Grace Kim jumps to 25 in the world after Evian Championship, Karrie Webb says more wins coming

News.com.au

2 days ago

Officials hope newly minted major champion Grace Kim will again headline the WPGA on the Gold Coast and play for the Karrie Webb Cup, with the Australian legend declaring Kim's breakthrough could provide the mental 'freedom' to win more.
Kim, who has jumped a mammoth 74 places on the world rankings to a career-high 25 after taking out the Evian Championship in France in stunning fashion, was set to tee it up in March before the tournament was cancelled due to fears over Cyclone Alfred.
It looms as one of the few events for Kim to play in at home in 2025 after the women's Australian Open was shifted to February 2026 when Golf Australia ditched the dual-gender format in favour of stand-alone national Opens.
Webb, who won seven majors, has a close bond with Kim, who won the Karrie Webb Scholarship four times, and the fourth time the pair spent six days together on a US road trip playing courses including Pine Valley and Winged Foot and sharing a hotel room.
After seeing the 24-year-old's miraculous eagle, birdie, eagle finish to win on a second playoff hole against world No.2 Jeeno Thitikul, Webb was confident the win, as well as the $1.8m winner's cheque and five years of playing security, would combine to unleash an all-new, extra confident Kim.
'I think this will take the lid off now,' said Webb, who watched Kim close out the tournament from her Florida home.
'I think Grace knows she's got a place to play for five years. Financially, this will give her some breathing room just to go and play, so I'm excited to see what she can do now with a bit of freedom.
'She has put in so much hard work. I played with her before she won her scholarship and her game's night and day from that 15, 16, 17-year-old to now. She didn't hit it very far back then. She really relied on her short game a lot.
'Now, she hits it long enough and she's a terrific ball striker. She's a very smart player.'
For her part, Kim also conceded the mental side of her game was the area that would lift her to new heights.
'I think I've come to learn that it's not quite my game technically. It's more on course, just the skills that I have to learn through experience being on the Tour week in, week out,' she said after collecting her trophy.
Kim also recognised the 'money can't buy' experience of that road trip with Webb in helping shape her career.
'I don't know golf courses very well, but we played Pine Needles ... sorry, Pine Valley, and I didn't quite know the big deal about it,' she said.
'So played Pine Valley, played Winged Foot. It was just an incredible week with her. It was a whole week. We shared a hotel room, so, yeah, memory that money can't buy.'
The 2026 Australian WPGA Championship and Festival of Golf will return to the Gold Coast from March 19-22 in 2026, with The Palms course at the renowned Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club to host the action.