AIG Women's Open 2024 Preview, Picks & Analysis

The world’s best women golfers arrive at St Andrews this week as Lilia Vu defends her AIG Women’s Open title at the home of golf in what will be a historic week.

And it should surprise nobody that this is a prize they all want to win, with former champion Georgia Hall saying it would be her greatest achievement. The 28-year-old won the Championship at Royal Lytham & St Annes in 2018, her maiden major victory, but she believes holding aloft the AIG Women’s Open trophy on the Old Course’s 18th green would be the highlight of her career.

She said: "If I won [at St Andrews], that's the only thing that would beat my win [in 2018]. I don't know if I'll ever get a chance to play in another one at St Andrews after this. I don't know when it would come around again.

"I'm not really going to put pressure on myself. [I’m] just [going to] play as well as I can and enjoy being [there] in general, which I will."

Mexico’s Lorena Ochoa was victorious when St Andrews first hosted the Women’s Open back in 2007. It returned to the east coast of Scotland in 2013 when American Stacy Lewis produced a sensational finish to win.

Hall made her Championship debut that year and shared the Smyth Salver with Lydia Ko as the low amateurs. Hall knows all about the history that surrounds the famous links and is excited for August’s showpiece. She said: "I think it will be very special. Obviously being British, it's the most important event of the year always for me, but [it’s] just extra special being at St Andrews, and I think it's one that everyone wants to win a little bit more.

"Just the atmosphere and the town especially. It's just all golfers. I just love [going there] regardless if there's an event on or not.

"I just love being around … the whole golf atmosphere. There's nothing else quite like it."

As far as the bookies are concerned, world number one Nelly Korda is the player to beat. Earlier in the season she won six out of seven starts, including the Chevron Championship, the first major of the year. She has gone off the boil a little since then but remains a huge threat.

Hall said: "She’s such a good player [with a] great mentality. It's just fantastic for the women's game, what she's doing on and off the golf course and the media coverage it's [getting].

"I just can't get my head around it, really, either. Six out of seven is just unbelievable.

"I played in LA when she pulled out, and I texted her and just said, ‘thanks for giving us a chance’.

"But like I say, I think it's just great for the game in general. Although we obviously want to win more than anything, for her to keep winning like she is, it's just doing great things for us anyway; to promote the tournaments and the Tour in general and to make people more aware of where we are this week and what we're doing. It's only going to be a positive."

The big story this week will be the final major appearance of Lexi Thompson, who has decided to retire from the game at the end of this season at the age of 29.

At age 12 in 2007, she was the youngest golfer ever to qualify to play in the US Women’s Open.

She turned professional in June 2010 at age 15 and on September 18, 2011, Thompson set a then record as the youngest-ever winner of an LPGA tournament. She was just aged 16 years, seven months, and eight days, when she won the Navistar LPGA Classic. Three months later she became the second-youngest winner of a Ladies European Tour event, claiming the Dubai Ladies Masters by four strokes. 

She won her first and only major championship at the 2014 Kraft Nabisco Championship at the age of 19 years, 1 month and 27 days, making her the second youngest LPGA golfer to win a major (she still ranks in the top-5 youngest LPGA major winners).

She has won 11 LPGA Tour titles and three LET titles, the most recent of which was the Aaramco Team Series in October 2022. Thompson is sure to attract huge crowds. She can still play this game and it would be entirely typical of her to end her career with a victory at the home of golf.

In 2023, Vu produced a composed display to win the Women's Open at Walton Heath, her second major of the year - she also won the Chevron.

The American began the final round tied with England’s Charley Hull and shot a five-under 67 containing six birdies. Hull finished second in a major for the second time, having done the same thing at the US Women’s Open.

After being presented with the trophy, Vu said: "It sounds almost unreal. I had a pretty tough run-in the past couple of months. I didn't feel like myself for the past couple of months so I came into this tournament, I sat down with my team and we wanted to be in contention. That's all we wanted and somehow this happened."

Tournament Winners:

It was won in 2015 by Inbee Park, in 2016 by Ariya Jutanugarn, in 2017 by In-Kyung Kim, in 2018 by Georgia Hall, in 2019 by Hinako Shibuno, in 2020 by Sophia Popov, in 2021 by Anna Nordqvist, in 2022 by Ashleigh Buhai and last year by Lilia Vu.

The Course:

The Old Course at St Andrews needs little introduction - it is probably the most famous links course on the planet. It is a par 72 measuring  7,305 yards. It will be fascinating to see how the world’s best women golfers cope with the iconic 17th, the Road Hole.

Form Guide:

Most people will expect to see Nelly Korda dominate proceedings but this is links golf. Expect to see a strong European challenge led by Linn Grant, Charley Hull and Leona Maguire.

To Win:

Charley Hull. Time to deliver

Each Way:

Nelly Korda. Hard to ignore

Each Way:

Linn Grant. Fabulous golfer

Five to Follow:

Charley Hull. First major is overdue

Nelly Korda. Will hope for calm conditions

Linn Grant. Fabulous putter

Leona Maguire. Knows how to play links golf

Celine Boutier. World class