Honolulu: Hwang You-min may be soft-spoken, but the 22-year-old golfer has not been shy about stating her dream of playing on the LPGA Tour one day. Having been on the Korea LPGA (KLPGA) Tour full-time since 2023, Hwang has said her goal was to reach the top women’s tour through its qualifying tournament, the Q-Series, after this season. And then on Saturday in Hawaii, Hwang took a direct route to the LPGA Tour by winning the Lotte Championship. By taking this title as a nonmember, Hwang can accept her LPGA membership immediately or defer it to the start of the 2026 season. Either way, Hwang doesn’t have to go through the gauntlet of the Q-series.
According to Yonhap News Agency, “It’s long been a dream of mine to win on the LPGA Tour,” Hwang said at her press conference. “I am really happy and excited to get to play on this tour.” Hwang won the four-round event at 17-under 271, one stroke ahead of her mentor and fellow Korean player Kim Hyo-joo. Kim led briefly on the back nine, but Hwang had a torrid finish with four consecutive birdies for a five-under 67 on the final day. “Honestly, I don’t remember what I was feeling during that stretch,” Hwang said with a smile. “I was completely in the zone, fully immersed in my play.”
Hwang has been among the longest hitters on the KLPGA Tour, and her length came in handy on the finishing hole, the par-5 18th that played 525 yards in the final round. She elected to go for the green in two and ended up sending her second shot a little past the putting surface. She chipped it close for an easy birdie that sealed her win. Asked if she was consciously trying to be aggressive down the stretch to climb up the leaderboard, Hwang said, “Just on the last hole. I felt I could reach the green in two and I took an aggressive aim.”
Hwang, who played in some LPGA majors this season, admitted she didn’t think she could win this tournament. But a blistering second round score of 10-under 62 on Thursday, with nine birdies and an eagle, changed her mind. “I played so well in the second round that I thought I could win this thing if I had a strong finish,” she added. “But this win still hasn’t hit me yet.”
Hwang said she doesn’t have any plan on whether she will join the LPGA Tour right away and added, “I will have to speak with my manager and other people.” In a statement released by her Seoul-based agency WOW Management Group on Sunday, Hwang said she will delay the start of her LPGA career to 2026. “I’d like to have a strong finish to the season and add a win on the KLPGA Tour,” Hwang said.
There are only six LPGA tournaments left this year, with the final event, the CME Group Tour Championship, scheduled to end on Nov. 23. Some highly successful Korean golfers have gained their LPGA cards by winning as nonmembers, including Kim, three-time major champion Chun In-gee, and former world No. 1 Ko Jin-young. Those are among the very best players of their generation, and Hwang will now try to carve out her own legacy. “I’d like to be remembered as a player who enjoys the game of golf,” she said.