With husband Jarryd Felton by her side, Hannah Green captured a seventh LPGA Tour title with a victory at the HSBC Women’s World Championship.
By Raquel Stevens
WITH a record seven Australians competing in the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore, the odds were high that the trophy would return to home soil. And with Hannah Green and Minjee Lee in pole position on the final day, the stage was set for an Aussie duel at the Tanjong course.
In a fairytale finish, Western Australia’s Hannah Green secured her seventh LPGA victory and making the triumph more significant, it was Green’s first win with her professional-golfer husband, Jarryd Felton, serving as her caddie.
“Seven is my lucky number; it’s also one of my favourite clubs in the bag. To do it with Jarryd by my side was extra special. I had a good week last week, but to say that I’m champion so early in the season is kind of strange,” Green said.
The partnership wasn’t originally in the books, Green explaining that her usual caddie was navigating US immigration hurdles.
“My usual caddie is applying for a green card and couldn’t leave the US, so it wasn’t part of the plan for the season. Luckily, my husband was able to pick up the bag for me.”
Green rejoined the winner’s circle with a total of 14-under-par 274, finishing just one stroke ahead of American runner-up Auston Kim.
Green set an aggressive pace early with a birdie on the first hole on the final day, though she admitted the pressure was intense.
“I feel that if you don’t experience nerves, there’s probably not enough care factor. I kind of just told Jarryd a couple times that I wasn’t feeling comfortable, and he said take a deep breath or just have something to eat or even a sip of water.”
Kim, 25, remained a threat throughout the day, highlighted by a spectacular eagle on the eighth hole. Meanwhile, World No. 4 Minjee Lee, who started Sunday as co-leader, struggled to find momentum on Sunday, finishing with an even-par 72, placing her in a tie for third at 11-under alongside Angel Yin and France’s Pauline Roussin-Bouchard.
Hannah Green with a second victory at the HSBC Women’s World Championship.
Lee’s chances faded on the 16th, the same hole where a plaque commemorates Green’s the famous 2024 birdie she made before claiming victory. Despite the frustration, Lee remained optimistic.
“I think I’m proud of myself for sticking in there and still posting a score when I had to. Yeah, I feel like this sets up for a nice start to the year. I feel like I can take away a lot more positives than negatives from this whole week,” Lee said.
The closing holes at Tanjong are notoriously punishing. Even with a four-shot lead at one point, Green made three birdies and three bogeys in navigating a turbulent back nine.
“It’s a beast of a course, and you had to be switched on the entire time,” Green remarked.
Husband Jarryd noted the shift in momentum as the lead tightened.
“You can kind of get a little bit comfortable when you’ve got a four-shot lead. And then Auston made birdie, and we made bogey to go back to two, and I think that really kind of spurred her (Hannah) on the next hole to get a good shot there and make the birdie.”
While Green admitted a “bogey-bogey” finish wasn’t ideal, her lead held. As is tradition, fellow Aussies Grace Kim, Steph Kyriacou, and Karis Davidson stormed the 18th green to shower the champion with champagne.
Back in 2024, the prize money at this event was $US1.8 million. It was then upped to $US2.4 million last year as Lydia Ko scooped the first place cheque for $US360,000.
In 2026, reflecting the growing prestige of the event. the overall prize money for the HSBC Women’s World Championship was an impressive $US3 million, with $US450,000 going to Green as the winner.
Runner up, Auston Kim, pocketed just under $US280,000, while each of the top six collected a six-figure payout.
Joint leader heading into the final round, Minjee Lee had her moments in Singapore, before eventually finishing in a tie for third.
Because the tournament does not feature a cut, the player who finishes last after completing all four rounds took home just under $US6,000 as well as Rolex Ranking and Race to CME Globe points.
Other notable finishes this year included World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul (T31) and defending champion Lydia Ko (T28).
While the spotlight was on Green and Lee, other Australians showed grit in the intense heat. Cassie Porter (74,70,71,68) was 18th in recording her first Top 25 finish, while Davidson (73,69,70,77), Kim (73, 74,73,68) Robyn Choi (73,72,76,73) and Kyriacou (74, 78,77,82) finished near the tail of the 72-strong field.
For Green, the victory was the ultimate validation of the makeshift partnership between her and hubby Jarryd, while the now two-time HSBC Women’s World champion (Green won in 2024) also said it was encouraging to see so many Aussies on tour.
“It can be a tough lifestyle being away from home. I think we had seven or eight Aussies playing this week, which is the most we’ve ever had. So hopefully we’ll see more Aussie flags on the leaderboard.”
NOTE: Inside Golf was a media partner for the HSBC Women’s World Championship, one of the early season highlight events on the LPGA Tour.
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