Howdy, Roy Akers
By LPGA Staff
| LEADERBOARD | ||
| *Miyu Yamashita | -17 | 72-68-67-64 |
| Lottie Woad | -17 | 69-66-68-68 |
| Yan Liu | -15 | 69-69-68-67 |
| Wei-Ling Hsu | -15 | 66-70-70-67 |
| Minji Kang | -14 | 68-68-72-66 |
| Cassie Porter | -14 | 67-68-69-70 |
RESULTS
- Miyu Yamashita defeated Lottie Woad on the 1st playoff hole (No. 18). Yamashita made birdie to win the sudden death playoff
COMPETITION HIGHLIGHTS
Winner: Miyu Yamashita
Earns her third career victory
- Won the 2025 AIG Women’s Open and Maybank Championship in her rookie season
Passes the $1 million mark in season earnings for the second time in her career
The first Japanese winner of this event
Fourth player from Asia to win the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give
- First player from Asia to win this event since So Yeon Ryu in 2018
Wins for the first time in the United States
- Has wins in Europe and Asia
Her 8-under 64 was tied for the lowest round of the week
- Tied her career-low final round
Came at the 2026 Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G
Led the field in greens hit in regulation (56/72)
Is now 2-0 in playoffs on the LPGA Tour
- Won the 2025 Maybank Championship in a playoff
Second: Lottie Woad
Had the second most birdies in the field with 24
Missed a three foot on the 72nd hole to go to a playoff
Was in her first career playoff on the LPGA Tour
- Now 0-1
Had the second fewest putts in the field for the week with 107
- Her only three-putt of the week came on the 72nd hole
T3: Wei-Ling Hsu and Yan Liu
Hsu’s T3 result is her best finish of the season
- Tied for the most eagles made this week with two
- Shot a 31 on the back nine
Made four birdies, one eagle, and one bogey
- This is her best finish since her win at the 2021 Pure Silk Championship presented by Visit Williamsburg
Liu recorded her second top 10 finish of the season
- Had a T4 result at The Chevron Championship
- Tied for her lowest final round of the season with a 67
- Hit 8/13 fairways, 14/18 greens in regulation, and had 28 putts in her final round
A LOOK AT THE WINNER
| CATEGORY | Miyu Yamashita |
| 2026 Race to CME Globe Rank | 3 |
| 2026 LPGA Tour Wins | 1 |
| 2026 LPGA Tour Top 10s | 6 |
| 2026 Official Season Earnings | $1.3M |
| Career LPGA Tour Wins | 3 |
| Career Official LPGA Tour Top 10s | 18 |
| Career Official Money | $4.8M |
ABOUT THE WINNER
Rolex Rankings No. 8 Miyu Yamashita
- Second start at the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give
- 2025 – T50
- 2026: 11 cuts made in 12 starts with one win and five additional top 10s
- Her lone missed cut came at the Ford Championship presented by Wild Horse Pass
- Four of her top 10s this season are top five finishes
- Finished third at the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G
- Earns her sixth top 10 of the season
- Has 18 top 10s in her first two seasons so far, 37 starts
- Becomes the seventh fastest player to 18 top 10s since 2000 passing Lorena Ochoa
- Career: Three wins including one major championship, 18 top 10s with $4,831,215 in official career earnings
- Is the sixth player from Japan to win at least three times on the LPGA Tour
- Is the fastest Japanese player to three wins, 37 starts
- Nasa Hataoka previously held that mark with three wins in 47 starts
- Passes the $4.5 million mark in official career earnings
- 2025 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year
- Represented Japan at the 2025 Hanwha LIFEPLUS International Crown
- Made 12 starts on the LPGA Tour before earning Membership
- Finished T4 at the 2024 Paris Olympics as a non-member
- Competed on the JLPGA and won 13 times including three major championships
- Earned JLPGA Player of the Year honors in 2022 and 2023
- Leading money winner on the JLPGA in 2022 and 2023
- Is the sixth player from Japan to win at least three times on the LPGA Tour
TOURNAMENT SCORING RECORDS
18 holes: 61, Lee-Anne Pace (R3, 2017)
36 holes: 128, Brooke M. Henderson (2019)
54 holes: 196, Lexi Thompson (2017) and Nelly Korda (2021)
72 holes: 263, Brooke M. Henderson (2017) and Nelly Korda (2021)
QUOTABLE
Miyu Yamashita (P1, -17) on winning on Father’s Day
“So I know today is the Father’s Day and I really wanted to win on this special day. That gave me a little extra motivation out there and helped drive me throughout the round. I am incredibly grateful to my family for all the support they give me every day. This win is just as much for them as it is for me.”
