Hawaii, United States: In just the third start of her rookie season on the LPGA Tour, 22-year-old Grace Kim posted a notable breakthrough triumph at the Lotte Championship.
Displaying no signs of nerves, the Australian snared a birdie at the first hole of a sudden-death play-off at Hoakalei Country Club to defeat China’s Liu Yu and Korean Sung Yu-jin.
The trio ended the regulation 72 holes tied at 12-under 276. Kim closed with a four-under 68, rebounding from a bogey on the 14th to birdie the last two holes.
“I really didn’t have high expectations. I just tried to play my game and didn’t try to force anything. I’m speechless that I got the job done,” said Epson Tour graduate Kim, Australia’s first LPGA Tour winner since Minjee Lee won last year’s US Women’s Open.
It was Kim’s first win since her victory at the IOA Golf Classic on the Epson Tour last year and she credited her experience on the secondary circuit in 2022 for how she handled the pressure of the final three holes in Hawaii.
“I’ve learned a lot through the Epson Tour last year,” said Kim, who finished fifth on the Epson Tour money list to earn promotion to the LPGA Tour. “Just being in contention week in, week out, living out of a suitcase, being just on Tour life, I guess hit reality for me.”
During an outstanding amateur career, Kim appeared in the first two editions of the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific (WAAP), finishing tied 47th in the inaugural event in Singapore in 2018 and claiming a share of 12th place in Japan in 2019.
Also in 2018, Kim represented Australia at the Queen Sirikit Cup and was a member of the winning Asia-Pacific team at the Patsy Hankins Trophy.
Meanwhile, making only her second LPGA Tour start, Thai Natthakritta Vongtaveelap, another former WAAP standout, tied for sixth place in Hawaii, having been co-leader after each of the first two rounds.
In February, 20-year-old Natthakritta won her first two events as pro on the Thai LPGA Tour, then was runner-up to Lilia Vu in the LPGA Thailand at Siam Country Club.
The big-hitting Natthakritta was runner-up in the WAAP in 2021 and 2022.