Lauren Kim's first time playing in the Augusta National Women's Amateur was a singular experience. Not just because it's one of the most historic golf courses in North America, but because she played the final round of the elite tournament alone.
Kim had made the cut at Augusta last year but, because there was an odd number of competitors, she wound up playing her final round alongside a marker. Effectively playing by herself worked because she fired a 71 — one of the few to score under par that day — to tie for 14th.
"I wasn't comparing myself to another player in the field," she said. "I think that's what made it more fun, because I was by myself, and I had no idea what was going on in other groups, and I was just playing golf, and I had crowds with me.
"I almost made a hole-in-one on No. 16, which is very exciting, because I had a lot of friends and people watching me on that hole, and I almost pulled it out and made the crowd go wild. That round in general was so fun and special, I think it's pretty hard to forget."
Kim, from Surrey, B.C., will get another chance to make memories on Wednesday when she tees off at the Augusta National Women's Amateur for a second consecutive year.
"It's such an amazing feeling. It's Augusta National. Everybody wants to go there, and not everyone can," Kim said. "But I'm playing there as well and I got the opportunity to play there last year, play a competitive round after making the cut.
"That was a very magical feeling and I'm just so excited to go back. They run that tournament so well and treat us very well."
Kim earned her Augusta return with one of the best seasons in U.S. collegiate golf this year in her sophomore year with the Texas Longhorns.
She's earned six top-10 finishes since September 2024, most recently winning the Betsy Rawls Invitational. That performance anchored Texas's 18-stroke team victory at the event in the Longhorns' home tournament.
Laura Ianello, the head coach of the women's golf team at Texas, said that Kim deserves the honour of being invited to Augusta.
"She has earned the right to be here, being the number 1 player out of Canada year after year the last couple of years," said Ianello. "Lauren Kim is, without a doubt, a person that could easily win the Augusta National Women's Amateur if she gets off to a good start, hits her fairways, greens and makes some putts early."
Kim agreed with her university coach that her solid play all season should carry over to the storied course.
"With the momentum I have right now, it's helping me head into events with the mindset that I am a great player, I can perform, and all I need to do is really just focus on that shot that I'm about to hit, instead of worrying about technical things or how I'm going to play or perform," said Kim, who will be joined at Augusta by Longhorns teammates Farah O'Keefe and Cindy Hsu.
"Having all parts of my game clicking right now that really did help my mentality, keep me in it during tournaments."
LPGA TOUR — Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., faces Ireland's Leona Maguire in the first round of the T-Mobile Match Play event. Henderson, ranked No. 25 on the top women's tour, is the only Canadian in the field at Shadow Creek Golf Course in North Las Vegas, Nev.
PGA TOUR — Two-time Valero Texas Open champion Corey Conners will return to TPC San Antonio this week. He's seventh in the FedEx Cup standings, the highest-ranked Canadian on the PGA Tour. The player from Listowel, Ont., will be joined at the Texas Open by Ben Silverman (153rd) of Thornhill, Ont., and Adam Svensson (156th) of Surrey, B.C.
KORN FERRY TOUR — Sudarshan Yellamaraju of Mississauga, Ont., will return to action at this week's Club Car Championship at The Landings Golf & Athletic Club in Savannah, Ga. He hasn't played in a competitive tournament since he missed the cut at the Astara Golf Championship but is still No. 8 on the points list, making him the highest ranked Canadian on the second-tier circuit. No. 23 Matthew Anderson, also from Mississauga, Myles Creighton (62nd) of Digby, N.S., Etienne Papineau (109th) of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., Roger Sloan (118th) of Merritt, B.C., and Vancouver's Stuart Macdonald (136th) are also in the field.
AMERICAS TOUR — Ten Canadians are in the field at the 70th ECP Brazil Open this week, the second tournament of the third-tier circuit's schedule. Anderson won it last year, paving the way for his promotion to the Korn Ferry Tour this season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2025.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
