The Grand Slam on the women’s side has a bit of a different definition to the one on the men’s side. In men’s professional golf it is pretty simple, if you win all four majors, you win The Grand Slam, as Rory McIlroy just accomplished at The Masters.
Women’s golf has not always had the same majors and in 2013 expanded to five majors. The LPGA still designates winning four majors as winning The Grand Slam, while winning five majors is considered a Super Grand Slam.
The only winner of The Super Grand Slam is the great Karrie Webb, who achieved it at the 2002 Women’s British Open. Webb actually almost won six, as she finished runner-up at the 2014 Evian Championship. The other Grand Slam winners are Mickey Wright, Louise Suggs, Juli Inkster, Annika Sörenstam and Inbee Park. Park actually won the final Evian Championship before it was designated a major.
The odds of someone else achieving the Super Grand Slam are slim. There is so much parity in women’s golf. Inbee Park is the only player to begin her career after 2005 to win more than three majors in general. A Grand Slam is much closer to being a possibility. There are three active players who have three legs.
- Anna Nordqvist: 2009 Women’s PGA Championship, 2017 Evian Championship, 2021 Women’s British Open
- In Gee Chun: 2015 U.S. Women’s Open, 2016 Evian Championship, 2022 Women’s PGA Championship
- Lydia Ko: 2015 Evian Championship, 2016 Chevron Championship, 2024 Women’s British Open
Both Lydia Ko and Anna Nordqvist have finished top five in every major at least once. In Gee Chun has finished runner up in both majors that she hasn’t won.
Obviously the one who is most likely to achieve this is Lydia Ko, who has been for the most part spectacular in the 2020s and is still playing golf that is reminiscent of her prime. She also has two majors left that travel to other courses, which means she could run into a course that suits her game better than others. Both Nordqvist and Chun have struggled on the course since their latest major titles, and it seems unlikely for them to get back in contention.
Five active players on the LPGA Tour have two legs of the Grand Slam.
- Nelly Korda: 2021 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, 2024 Chevron Championship
- Jin Young Ko: 2019 Chevron Championship, 2019 Evian Championship
- Minjee Lee: 2021 Evian Championship, 2022 U.S. Women’s Open
- Brooke Henderson: 2016 Women’s PGA Championship, 2022 Evian Championship
- Lilia Vu: 2023 Chevron Championship, 2023 Women’s British Open
Korda has shown improvement recently both on British Open setups and at the Evian. Lilia Vu has played well on Women’s PGA Championship setups, but has struggled in U.S. Women’s Opens and at the Evian. Brooke Henderson finished third at the Chevron Championship last year, but hasn’t always been the strongest player at the Women’s British Open. Both Minjee Lee and Jin Young Ko have at least one top-three finish at every major.
While a Grand Slam would be an incredible accomplishment, it would be one of the great achievements in golf history if someone were to join Karrie Webb as a Super Grand Slam champion.
