The 2020 Women's British Open was played from 20 to 23 August in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Royal Troon Golf Club Royal Troon Golf Club is a Links (golf), links golf course in Scotland, located in Troon, South Ayrshire, southwest of Glasgow. Founding and early years The club, which now has a total of 45 holes, was founded in 1878, initially with five holes ...

. It was the 44th

Women's British Open The Women's Open (originally known as the Women's British Open, and still widely referred to by that name outside the UK) is a women's major golf championships, major championship in Professional golf tours#Women's tours, women's professional go ...

, the 20th as a major championship on the

LPGA Tour The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...

, and the first at Royal Troon Golf Club. The tournament was played behind closed doors due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confir ...

. It was the first championship held under a renewed sponsorship agreement with

AIG American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is an American multinational finance and insurance corporation with operations in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions. , AIG companies employed 49,600 people.https://www.aig.com/content/dam/aig/amer ...

; the deal involved the rebranding of the championship, removing the word "British", with the event titled as the 2020 AIG Women's Open. The championship was won by world number 304

Sophia Popov Sophia Popov (born 2 October 1992) is a German professional golfer. Personal life Popov holds dual United States-German citizenship having been born in the United States, and moved to Germany with her family when she was four years old. Her pat ...

, by two strokes from

Thidapa Suwannapura Thidapa "Jasmine" Suwannapura (; born 20 November 1992) is a Thai professional golfer. A Ramkhamhaeng University graduate, she qualified for the Honda LPGA Thailand as an amateur in 2006, 2008 and 2010. She is the winner of the 2008 Hong Kong Lad ...

. It was her first major tournament victory. Popov, a professional since 2014 and member of the second-tier Symetra Tour since 2016, had never previously won on any of the major

tours Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 ...

, winning her first events on a mini-tour in Arizona earlier in 2020. She qualified for the Women's Open by means of a high finish at the

Marathon Classic The Dana Open Presented By Marathon, is a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. It was founded in 1984 and has been played yearly, except in 1986 and 2011, in Sylvania, Ohio, a suburb northwest of Toledo. The tournament is te ...

at the start of August.

Course layout

Field

The field is 144 players. Most players earn exemptions based on past performance on the Ladies European Tour, the LPGA Tour, previous major championships, or with a high ranking in the

Women's World Golf Rankings The Women's World Golf Rankings, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Rolex Rankings, were introduced in February 2006. They are sanctioned by eight women's golf tours and the organisations behind them: Ladies Professional Golf Association (L ...

, with the rest of the field normally gaining entry by successfully competing in qualifying tournaments open to any female golfer, professional or amateur, with a low handicap. In 2020 there were no such tournaments due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Qualification criteria for the 2020 Women's British Open were as follows: 1. Winners of the Women's British Open, aged 60 or younger at the scheduled end of the championship, provided they are still active members of a recognised

tour Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...

. 2. The top 10 finishers and ties from the

2019 Women's British Open The 2019 AIG Women's British Open was played from 1–4 August in England at Woburn Golf Club in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, northwest of London. It was the 43rd Women's British Open, the nineteenthth as a major championship on the LPGA ...

. 3. The top 15 on the final 2019 LET Order of Merit. 4. The top 5 on the 2020 LET Order of Merit not already exempt as of 29 June. 5. The top 30 on the final 2019 LPGA Money List. 6. The top 35 on the 2020 LPGA Prioity List not already exempt under criteria 5. as of 29 June. 7. The top 5 on the 2020 LPGA Money List not already exempt as of 29 June. 8. The top 30 in the

as of 16 March. 9. Winners of the 2019 JLPGA Money List. 10. The top 5 on the final 2019 JLPGA Money List not already exempt. 11. Winners of the 2019 KLPGA Money List. 10. The top 5 on the 2020 KLPGA Money List not already exempt as of 29 June. 12. Winners of any recognised LET or LPGA Tour events in the 2020 calendar year. 13. Winners of the last five editions of the

U.S. Women's Open The U.S. Women's Open, one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, W ...

14. Winners of the last five editions of the

ANA Inspiration The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Fou ...

