The LPGA keeps getting stronger each year as proven by the fact that they had winners from 16 different countries in the last two seasons. This makes it so very difficult to narrow this down to just 40 players.
Here are my top 40 picks for the 2024 season in reverse order: (last year’s actual Player of the Year finish is in parenthesis).
40. Jin Hee Im – (N/A) I like to try to put a couple of rookies on this list each year. Picking the right ones is often very difficult when you have so many talented rookies as we do this year. Im is an established star on the KLPGA where she is a six time winner.
39. Mone Inami (N/A) – My second and final rookie pick on my list, Inami won on the LPGA last year as a non-LPGA member. She has 13 wins on the JLPGA Tour, and won the silver medal in the 2020 Olympics. My choice as top rookie.
38. Gaby Lopez (35) – She didn’t win last season, but is always a threat as she has twenty-four top ten finishes in her career. She wins in even number years (2018, 2020, 2022). If she continues that trend, she could finish higher than this.
37. Yu Liu (37) – She is still searching for that elusive first LPGA victory. She misses way too many cuts (ten last season), but still registered five top tens.
36. Pajaree Anannarukarn (32) – Earned her second career LPGA victory last season when she won the Match Play Championship. She also misses way too many cuts (sixteen in the last two seasons) for me to rank her higher than this.
35. A Lim Kim (26) – She won the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open as a non-LPGA member. Problem is, she hasn’t won since. I thought about dropping her off this list, but I figure that first win as an LPGA member might come in 2024.
34. Andrea Lee (72) – After a breakout year in 2022 where she got her first LPGA win and finished 17th for player of the year honors, she fell way back to 72nd in 2023. She is still very young, and much too talented not to improve this year.
33. Ariya Jutanugarn (27) – A twelve time winner on the LPGA Tour, she has not won since Thailand three years ago. She has always been a streaky player as she has been known to miss ten cuts in a row, and then start winning again.
32. Carlota Ciganda (23) – It’s hard to believe that this is Carlota’s 13th year on tour and has won just twice! In fact, she hasn’t won in almost eight years. I believe she is at a crossroad in her career, and if she doesn’t win this year she could finish lower than this.
Mone Inami at the 2024 LPGA Drive On Championship. Photographer Ben Harpring.31. Ashleigh Buhai – (21) – She won for the second time in 2023, and had four other top ten finishes. She misses her share of cuts and sometimes goes long periods without contending.
30. Hannah Green (24) – She won for the third time last season, but had only two other top tens. Her inconsistency tells me she will go back a step this year.
29. Lexi Thompson (60) – Lexi is an eleven time winner on the LPGA, but would you believe she hasn’t won an LPGA tournament in almost five years? She finished last year strong with four consecutive top tens. Look for her to bounce back to about here this year even if she does not win.
28. Danielle Kang (54) – Danielle is a major champion and six time winner on the LPGA Tour. Unfortunately, 2023 was a year for her to forget as she only had three top ten finishes. Assuming she is healthy this year, expect her to bounce back in a big way.
27. Hye-Jin Choi (61) – Entering her third season on tour, Hye-Jin is still looking for her first LPGA victory. Why am I so high on a player that had only two top tens last year? Because she had thirteen top 25 finishes, and I believe she will turn more of those into top tens this season.
26. Alexa Pano (32) – Alexa got her first LPGA tournament win last season in Northern Ireland. Many pointed out that it was a weak field. Those critics are quiet now after her second place finish in the Tournament of Champions just a few short weeks ago. She is just 19 years old and the best is yet to come!
25. Rose Zhang (39) – Rose came onto the LPGA Tour mid-season last year. She won the first tournament she ever played as an LPGA member!! She then had top ten finishes in her first three Major Championships. The reason why I don’t put her even further up my list is that she is still juggling being a student at Stanford University and playing professional golf. A future superstar.
24. Yuka Saso (14) – She won the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open as a non LPGA player, but hasn’t won since. She did however register eight top ten finishes last year. I can’t put her higher than this until she proves that she can win again.
23. Leona Maguire (26) – Leona recorded her second LPGA victory last year and had five other top tens. She only missed one cut the entire 2023 season. I look for more of the same this year.
22. Nasa Hataoka (18) – She seemed to be on the weekend leaderboard quite often last season (had 7 top tens), but never hit the winner’s circle as she faded down the stretch. She may very well win this year, and finish higher than this.
21. Brooke Henderson (19) – Brooke is entering her 10th LPGA season and has won every year except the Covid shortened 2020 season. I believe her fourteenth victory is right around the corner.
20. Charley Hull (10) – This is also Charley’s 10th season on the LPGA Tour. She has 34 top ten finishes in her career, but only two victories. She has the talent to win more than she has, but in my opinion has underachieved.
