​Haeran Ryu had never captured a major title until just two weeks ago. Now she has claimed two in quick succession. The 25-year-old South Korean sensation has been riding an extraordinary hot streak, turning the Evian Championship into a stage for a remarkable surge. On Sunday at the Evian Resort Golf Club in France, she delivered an even-par 71 in regulation and then birdied the opening playoff hole to outlast Brooke Henderson, who surged from seven shots behind by firing a 64. Both players finished at 19 under, securing Ryu’s second major win in as many weeks.
With these two victories, Ryu joins Nelly Korda, who had already captured the season’s first two majors, and marks the first time in LPGA history that two players have won two majors in a single season. The tour’s fifth and final major of the year, the AIG Women’s Open in Britain, is scheduled in two weeks’ time.
Asked to put into words what the last 13 days have felt like, Ryu described it as “a fake cartoon” filled with history and unreal joy. “So happy right now,” she added. The new momentum comes on the heels of her fifth LPGA title, and her shift in form was evident on Saturday when she shot a 60 through three rounds, seemingly making every putt along the way. She also appeared to have a chance at posting 59 after a 30-foot eagle opportunity, but settled for what would still be the lowest round ever recorded in a major by either gender. The final round, however, told a different story. Ryu was solid off the tee, but her putts failed to drop at critical moments—until the late finishes.
“I was putting poorly today,” Ryu admitted. “I kept thinking, ‘Oh, God, please go in the hole, please.’ Every hole, I prayed. The last hole and the playoff hole, I was just grateful. It feels like an unreal dream right now.” After lifting the trophy in France, she stands poised to rise from world No. 7 heading into the next event.
Ryu had previously captured the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine on June 29, and with this latest triumph, her 13-day stretch matches the second-shortest interval between major victories in LPGA history, a mark last set by Meg Mallon in 1991 when she won the U.S. Women’s Open and Mazda LPGA Championship in quick succession.
The 1.4 million dollars Ryu earned from the 9.1 million purse pushed her career total to another milestone. She becomes only the third Korean player to win two majors in a single season, joining Inbee Park and Jin Young Ko. Across the leaderboard, Henderson fought valiantly to keep the title within reach, trying to make her third major victory in a single year. She carved out a dramatic run, eagling the seventh, acing the eighth, and then making eagle on the 18th in regulation to push the event into a playoff. The 28-year-old Canadian also endured a few missteps—three-putting for bogey at 17—before finishing with an eagle on 18 to force the playoff, only to fall short in extra holes.
“I played awesome today, which is really exciting,” Henderson said afterward. “To finish second in a major and third here a couple of weeks ago at the Women’s PGA, it’s clear my game is in a really good spot. It was thrilling to reach the playoff, and Haeran has been playing great. Congratulations to her.”
As the season heads toward its final major, the Evian win marks a landmark moment for Ryu and for Korean golf, underscoring a period of dominance and depth in the sport. Her name now sits among the sport’s most remarkable sprint-to-major stories, and golf fans will be watching closely to see how she carries this momentum into the AIG Women’s Open and the rest of the year.