World No. 4 Kim Hyoju: "This Time, It's Back-to-Back Titles and Consecutive Wins"

Kim Hyoju Returns to Ford Championship After Last Year's Playoff Victory

On a Winning Streak Following Last Week's Fortinet Founders Cup Triumph

Korda, Thitikul, Hull, and Yamashita Among the Top Contenders

World No. 4 Hyojoo Kim is aiming for back-to-back titles and consecutive victories.

Starting on March 26 (local time), Kim will compete in the Ford Championship presented by the LPGA, held over four days at the Whirlwind Golf Club Cattail Course (par 72, 6,675 yards) in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. In this tournament, she is not only defending her title but is also seeking to win for the second consecutive week.

Kim has fond memories from last year’s event. She fired an 8-under-par on the final day to tie with Lilia Vu (USA) and then secured victory in the playoff, claiming her seventh career LPGA Tour win. She also finished tied for eighth at the inaugural tournament in 2024, showing her strength at this event. Last week, she captured a wire-to-wire victory at the Fortinet Founders Cup, leading from start to finish. Having collected her eighth career trophy in a year, she now prepares for her title defense.

Hyojoo Kim aims for back-to-back wins at the Ford Championship. Photo by AFP Yonhap News.

With her win at the Founders Cup, Kim climbed from eighth to a career-high fourth in the world rankings. This season, she ranks second in both the CME Globe Race points (768 points) and the Player of the Year standings (39 points). The top spot belongs to Nelly Korda (USA), who finished runner-up at the Fortinet Founders Cup.

This tournament will feature elite players. Among them are the inaugural champion Korda, current World No. 1 Atthaya Thitikul (Thailand), No. 3 Charley Hull (England), No. 6 Miyu Yamashita (Japan), No. 8 Lydia Ko (New Zealand), No. 9 Kim Seiyoung, and No. 10 Lottie Woad (England)—making it eight out of the world’s top ten in the field.

For Korea, the lineup includes recent Blue Bay LPGA winner Mi Hyang Lee, as well as Yoo Hae-ran, Choi Hyejin, Kim Seiyoung, Lee Somin, Kim Arim, Lim Jinhui, Choi Unjeong, Shin Ji-eun, Yoon Ina, Yang Heeyoung, Jeon Inji, An Narin, Hwang Yumin, Lee Dong-eun, and Lee Jeong-eun5.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.