Shiho Kuwaki thought she had won, and then Esther Henseleit drained a 45-foot birdie on the 72nd hole. Two extra holes later, Kuwaki was a major champion.

Kuwaki, 23, won the 50th AIG Women's Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes on Sunday, August 2, defeating Germany's Henseleit on the second playoff hole to claim her first major title. She carded a final-round 1-under 71 to finish at 5-under par, as reported by GolfMagic on August 2.

Kuwaki spoke after her win. "I just can't believe it," she said. "To be on a stage like this is just an honour. Every hole I was just focused on shot by shot and just tried to enjoy it out there as much as I could. After [Mayu] Yamashita's win last year, to be able to win again as a Japanese player is such an amazing feeling. I hope we can continue to light up the golf world."

The playoff began because Henseleit holed a monster 45-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation to pull level. On the first extra hole, Kuwaki found the rough with her tee shot but hacked out and matched Henseleit's par to extend the contest.

The second trip down 18 ended things dramatically. Henseleit's tee shot struck a marshal's ankle and bounced into a gorse bush. She chipped out but couldn't match Kuwaki's score. Henseleit's tee shot striking a marshal's ankle and bouncing into a gorse bush ended her chances of winning the title.

Yealimi Noh had entered the final round with a three-shot lead but closed with a 3-over 74. Nelly Korda carded a final-round 68 to finish inside the top five at 2-under. Haeran Ryu and Atthaya Thitikul finished at 1-under and 2-under, respectively.

Kuwaki had played in only one previous AIG Women's Open, missing the cut at Royal Porthcawl last year. She has won twice on the LPGA of Japan Tour this season.

Japan now has back-to-back AIG Women's Open victories.

Henseleit's reaction after heartbreak at Royal Lytham

Henseleit was gracious in defeat. "I'm very happy with how I gave myself the opportunity to win today and how I handled myself," she said after the round. "Just got a bit unlucky on the second playoff hole there. I tried really hard, and I guess it just wasn't meant to be today."

Henseleit had never finished better than seventh in 32 previous major starts before Sunday's runner-up finish. Her birdie on the 72nd hole to force the playoff was one of the most dramatic moments of the 2026 LPGA season.

She addressed the gorse bush incident directly. "At least I still had a shot, I guess, and could kind of get a good angle going into the green and didn't have to take an unplayable or something. But, yeah, probably a bit unlucky there. That's just links golf."

Kuwaki wins $1.5 million from the record $10 million prize purse at the 2026 AIG Women's Open. Kuwaki becomes the second consecutive Japanese player to win the AIG Women's Open, following Mayu Yamashita's victory in 2025.

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Written by

Sneha Abraham