15. Winners of the last five editions of the

Women's PGA Championship The Women's PGA Championship (branded as the KPMG Women's PGA Championship for sponsorship reasons) is a women's professional golf tournament. First held in 1955, it is one of five majors on the LPGA Tour. It is not recognized as a major by the ...

16. Winners of the last five editions of

The Evian Championship The Evian Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as The Amundi Evian Championship, is a women's professional golf tournament in France, played at the Evian Resort Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains. It was originally held in June, move ...

17. The leading five (not otherwise exempt) in the 2020

18. The leading three (not otherwise exempt) in the 2020 Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open 19. The 2020

Women's Amateur Asia-Pacific The Women's Amateur Asia-Pacific was founded in 2018 by The R&A and the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation, to create an event corresponding to The Womens Amateur Championship and U.S. Women's Amateur for Asia, analogous to the Asia-Pacific Amateur ...

champion, 2020

Womens Amateur Championship The Women's Amateur Championship, previously known as the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship, was founded in 1893 by the Ladies' Golf Union. It is organised by The R&A, which merged with the Ladies' Golf Union in 2017. Until the dawn of th ...

champion, 2019 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, 2020

European Ladies Amateur Championship The European Ladies Amateur Championship is an annual amateur golf tournament. It is organized by the European Golf Association and is one of the "elite" tournaments recognized by the World Amateur Golf Ranking. The championship was first played in ...

champion, the 2019 Mark H. McCormack Medal winner, and the highest ranked women in the

World Amateur Golf Ranking The World Amateur Golf Ranking for men was introduced by The R&A, the governing body of the sport of golf outside the United States and Mexico, on 23 January 2007. It is based on the results of over 2,600 amateur tournaments per year (and amateurs p ...

from Great Britain and Ireland as of week 25, and provided they are still amateurs at the time of the Championship. 20. Any player who did not compete in the previous year's Women's British Open due to maternity, who subsequently received an extension of membership for the maternity from the player's home tour in the previous year, provided she was otherwise qualified to compete in the previous year's Women's British Open. 21. Remaining places filled by players not already exempt from: :a) the 2020 Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open ::i) in finishing order for those making the cut, with ties determined by order of Rolex Ranking prior to the start of the tournament, then card playoff. ::ii) in order of Rolex Ranking prior to the start of the tournament for those not making the cut. :b) the Rolex Rankings as of 16 March.

Nationalities in the field

Past champions in the field

Made the cut

Missed the cut

Round summaries

First round

''Thursday, 20 August 2020'' American Amy Olson held a three stroke lead at the end of the first round after recording a 4 under par round of 67. In tough scoring conditions due to strong winds,

Marina Alex Marina Alex (born August 2, 1990) is an American professional golfer. Early life and education Raised in Wayne, New Jersey, Alex played interscholastic golf at Wayne Hills High School, where she won individual state titles in 2007 and 2008. ...

and

were the only other two other players to finish under par. Ten players returned even par rounds to lie a stroke further back, including

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

champion Catriona Matthew and two-time LPGA major winner

Anna Nordqvist --> , death_place = , height = , weight = , nationality = , residence = Orlando, Florida, U.S. , spouse = , partner = , children = , college = Arizona State University (2.5 years) , yearpro = ...

Second round

''Friday, 21 August 2020'' Windy conditions continued throughout the second round which made for difficult scoring again. Daniela Holmqvist took a one stroke lead at the halfway stage following a one under par round of 70; by the end of the day she was the only player in the field under par. In joint second, at even par, were

Austin Ernst Austin Ernst (born January 31, 1992) is an American professional golfer on the LPGA Tour. Amateur career Ernst was born in Greenville, South Carolina. She played two years for the LSU Tigers, where she won three events including the individua ...

and

after rounds of 70 and 72 respectively. The best rounds of the day (69, two under par) came from Minjee Lee, who climbed into a tie for fourth at one over par, and

Inbee Park Inbee Park (, or ; born 12 July 1988) is a South Korean professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour and the LPGA of Japan Tour. She has been the number one ranked player in the Women's World Golf Rankings for four separate runs: April 201 ...

