PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. – Nelly Korda is the undisputed favorite this week at Riviera, with BetMGM putting her odds at +400. World No. 1s haven’t exactly thrived, however, at the U.S. Women’s Open in recent decades.
LPGA Hall of Famer Inbee Park is the last No. 1 to win the Women’s Open in 2013. Before that, it was Annika Sorenstam in 2006, the year the Rolex Rankings debuted.
What’s happened in the women’s game in recent years at the majors, in fact, stands in stark contrast to the men’s side. Of the last 10 men’s major, seven winners were ranked in the top 3 of the Official World Golf Rankings at the time of their victory.
In LPGA majors, only three of the last 17 major winners were in the top 10 at the time (Korda, 2024 and 2026 Chevron) and Lilia Vu (2023 AIG Women’s British Open).
Over the past 10 years, the winners of the U.S. Women’s Open had an average ranking of 30. Last year’s champion, Maja Stark, was 33rd in the world when she won.
The highest-ranked player to win in the past decade was No. 4 Minjee Lee in 2022 at Pine Needles.
| Year | Winner | Ranking |
| 2025 | Maja Stark | 33 |
| 2024 | Yuka Saso | 30 |
| 2023 | Allisen Corpuz | 29 |
| 2022 | Minjee Lee | 4 |
| 2021 | Yuka Saso | 40 |
| 2020 | A Lim Kim | 94 |
| 2019 | Jeongeun Lee6 | 17 |
| 2018 | Ariya Jutanugarn | 5 |
| 2017 | Sung Hung Park | 11 |
| 2016 | Brittany Lang | 40 |
Stats courtesy Elias Sports Bureau
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: No. 1s have struggled at the U.S. Open. Can Nelly Korda buck trend?