Lottie Woad (P2, -17) on the roller coaster of her last few holes of play
“Yeah, obviously 17 was pretty — a bonus. Didn’t have the easiest bunker shot and obviously made it. Thought it was going a little bit past, so was happy with that. And 18, hit a decent tee shot. I mean, I would always go for it in two, but kind of wishing I didn’t now. Next time I think I should have laid up and tried to chip on. Been going for it every day, so I thought might as well. Got a pretty bad lie in the rough and hit an okay shot. Yeah, obviously wish I got the first putt a little closer and kind of wish I putted first too instead of watching Cassie’s putt; kind of tricked me. Felt like I hit an okay putt. Obviously lipped out on the high side. Yeah, Miyu played great in the playoff hole. Yeah.”
Wei-Ling Tsu (T3, -15) on the charge she made today
“I know, front nine I was playing a little bit struggling on my putt. I had such good opportunity and a lot of putt that I kind of just like go around the cup. So it’s a little bit frustrated, but I was like, you know, just keep it there. Still a lot of par-5 on the back nine. So I try to be aggressive on the back. Well, that one putt on 14, is that 14? Yeah, that was incredible. I mean, I had a perfect speed which is drop the very last minute, and from my angle I can’t even really see the cup. I can only see the pin, which is very — I think maybe it’s the payback from the front nine. So, yeah, that one was definitely awesome. And I’m enjoy play like aggressive golf on the back nine. Yeah, just very fun.
Yan Liu (T3, -15) on her strong finish to the week
“Well, I think definitely my mental is getting better. Very good news to hear. And my — I think my putter like speed. Before I was very not confident about that, but right now I think I’m getting better. So, yeah, just very good week I think.”
Yamashita wins on a shocking final-round Sunday at the Meijer LPGA Classic
By Amy Rogers
A thrilling final-round charge from Miyu Yamashita led to an unexpected playoff with Lottie Woad on the final day of the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give.
Yamashita posted the low round of the tournament with an 8-under par, 64 on Sunday at Blythefield Country Club to come from five-strokes off the lead to go toe-to-toe with Woad throughout the final day.
“I was able to put together a solid round, and it all felt pretty natural out there,” Yamashita said through a translator after her round. “Lottie played really well too. I honestly didn’t expect it to end up in a playoff.”
Woad came into the final round one stroke behind 36 and 54-hole leader Jing Yan. Woad wasted no time making up ground, rolling in a birdie at her first hole of the day only to give it back with a bogey at the second hole.
Woad couldn’t have foreseen the Sunday charge from Yamashita, who birdied four of her first five holes of the round to vault up the leaderboard. But Yamashita’s putter let her down over the closing stretch as she suffered her first bogey of the day at the par three, 15th hole when she made a three-putt bogey to fall one stroke behind Woad and was never able to retake the lead.
Woad took advantage of the misstep and arrived at the par four 17th hole at 17-under par and tied for the lead with Yamashita, who had birdied the 72nd hole. When Woad’s second shot found the greenside bunker to the left of the putting surface, well below the green, she faced a challenging third shot to make sure she’d be able to salvage a par. Woad did one better, holing her shot from the bunker for birdie to take a one-stroke lead to the closing hole. Woad reacted with her hand on top of her lead in almost dismay and promptly exited the bunker to exchange high-fives with her caddie, David Taylor.
“Obviously, 17 was pretty — a bonus. Didn’t have the easiest bunker shot and obviously made it,” Woad said. “Thought it was going a little bit past, so was happy with that.”
But Woad went from experiencing the highest of highs to the lowest of lows when she three-putted the 72nd hole for bogey to fall into a playoff with Yamashita, who was equally as shocked as Woad to see that the duo would be playing additional holes.
“I went pretty straight, left center. I mean, it went left on me,” Woad said about the putt that lipped out. “I’m not sure if that was me or the green or it’s late in the day. A lot of people played. Could have been any of those things. But, yeah, missed.”
The pair returned to the par five, 18th tee for the first playoff hole where Yamashita was the first to play and found the left rough off the tee while Woad also took her tee ball up the left side and her ball came to rest in the fairway but on the edge of the rough line. The duo were both able to advance their ball with their second shot to just short of the putting surface. Yamashita played her pitch up to within two feet of the hole, which put the pressure on Woad to match her. But Woad sent her chip 12 feet past the hole and she missed the putt coming back to leave the door wide open for Yamashita to make birdie and the win.
“Our whole team has been working hard together throughout the season, and this feels like a result of that effort,” Yamashita said about her victory on Father’s Day in the United States. “I really wanted to win on this special day. That gave me a little extra motivation out there and helped drive me throughout the round. I am incredibly grateful to my family for all the support they give me every day. This win is just as much for them as it is for me.”
Woad’s runner-up finish is her fifth top 10 of the season. Wei-Ling Hsu and Yan Liu were tied for third at 15-under par. Minji Kang posted a final round of 66 to finish tied for fifth with Cassie Porter at 14-under par. Minami Katsu and Grace Kim were tied for seventh at 13-under par along with Jing Yan, the second and third round leader, who closed with a final round of 73 for her second top 10 of the year.
