPGA tournaments would secure a spot, since a title gives a direct exemption. Thompson has not won on the LPGA Tour since June 2019. Each missed cut before May 25 makes it harder to keep her streak alive, and while her run has survived many challenges, this is the closest it has come to ending.