Hannah Green is a virtual shoo-in for the Aussie Olympics team after wrapping up her second LPGA Tour title of the year at the JM Eagle LA Championship.
The 27-year-old Mount Lawley golfer successfully defended the title she won in 2023 in fine style, closing with a five-under-par 66 at Wilshire Country Club to post a three-stroke victory ahead of Sweden’s Maja Stark.
It is Green’s fifth career LPGA Tour win, and her second of 2024 after victory at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March. Along with the winner’s paycheque of US$562,500, Green is now virtually assured of a place in the Australian Olympic golf team alongside fellow Western Australian Minjee Lee.
In the mix throughout the week, Green moved into co-leadership of the championship with NSW’s Grace Kim at seven-under after 54 holes. But while Kim back-pedalled to close with a miserable 77, Green was assured as she carded her best score of the week, 66, to ease to the title.
Kim, meanwhile, was 11-over-par for her weekend and slumped to T25th at -1 for the championship, while Minjee Lee missed a second consecutive cut.
Hannah Green swept to victory in Hollywood for the second year running
Although her win puts Green in pole position to fulfil her ambition of joining Minjee in the Australian Olympic golf team, she says she’s taking nothing for granted.
“There are still six or seven weeks to go [until the rankings are finalised] and a lot can happen in that time,” she said.
“Although Grace didn’t have the weekend she’d have wanted, she’s still capable of making a run for the team, so is Steph Kyriacou, so is Gabi Ruffels, so I’ve got to keep pushing.”
Her latest triumph sees Green become only the fifth Australian to win at least five titles on the LPGA Tour (behind Jan Stephenson, Minjee Lee, Karrie Webb and Rachel Hetherington) and also surpass the US$5m career earnings mark.
There was a further accolade for Green, as she displaced Lee as Australia’s top-ranked women’s player and jumped into the top 10 in the world for the first time.
Her Los Angeles win saw Green move up from No. 18 to No. 8 in the world rankings, while Lee fell to 9th. Green’s previous highest world ranking was 13th in 2021.
Image credits: Harry How/Getty Images
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