Hannah Green Wins Second Wire-to-Wire Victory of Her Career in Korea
For the first time since 2019, Hannah Green has won wire-to-wire at the BMW Ladies Championship. The Aussie co-led with two others after the first round and then was the solo leader in the clubhouse the rest of the week. She earned her third victory of 2024 joining Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko as players this season to win at least three times and is the first Aussie since Karrie Webb in 2006 to win at least three time in a single season.
The day began with a two-stroke cushion for Green at 18-under and she was slow and steady throughout the day. She added to her lead with a birdie on No. 3 before dropping a shot back to down to 18-under with a bogey on No. 7, allowing those below her to close the gap. Meanwhile, Thailand’s Chanettee Wannasaen was having as good of a front nine as you could get. The Dana Open winner begun her day with a birdie on No. 1 before going birdie-eagle-birdie on holes 4, 5 and 6 to tie the lead with Green. She and Green both added another birdie each before making the turn at 19-under, tied for the lead.
As the back-nine was underway, things began to get interesting. Wannasaen bogeyed No. 10 to drop her down to 18-under and Green followed behind her with one on No. 11 after an errant tee shot. The two stayed locked step through much of the back with Wannasaen making the first mistake, adding her second bogey of the day on No. 17 to fall just one stroke shy of Green’s lead. While all of this was going on, Celine Boutier made her presence known recording birdies on five of her last seven holes to tie Green at 18-under as well. With Boutier turning in her card at 18-under, tied for the lead with Green, all she could do is wait for the leader to finish out her round. Since her bogey on No. 11, Green stayed at 18-under through most of the back nine. The Aussie made her way to 17, the hole Wannasaen bogeyed just a few groups ahead of her, but found different fortune. The five-time LPGA Tour winner knocked her ball a few feet from the hole on her approach shot and sunk the birdie putt to take a one stroke lead into No. 18. She reached the green needing just a par to take home her third win of the season and knocked it close enough to make the clutch putt and become the second Aussie to win the BMW Ladies Championship.
“Yeah, it was a crazy finish, I guess,” Green said. “My caddie said to me at the start of the day, ‘Let’s try and get a lead and have a bit of a cushion coming in.’ I did not do that and made it very interesting. But the putt on 17, I was very nervous. I was just very happy to see that one go in and on the last hole I was hoping I would have more of a tap-in but I like to make things interesting. But yeah, just super proud of myself for hanging in there because today conditions were very tough. The wind was very swirly, and I think everyone was trying to battle the wind. Yeah, it was tough. I haven’t experienced a wind direction change like that before.”
With Green taking home the first-place prize, Boutier earns her second runner-up finish his season and is the second time she has lost to Green by a stroke. Green won the HSBC Women’s World Championship earlier this season with Boutier finishing second. Wannasaen earned her second non-win top-three finish of the season and first since the Mizuho Americas Open. A pair of Koreans finished tied for fourth including Hye-Jin Choi who claimed her second-straight top-five finish of the 2024 season and Yu Jin Sung, a 2024 rookie who had the lowest round of the week, a 63 in the third round. Defending champion Minjee Lee finished T33 at 5-under.
For the first time since 2019, Hannah Green has won wire-to-wire at the BMW Ladies Championship. The Aussie co-led with two others after the first round and then was the solo leader in the clubhouse the rest of the week. She earned her third victory of 2024 joining Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko as players this season to win at least three times and is the first Aussie since Karrie Webb in 2006 to win at least three time in a single season.
The day began with a two-stroke cushion for Green at 18-under and she was slow and steady throughout the day. She added to her lead with a birdie on No. 3 before dropping a shot back to down to 18-under with a bogey on No. 7, allowing those below her to close the gap. Meanwhile, Thailand’s Chanettee Wannasaen was having as good of a front nine as you could get. The Dana Open winner begun her day with a birdie on No. 1 before going birdie-eagle-birdie on holes 4, 5 and 6 to tie the lead with Green. She and Green both added another birdie each before making the turn at 19-under, tied for the lead.
As the back-nine was underway, things began to get interesting. Wannasaen bogeyed No. 10 to drop her down to 18-under and Green followed behind her with one on No. 11 after an errant tee shot. The two stayed locked step through much of the back with Wannasaen making the first mistake, adding her second bogey of the day on No. 17 to fall just one stroke shy of Green’s lead. While all of this was going on, Celine Boutier made her presence known recording birdies on five of her last seven holes to tie Green at 18-under as well. With Boutier turning in her card at 18-under, tied for the lead with Green, all she could do is wait for the leader to finish out her round. Since her bogey on No. 11, Green stayed at 18-under through most of the back nine. The Aussie made her way to 17, the hole Wannasaen bogeyed just a few groups ahead of her, but found different fortune. The five-time LPGA Tour winner knocked her ball a few feet from the hole on her approach shot and sunk the birdie putt to take a one stroke lead into No. 18. She reached the green needing just a par to take home her third win of the season and knocked it close enough to make the clutch putt and become the second Aussie to win the BMW Ladies Championship.
“Yeah, it was a crazy finish, I guess,” Green said. “My caddie said to me at the start of the day, ‘Let’s try and get a lead and have a bit of a cushion coming in.’ I did not do that and made it very interesting. But the putt on 17, I was very nervous. I was just very happy to see that one go in and on the last hole I was hoping I would have more of a tap-in but I like to make things interesting. But yeah, just super proud of myself for hanging in there because today conditions were very tough. The wind was very swirly, and I think everyone was trying to battle the wind. Yeah, it was tough. I haven’t experienced a wind direction change like that before.”
With Green taking home the first-place prize, Boutier earns her second runner-up finish his season and is the second time she has lost to Green by a stroke. Green won the HSBC Women’s World Championship earlier this season with Boutier finishing second. Wannasaen earned her second non-win top-three finish of the season and first since the Mizuho Americas Open. A pair of Koreans finished tied for fourth including Hye-Jin Choi who claimed her second-straight top-five finish of the 2024 season and Yu Jin Sung, a 2024 rookie who had the lowest round of the week, a 63 in the third round. Defending champion Minjee Lee finished T33 at 5-under.
Source: LPGA
