In the last 15 years the LPGA has grown exponentially on a global stage. Development in South Korea, Thailand, Japan and China have made the Tour even more global than it once was. Few sports have as much dominance worldwide than the LPGA Tour now does. Purses and media exposure have a long way to go, but the growth has been steady over the last 15 years. What players have dominated this watershed era in Tour history? Here is our list below (Note, only accomplishments from the 2010’s and 2020’s will be taken into account):
Honorable Mentions – In Gee Chun, Anna Nordqvist, Lilia Vu – Chun, Nordqvist and Vu have won multiple majors in this time frame. Chun and Nordqvist haven’t quite been as dominant as the others on the list and Vu is still so early in her career.
No. 10 – Sei Young Kim – Since joining the LPGA Tour in 2015, Sei Young Kim has finished in the top 10 76 times, with 12 wins, a major and the 2020 LPGA Tour Player of the Year Award. When she is at her best, there are few players who can hang with her, as evidenced by her having two of the five lowest tournament scores to par in LPGA Tour history. Her -31 in Green Bay 2018 is the LPGA Tour record. When she set that record, she was already the co-record holder of -27.
No. 9 – Stacy Lewis – Because the last five years haven’t been as strong, people likely forget how great Lewis was in the 2010’s. Lewis won majors in 2011 and 2013. She was also LPGA Tour Player of the Year in 2012 and 2014. Since 2010, Lewis has 12 total wins with the most recent coming in 2020. In addition to her play on the Tour, Lewis is also a two-time Solheim Cup captain, leading the United States to a win in 2024.
No. 8 – Brooke Henderson – It is a bit incredible that Brooke Henderson, arguably the biggest fan favorite of this era, doesn’t yet have a Player of the Year award, but it isn’t for lack of results. Henderson has 14 wins in her career with two major titles. She is the winningest Canadian golfer ever and has five multi-win seasons in nine years playing on the LPGA Tour. Henderson has 84 top-10 finishes in her career and has never finished outside of the top 20 on the money list or in scoring average.
No. 7 – Ariya Jutanugarn – Few players since 2010 have been more influential than the younger Jutanugarn sister, helping to inspire a new generation of players from Thailand that are now excelling on the LPGA Tour. Jutanugarn introduced herself in a big way. In her second season on Tour, Jutanugarn won three consecutive tournaments in 2016 and added two more later in the season, including a major. From 2016-2018, Jutanugarn was dominant, winning 10 times including two majors and the CME Group Tour Championship. She also won the Player of the Year in 2016 and 2018. In total she has 12 wins including the Dow Championship along her sister Moriya.
No. 6 – Jin Young Ko – Ko had a win in both 2017 and 2018 on the LPGA Tour, but her era of dominance truly began in 2019, when she won two major championships, four overall tournaments and the Player of the Year award. Though she only played four times in 2020, she finished runner-up in the U.S. Women’s Open and won the CME Group Tour Championship. In 2021, she led the Tour in wins with five, including her second Tour Championship in a row, leading to her second Player of the Year title. While injuries have slowed her career down a bit recently, with just three wins since the start of 2022, the 2019-2021 stretch alone makes her worthy of this placement.
No. 5 – Minjee Lee – No players have won more majors since 2020 than Minjee Lee, the Australian who joined the LPGA Tour full time in 2015. In her 10 seasons on Tour, Lee has 12 wins, three majors and 77 top-10 finishes. While she has only been in the top 10 of scoring to finish a season three times, she has a chance to lead the Tour in 2025. In addition to her three major championships, she has 10 more top-10s and is just one win at either the Chevron Championship or AIG Women’s Open away from the career grand slam.
No. 4 – Nelly Korda – For the most part, the 2020’s on the LPGA Tour have been defined by Nelly Korda’s dominance. She has 15 wins since joining the Tour in 2017, two of those have been major championships. She also won the Olympic Gold Medal for the United States in Tokyo and has been a strong Solheim Cup performer. Since 2019, Korda has never finished outside of the top seven in scoring average, which will likely continue in her “down year” of 2025. Korda has two seasons with at least four wins, has 13 top-10 finishes at majors and 72 top-10s overall. She won the 2021 Player of the Year award with seven wins and has spent 108 total weeks ranked No. 1 in the world.
No. 3 – Yani Tseng – Tseng really only had three good years since 2010, but that was an incredible stretch. Tseng won the first two Player of the Year awards of the 2010s and collected four majors and won 13 times in that stretch. Tseng’s resumé is up there with any other player already talked about despite having made just one cut since 2019 and no top-10 finishes since 2015. Her dominance was nearly even greater, as she finished top three at the Chevron Championship two more times in this window.
No. 2 – Lydia Ko – There isn’t much to say about Lydia Ko that hasn’t already been said. After one of the greatest amateur careers in golf history, she hit the ground running immediately. Ko joined the tour full time in 2014, and won 12 times in three years, including two majors. In total, Ko has 23 wins, three major championships, two Player of the Years and three Olympic medals, including a gold won in Paris. She is already in the LPGA Hall of Fame at just 28-years-old. Ko has an incredible 18 top-10 finishes in majors and 115 in total.
No. 1 – Inbee Park – The most dominant major champion in golf for the 2010s regardless of Tour, Inbee Park’s relatively short career was incredible. Since 2010 Park won 20 times on the LPGA Tour, six of those were majors. She had an unbelievable 32 top-10 finishes in majors between 2010 and 2021. For reference, she finished outside of the top 10 only 24 times. When she first qualified for the LPGA Hall of Fame, she was too young to receive official induction. Despite all of these incredible stats, and there are a lot more, she somehow only won a single LPGA Player of the Year in 2013, when she won three majors in one season.
