Lottie Woad, the 21-year-old English golf prodigy, made history on Sunday by winning the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open at Dundonald Links in her professional debut, becoming just the third player in LPGA history to achieve this feat, joining Rose Zhang (2023) and Beverly Hanson (1951).
Woad closed with a 4-under 68 to finish at 21-under 267, securing a three-shot victory over Hyo Joo Kim and earning $300,000 from the co-sanctioned LPGA and Ladies European Tour event.
Woad, the former world No. 1 amateur, carried a two-shot lead into the final round after posting rounds of 67, 65, and 67. Despite windy conditions, she started strong with birdies on two of her first three holes. Kim mounted a fierce challenge, carding seven birdies in 14 holes to briefly share the lead, but Woad responded with back-to-back birdies on the 13th and 14th to regain control. A bogey on the 15th — only her third of the tournament — was a minor setback, but Woad sealed the win with a precise wedge to two feet on the par-5 18th, tapping in for a closing birdie.
“It’s a pretty good outcome, I guess,” Woad said understatedly. “I wasn’t expecting to win my first event, but I knew I was playing well.”
Her performance was a continuation of a red-hot stretch. Three weeks prior, Woad won the KPMG Women’s Irish Open as an amateur, followed by a T3 finish at the Amundi Evian Championship, where she missed a playoff by one shot. That result earned her an LPGA card through the Elite Amateur Pathway, prompting her to forgo her final year at Florida State University and turn pro.
“I’ve played in seven majors, so I had that experience,” Woad said, dismissing the pressure of her debut. “It didn’t feel too different.”
Kim, with a matching 68, finished solo second at 18-under, while Sei Young Kim and Julia Lopez Ramirez tied for third at 14-under, the latter boosted by a final-round 65. World No. 1 Nelly Korda, who played alongside Woad for the first three rounds, shot a 71 to finish eight shots back at 13-under, remaining winless in 2025 after a seven-win 2024 season.
The win, which came in front of her family, grants Woad a two-year LPGA exemption through 2027 and significant momentum heading into the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Porthcawl, the final major of 2025. With a T10 at last year’s Women’s British Open and a 2024 Augusta National Women’s Amateur title, Woad’s rapid rise has women’s golf abuzz.
“I’m just trying to keep the momentum going,” she said, eyeing another strong showing in Wales.
