Another week, another major, this time the US Women’s Open presented by Ally which returns to Lancaster Country Club for a second time.

Six Australians will tee it up this week in Pennsylvania and here is all you need to know about the second women’s major of 2024 LPGA.

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Allisen Corpuz (US)

PRIZEMONEY: $US12 million

LIVE SCORES: www.uswomensopen.com

TV COVERAGE: The US Women’s Open is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.

*All times AEST. 

Round 1: Friday 2am–10am (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)

Round 2: Saturday 2am–10am (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)

Round 3: Sunday 3am–8am (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)

Final Round: Sunday 4am–9am (Fox Sports 505/Kayo)

Australasian Player Profiles

HANNAH GREEN

World ranking: 5

Age: 27

Professional wins: 12

Best finish at the USWO: T13 (2023)

The lowdown: Australia’s top-ranked player is set and ready for this having found herself in contention more often than not in 2024.

Since missing the cut at the year’s first major (The Chevron) Green won the LA Championship, her second of the year, then shared 18th at the Founders Cup followed by a runner-up to the dominant Nelly Korda last start at the Mizuho Americas Open.

The 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship winner has never missed the cut at the US Women’s Open and her best finish came last year. Ranked fourth on the LPGA for greens in regulation and first for putts per GIR bodes well for her chances.

Green was still an amateur last time Lancaster played host in 2015, but she was on site as a Karrie Webb Scholarship winner, with the West Australian winning a major in front of scholarship winners four years later.

SARAH KEMP

World ranking: 143

Age: 38

Professional wins: 13

Best finish at the USWO: 67th (2010)

The lowdown: One of the final players in the field as an alternate from qualifying, Kemp will play her seventh US Women’s Open this week and first since missing the cut in 2022 at Pine Needles.

This event has not been the happiest of hunting grounds for Kemp, however, at 38, the New South Wales product is arguably playing the best golf of her career.

Kemp has made six of 10 cuts so far this year, and arrives having made four in a row with her work on and around the greens the strongest part of the game this year.

STEPH KYRIACOU

World ranking: 87

Age: 23

Professional wins: Two

Best finish at the USWO: Debut

The lowdown: Owning plenty of experience in the other majors, Kyriacou makes her first US Women’s Open start this week at Lancaster, where her aggressive play and birdie habit will be an interesting mix with the golden age design.

Showing a level of comfort at the biggest events with two top-10s at the majors, Kyriacou is a proven winner with two top-20s so far this year on the LPGA Tour, where she ranks solidly in all distance and ball-striking statistics.

Based off her statistics to date this year, the putter will be the key for Kyriacou this week. However, when speaking to Australian media on Wednesday, the Sydneysider noted the importance of driving the ball straight due to the penalising rough at Lancaster.

MINJEE LEE

World ranking: 9

Age: 28

Professional wins: 13

Best finish at the USWO: Won (2022)

The lowdown: The only Aussie in the field this week that teed it up the last time the US Women’s Open was at Lancaster, Minjee missed the cut in 2015, which was her first year as a professional. Now a two-time major winner, the Lee that returns this week is a far different player.

Lifting this trophy two years back, Lee has a game almost tailor-made for the US Open golf, with the West Australian considered one of the finest ball-strikers in all of golf and showing some good lead-in form ahead of the year’s second major.

Celebrating her birthday earlier this week, Lee will be hoping for a third major as a late present, with her driving accuracy likely the key to success given her ability to not only hit greens in regulation, but with an excellent proximity to the hole average.

Mixed bag of form so far in 2024, however, when Lee makes the cut, she has not finished worse than T29 and has three top-15s from eight starts.

KEELEY MARX (a)

World ranking: 1,360

Age: 20

Professional wins: Nil

Best finish at the USWO: Debut

The lowdown: With a small gap in her playing schedule at Iowa State University, Marx took a six-hour drive to qualifying in Chicago and returned to school as medallist of the event with a major debut in her pocket.

The Victorian has long been a fixture of the amateur golf scene in Australia, as well as playing multiple professional events, and prior to qualifying recorded a top-15 in an NCAA event. Marx also claimed the IMG Academy Junior World title in 2022.

Gaining an insight to what her future might look like as an LPGA player once finished with college, Marx will tee it up in the same event as her childhood hero Lexi Thompson, who announced this week that she will retire at year’s end.

GABI RUFFELS

World ranking: 40

Age: 24

Professional wins: Three

Best finish at the USWO: T13 (2020)

The lowdown: Somewhat remarkably at just 24, Ruffels will play her fourth US Women’s Open this week despite having taken up the game in her mid-teens.

Leading the Rookie of the Year race on the LPGA Tour, Ruffels heads to Pennsylvania in remarkable form having recorded back-to-back third-place finishes in her previous two starts, with another third earlier in the year.

Known as a top quality ball-striker, with six major top-25s already on her résumé, it is on the greens where Ruffels has impressed most this year. The former US Women’s Amateur champion ranking in the top-10 on Tour for all putting statistics, while her mindset has long been considered one of rising star’s major strengths.

THE COURSE

Although it was less than 10 years ago that Lancaster Country Club hosted this event for the first time, the course will look, and play, quite differently following the removal of trees and the addition of 12 new bunkers as part of a Ron Forse and Jim Nagle-led restoration.

Designed by William Flynn in 1920, the par-70 will measure 6,583 yards this week, with strategy and finding the fairways the keys to success around this underrated “Golden Age” design.

As is more often than not the case with a US Open, narrow twisting fairways will be the flavour of the week in Pennsylvania, with a course that is renowned for its pure rolling and undulating bentgrass greens.

A total of 8-under was good enough for In Gee Chun to claim victory here in 2015, with the par-3s particularly strong, while no champion will be comfortable until the final putt drops on the uphill par-4 last measuring 437 yards.

HEADLINERS

Nelly Korda – World No.1 and six-time winner in 2024

Allisen Corpuz – 2023 US Women’s Open winner

Lilia Vu – Two-time major champion and winner of The Annika

Charley Hull – 27 major top-25s and 2023 US Women’s Open runner-up

Lydia Ko – 20-time LPGA winner and two-time major champion

Celine Boutier – 2023 Evian Championship winner and world No.3

Ruoning Yin – 2023 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship winner and world No.4

In Gee Chun – Three-time major winner, including 2015 US Women’s Open

Rose Zhang – World No.6 and Cognizant Founders Cup winner

Jin Young Ko – Two-time major winner and former world No.1