, who finished in a tie for 17th place at four over par. First round leader Amy Olson was one of many who struggled, returning a ten over par round of 81 to fall back into a tie for 33rd place. The cut came at nine over par. Among those to miss the cut were the defending champion from

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Hinako Shibuno is a Japanese professional golfer who won the 2019 Women's British Open. Early years Shibuno was born in Okayama, Japan on 15 November 1998. Her father was a discus thrower and her mother was a javelin thrower. She is the middle child of the ...

;

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

champion

In-Kyung Kim Kim In-Kyung, also called In-Kyung Kim and I. K. Kim (born 13 June 1988), is a South Korean professional golfer currently playing on the LPGA Tour. Amateur career Kim was a member of the Korean National Team in 2003 and 2004 and won three tou ...

;

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

champion

Stacy Lewis Stacy Lewis (born February 16, 1985) is an American professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She has won two major championships: the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2011 and the Women's British Open in 2013. She was ranked number one in ...

, who had won the

Ladies Scottish Open The Trust Golf Women's Scottish Open is a women's professional golf tournament in Scotland on the Ladies European Tour (LET). First played in 1986, it became a regular fixture on the tour schedule in 2010. Since 2017 it has been co-sanctioned ...

the previous week; and

Rose Ladies Series The Rose Ladies Series is a ladies professional golf tour founded in 2020 and organised by Justin Rose and his wife, Kate Rose. The tour was announced following the reintroduction of golf in the United Kingdom after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns ...

champion

Charley Hull Charley Esmee Hull (born 20 March 1996) is an English professional golfer who has achieved success both on the Ladies European Tour and the LPGA Tour, winning honours as Rookie of the Year, becoming the youngest competitor to participate in th ...

Third round

''Saturday, 22 August 2020''

moved into a three stroke lead at four under par after returning the joint best score of the day, a four under par round of 67. Also with 67 was

Katherine Kirk Katherine Kirk (born 26 February 1982) is a professional golfer from Australia, currently playing on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour and the ALPG Tour. She played under her maiden name, Katherine Hull, until her marriage to Tom Kirk on 2 August 2012 ...

, who climbed into a tie for tenth place, seven strokes behind Popov. Tied for second at one under par were Minjee Lee and

, both recording two under par rounds of 69 on Saturday. Further back, three players were tied at one over par, and three more at two over par. Daniela Holmqvist, who had held the lead at the halfway stage dropped down the leaderboard into a tie for 21st place after a six over par round of 77.

Final round

''Sunday, 23 August 2020'' After a bogey on the opening hole, overnight leader

bounced back with three birdies in the next five holes to retain the lead going into the final nine holes. Her nearest challenger was

, who birdied four holes in a row from the fourth to get within one stroke, with Minjee Lee a further two strokes behind. Bogeys by Suwannapura on the 11th and 13th holes extended Popov's lead to three strokes, and when Popov birdied both the 15th and 16th holes she led by four with just two holes to play. Popov bogeyed the last to finish two strokes ahead of Suwannapura and four clear of Lee. 2015 champion

returned the joint lowest round of the day, and the championship, with a five under par round of 66 to climb up to fourth place at one under par. Also with a round of 66 was

Ally McDonald Ally Leigh Ewing (née McDonald; born October 25, 1992) is an American professional golfer and plays on the LPGA Tour. McDonald was born in Tupelo, Mississippi and grew up in Fulton, Mississippi. She played college golf at Mississippi State Univ ...

, who finished tied for 22nd place at six over par.

Lindsey Weaver Lindsey Kathryn Weaver-Wright (born September 16, 1993) is an American professional golfer and LPGA Tour member. She shot a 59 during the 2012 Ping Junior Interclub match to become the second female golfer in history to do so, first being Annika ...

, who had been in a tie for fourth place after each of the opening three rounds and had chosen to play without a

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives the player advice and moral support. Description A good caddie is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the ...

as a result of COVID-19 related restrictions, fell away on Sunday with a four over par round of 75 to finish tied for 19th place.

Scorecard

''Final round'' ''Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par'' : Source:

References

External links

*
Coverage on the LPGA Tour siteCoverage on the Ladies European Tour
{{Golf on NBC Women's British Open Golf tournaments in Scotland

British Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...