19. Xi Yu Lin (12) – How does she not have an LPGA victory? She had 2 runner-ups last year and five other top ten finishes. She is arguably the best player on tour without a win. I think it is coming real soon.
18. Amy Yang (11) A five time winner on the LPGA Tour, she finally got her first win on U.S soil in 2023. This is her 17th year on tour, and is another one of those players who you would think would have more wins.
17. Ayaka Furue (16) – She did not win last season, but finished in the top ten eight times. She also missed just two cuts in 24 events. I look for her to get that second LPGA victory this coming season.
16. Jin Young Ko (6) – Probably the toughest player on tour for me to place on this list. If she gets hot she can finish on top of this list, but there is no guarantee she will, and can finish much lower. She had five top tens in her first 6 starts last year, then only one more all season long. A big question mark.
15. Maja Stark (27) – Won as a non-LPGA player in 2022, but didn’t win last season. She did have six top tens and is a threat to win whenever she tees it up. I predict a big step forward in 2024.
14. Alison Lee (25) – She finished in the runner-up spot in both of her final two appearances last season. She looks more mature, relaxed, and confident. That tells me she will get that first LPGA win in 2024.
13. Linn Grant (22) – She played in just 16 tournaments last year. In spite of that she picked up her first win, had four other top tens, and missed just one cut. She needs to play in at least 20 tournaments this year to finish this high.
12. Haeran Ryu (16) – She was the 2023 LPGA Rolex Rookie of the Year. She not only won in her rookie season, but had six top tens. She may prove to be the Republic of Korea’s best player.
Haeran Ryu at the 2024 LPGA Drive On Championship. Photographer Ben Harpring.11. Allisen Corpuz (4) – Can you think of a better way to get your first LPGA victory than winning the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach? That is exactly what she did. She had four other top tens last year also. I see a slight drop-off this season, but look for another fine year.
10. Minjee Lee (8) – One of two players on the LPGA Tour who didn’t miss a cut all season. She won for the tenth time in 2023, and I look for her to add to that total this coming season.
9. Hyo Joo Kim (5) – She was the other player that didn’t miss a single cut during the 2023 season. She registered her sixth LPGA victory and had eight top ten finishes, giving her 53 for her career. I look for another strong season.
8. Celine Boutier (2) – What a year she had in 2023! Going into last season she had just two victories in six seasons. Last season she exploded for four wins including a major championship. Replicating this will be too much to expect, but look for her to win again this year and have another fine season.
7. Ruoning Yin (3) – Another player that shocked us all in 2023. After a not so very good rookie season in 2022 (she made just 7 of 16 cuts), she won twice in 2023 (including a major championship) and had nine top ten finishes. A small drop-off this year might be expected, but another top ten year.
6. Megan Khang (13) – Megan registered her first LPGA victory in 2023. She finished the season with seven top tens and made 21 of 23 cuts. I see a huge 2024 in her future.
5. Angel Yin (8) – Another player that found it in 2023. She not only won her first LPGA tournament late last season but followed that up with a fourth place finish. It appears that her first win has given her newfound confidence. She is still very young (just 25 years old) and I am predicting multiple wins in 2024.
4. Lilia Vu (1) – She was the 2023 LPGA Player of the Year!! She not only won four times, but two of them were major championships! That is seven Hall of Fame points in a single season. Can she finish on top again in 2024? That is possible, but I see her finishing about here.
3. Atthaya Thitikul (7) – She led the LPGA Tour in top ten finishes in both 2022 and 2023. She won the Vare Trophy in 2023 for the lowest scoring average (69.533) on the LPGA Tour. How is it even possible that she didn’t win last year? Don’t expect that to happen again this season.
2. Lydia Ko (54) – Don’t ask me to explain why she had such a poor season in 2023, because I can’t. I do know she came out of the gate roaring this season registering her 20th victory and her 105th top ten. She is now just one point shy of being the first active player to make the LPGA Hall of Fame since Inbee Park in 2016. She will get that point sooner than later.
1. Nelly Korda (14) – Injuries are the only thing that has held Nelly back the last couple of years. Her scoring average of 69.85 ranked 5th last season. She came out of the gate strong this year winning the Drive On Championship just a couple of weeks ago. She has been number one in the world rankings four different times totaling 37 weeks. Look for her to return there this year.
Players most likely to make me look foolish for leaving them off this list: Aditi Ashok, Georgia Hall, Grace Kim, and Cheyenne Knight.
Feature Photo Nelly Korda at the 2024 LPGA Drive On Championship. All photos in this article by Ben Harpring.
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