Lilia Vu returns as defending champion and Nelly Korda as world No 1; Charley Hull leads the British hopes on the iconic Old Course at St Andrews; AIG Women's Open is the last event in Solheim Cup qualification; Watch live on Thursday from midday on Sky Sports Golf
Tuesday 20 August 2024 07:30, UK
Who will impress at the AIG Women's Open this week, live on Sky Sports? Five key storylines to follow from the Old Course at St Andrews, including Nelly Korda, Charley Hull and a big week in Solheim Cup qualification...
Nelly Korda arrives in Scotland as the world No 1 after her dominant start to 2024, although the American has struggled to hit the heights that saw her win six times in seven starts on the LPGA Tour earlier in the season.
Korda was an almost unstoppable force for a three-month stretch, where she added to her major tally at the Chevron Championship and became the first player since Annika Sorenstam in 2005 to win five consecutive LPGA Tour events.
A dramatic dip in form saw her make early exits from both the next two majors as a part of a run of three consecutive missed cuts, with that streak only ending with a tied-26th at the Evian Championship last month.
"What's been happening to me is I make a mistake and then I make another mistake on top of it," Korda said after her tied-22nd finish in her last start at the Paris Olympics.
Could the AIG Women's Open - where she has four top-14 finishes in the last five years - provide a change in fortune?
It was barely four years ago that Lilia Vu was outside the top 1,000 and considering quitting professional golf. Now, the American is sitting second in the world rankings and looking to join an elite group by winning the same major in successive seasons.
Vu won the AIG Women's Open in commanding fashion at Walton Heath last year, finishing six clear of home favourite Charley Hull to earn a second major title of a brilliant 2023, with the 26-year-old continuing to impress this campaign despite a lengthy spell out with a back injury.
She made a winning return to action at the Meijer LPGA Classic in June before finishing runner-up at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship a week later, although has finished no higher than 12th in her four LPGA Tour starts since.
A successful major title defence in the women's game is even more uncommon than in men's golf, with Yani Tseng's back-to-back Women's Open successes in 2010 and 2011 the last time it happened. Will Vu end that run this week at the Home of Golf?
Lauren Coughlin may have been an unfamiliar name to some in the sport when she started the year without an LPGA Tour title and not in the world's top 100, but the American heads into the final major of the year as the form player in the women's game.
Coughlin produced her best major finish by taking a share of third at the Chevron Championship in April, then claimed fourth at the Evian Championship after squandering a two-shot lead during the final round in France.
The 31-year-old has bounced back from that final-day disappointment by winning claiming her first two LPGA Tour titles over the past month, securing a breakthrough win at the CPKC Women's Open and adding another last week at the ISPS Handa Women's Scottish Open.
Coughlin has a Solheim Cup debut locked in and is on the fringe of the world's top 10 after a run that she herself described as "pretty crazy". A maiden major title would be her third win in four starts and cap off a memorable summer in style.
Hull left the AIG Women's Open last year "determined" to win a major in 2024, having failed to convert a 54-hole co-lead on home soil, with the Englishwoman coming into this week's event off the back of her best performance of the season on the LPGA Tour.
A fifth-place finish at the Scottish Open on Sunday was described by Hull as "good momentum" heading to St Andrews, following on from two runner-up finishes on the Ladies European Tour earlier in the year, but she remains without a worldwide win since October 2022.
Hull has had to deal with critics on social media about her failure to win more frequently, along with her going viral online over videos smoking on the golf course - something she says helps her relax - during the US Women's Open earlier this summer.
She admitted last week that playing links golf "was not the best part" of her game, although this event is a chance to tackle a style she is learning to "embrace". There hasn't been a British women's major winner since Georgia Hall in this event in 2018, but Hull would love to change that.
The final women's major of the year has added significance for those looking to feature in next month's Solheim Cup, live on Sky Sports, as it is the last event in the race to qualify for both Team Europe and Team USA.
Solheim Cups being held in successive years is likely to leave both teams looking reasonably similar to the ones that went head-to-head for last September's dramatic draw in Spain, although there will be plenty of players looking to make a late qualification push.
Hall and Anna Nordqvist are two Solheim Cup regulars for Team Europe that both require a captain's pick as things stand, which they would both likely get if they fail to qualify automatically, while Germany's Esther Henseleit is on the verge of a Team Europe debut after successive runner-up finishes.
Suzann Pettersen will name her four captain's picks to complete her line-up on Monday afternoon, with Team USA captain Stacy Lewis also announcing her four picks in the days leading up to the tournament.
A win or strong performance from one of their possible shortlists could make those decisions even harder.
Watch the AIG Women's Open this week live on Sky Sports. The preview show is live on Wednesday from 4pm on Sky Sports Golf, while coverage of the opening round starts on Thursday at midday.
Sky Sports+ which has officially launched and will be integrated into Sky TV, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.
