From the stunning views of last week in Utah, the LPGA Tour moves in less than four days to the spectacular New York City skyline from the famous Liberty National Golf Club. This Thursday, the Mizuho Americas Open will kick off, a unique tournament that brings together 120 of the best players in the world and distributes three million dollars in prizes, as well as 24 elite juniors who will compete in their own parallel event.
American Nelly Korda, seeking her first victory of the year, returns to New Jersey to defend the title she won on this same course a year ago in a tight finish, edging out Hannah Green by just one stroke. It was her sixth trophy of the year, with a final score of 14 under par, records that this year, in which she has three top-15 finishes, including 14th at the Chevron Championship, she has not yet been able to match.
She will be one of the favourites alongside names such as Haeran Ryu, the latest winner of the LPGA Tour at the Black Desert Championship; Esther Henseleit and Ruoning Yin, who finished second behind Ryu last week in Utah; Jeeno Thitikul, returning to Liberty National for the third consecutive year after finishing in the top ten in 2023 and 2024; Lydia Ko, who missed the cut last year; or Rose Zhang, recovered from the neck injury that prevented her from playing the Chevron.
Representing Spanish golf will be Carlota Ciganda, who after her notable top 10 at the Chevron did not achieve a good result last week, finishing outside the top 50 at the Black Desert; Julia López, who in her rookie season has made the cut in her first five events and seeks to continue growing this week; and Fátima Fernández Cano, with the challenge of making her first cut of the LPGA season. Three Spaniards showing their best with Manhattan as a backdrop.
The most novel aspect of this Mizuho Americas Open is the presence of 24 of the best junior players from the AJGA. While the LPGA golfers compete in their own 72-hole event, the juniors do the same in a stableford tournament where the one with the most points after four rounds will take the victory. Gianna Clemente, champion a year ago with 149 points playing on Sunday with Korda and Green, returns this season and among her rivals will be Asterisk Talley, who has competed in the LPGA in recent weeks.
As for the course, with the Statue of Liberty in the background and the New York City skyline as a major visual attraction, Liberty National presents itself as a par 72 of 6,677 yards that, since hosting the tournament last season, has renovated half of its 110 bunkers. A challenge where Korda wants to regain her smile after a lukewarm start to the season and where the Spaniards dream of leaving their mark.
