Yuka Saso Among Eight Champions Exempt for U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally

USGA accepts second-most entries ahead of 80th edition of the championship at Erin Hills in Wisconsin

LIBERTY CORNER, N.J. (April 3, 2025) – Eight champions and 24 of the top 25 players in the world are among the 1,904 entries accepted by the United States Golf Association (USGA) for the 80th U.S. Women’s Open Championship Presented by Ally. The U.S. Women’s Open will be held for the first time at Erin Hills, in Erin, Wis., from May 29-June 1.

The number of entries ranks second all-time to the record total of 2,107 who entered to play in 2023 at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links. More than 1,800 players filed entries for the fourth consecutive year. The USGA accepted entries for the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open from golfers in 46 U.S. states and 60 foreign countries.

“The USGA is excited to once again to conduct an Open Championship at Erin Hills, a public facility that has been supportive of both professional and amateur golf,” said USGA Chief Championships Officer John Bodenhamer. “The number of entries represents the worldwide interest in competing in this championship. We continue to state that it matters where a player wins her Open and this year’s champion will be proud to hoist the Harton S. Semple Trophy at Erin Hills.”

Yuka Saso, of Japan, carded a final-round 68 to win last year’s championship with a 72-hole score of 4-under-par 276 at Lancaster (Pa.) Country Club. She became the youngest (22 years, 11 months, 13 days) to capture multiple U.S. Women’s Open titles and is one of eight champions exempt from qualifying. Joining Saso are In Gee Chun (2015), Sung Hyun Park (2017), Ariya Jutanugarn (2018), Jeongeun Lee6 (2019), A Lim Kim (2020), Minjee Lee (2022) and Allisen Corpuz (2023).

World No. 1 Nelly Korda, of Bradenton, Fla., who won her second major championship last year, is among 84 exempt players currently in the field. Korda will compete in her 11th U.S. Women’s Open. Jeeno Thitikul, of Thailand, who is the No. 2-ranked player and won last year’s CME Group Tour Championship, will play in her fourth Women’s Open. World No. 3 Lydia Ko, of New Zealand, recorded her 23rd LPGA victory in March. The 2024 Olympic gold medalist is set to compete in her 14th Women’s Open and owns five top-15 finishes.

To be eligible, a player must have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 2.4, or be a professional. Qualifying, which will be contested over 36 holes at 23 sites across the United States, plus one each in Canada, Japan and Italy, will take place between April 15-May 13.

Eun-Hee Ji, the 2009 champion, will attempt to qualify for the championship. She is scheduled to compete at The Meadows at Mystic Lake, in Prior Lake, Minn., on May 13.

The championship’s youngest entrant is 9-year-old Holliday Sun, an amateur from Clyde Hill, Wash. Mercedese Large, a 61-year-old amateur from West Hartford, Conn., is the oldest.

Alessandra Fanali, a 25-year-old professional from Italy, was the first entrant on Feb. 12. Kayla Smith, a 24-year-old amateur from Burlington, N.C., submitted her entry five minutes before the deadline of 5 p.m. EDT on April 2.

The number of fully exempt players is expected to increase with the inclusion of additional categories. The winner of any LPGA co-sponsored event prior to the start of the U.S. Women’s Open will earn an exemption. Additionally, from the week #20 Finalized Rolex Rankings, the top 75-point leaders and anyone tying for 75th place (released May 19, 2025), if they were not previously exempt, will be added to the championship field. The winners of the 2025 Chevron Championship, 2025 Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship and 2025 NCAA Women’s Division I Championship will also earn exemptions, the latter two categories stipulating the player must remain an amateur.

Erin Hills is hosting its fifth USGA championship, which includes the 2017 U.S. Open when Brooks Koepka won by four strokes over Hideki Matsuyama and Brian Harman. Erin Hills will be the site of the third U.S. Women’s Open played in that state of Wisconsin, and also becomes the 16th course nationally to host both Open championships.

More information about the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills, including the qualifying schedule, is available at uswomensopen.com.

The list of the 84 golfers who are fully exempt into the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open (as of April 2):

Narin An Sei Young Kim Mao Saigo

Pajaree Anannarukarn Su Ji Kim Yuka Saso

Sohyun Bae Jin Young Ko Sarah Schmelzel

Celine Boutier Lydia Ko Hinako Shibuno

Ashleigh Buhai Sakura Koiwai Jenny Shin

Hye-Jin Choi Nelly Korda Jiyai Shin

In Gee Chun Jennifer Kupcho Maja Stark

Carlota Ciganda Shiho Kuwaki Linnea Strom

Allisen Corpuz Stephanie Kyriacou Jasmine Suwannapura

Lauren Coughlin Andrea Lee Ai Suzuki

Ayaka Furue Minjee Lee Rio Takeda

Linn Grant Jeongeun Lee6 a-Asterisk Talley

Hannah Green Leta Lindley Chiara Tamburlini

Nataliya Guseva Gaby Lopez Patty Tavatanakit

Nasa Hataoka Da Som Ma Jeeno Thitikul

Brooke Henderson Nanna Koertz Madsen Lexi Thompson

Esther Henseleit Leona Maguire Albane Valenzuela

Charley Hull a-Rianne Malixi Lilia Vu

Youmin Hwang Wichanee Meechai Chanettee Wannasaen

Jin Hee Im Yealimi Noh a-Lottie Woad

Akie Iwai Anna Nordqvist Miyu Yamashita

Chisato Iwai Sung Hyun Park Amy Yang

Ariya Jutanugarn Sophia Popov Angel Yin

Moriya Jutanugarn Seung Hui Ro Ruoning Yin

Yui Kawamoto Gabriela Ruffels Hyunjo Yoo

Megan Khang a-Hana Ryskova Ina Yoon

A Lim Kim Hae Ran Ryu Arpichaya Yubol

Hyo Joo Kim Madelene Sagstrom Rose Zhang