Lottie Woad has been a professional golfer for only one week, yet she’s the betting favorite at the AIG Women’s British Open—yes, even over world No. 1 Nelly Korda.
That’s none of Woad’s concern, though.
“I don’t know how they do it, but I feel like I’m playing well, so I guess I was going to be one of the favorites,” Woad said Tuesday at Royal Porthcawl, site of the year’s final major. “Obviously, everyone’s so good, so I feel like anyone can win really. You’ve seen it this year—I think every winner has been different, so there’s many people it could be.”
The 21-year-old Englishwoman, of course, won the Scottish Open last week to become the third LPGA player since 1951 to win her pro debut. Woad, however, is one of the hottest players in the world this month. She won the Ladies European Tour’s Irish Open by six shots while still an amateur and then finished third at the Evian Championship, a major, to earn her LPGA card.
Forgoing her senior year at Florida State seems like the right decision, and she is already demonstrating the mindset—and talent—of a seasoned veteran.
“I don’t feel too different, to be honest,” Woad said. “I got a lot of confidence from the last few—the last month really. Just trying to continue to ride that.”
And some of the world’s top players are in awe of golf’s newest star.
Unfazed. Unstoppable. Unbelievable. pic.twitter.com/xC4z32c2hJ
— LPGA (@LPGA) July 27, 2025
“I think there’s a little bit more experience under her belt than what people probably give [Woad] credit for,” AIG Women’s Open defending champion Lydia Ko said. “But when I’ve seen the coverage or how she composes herself, she doesn’t seem like she rushes into things or gets like overly emotional. I’m sure that’s going to help her with that transition as well.”
Ko can relate to what Woad is experiencing. The Hall of Famer burst onto the scene as a teenager and became world No. 1 in 2015 as an 18-year-old. There’s a contrast between Woad’s rise and Ko’s, though.
“I think it’s different in ways because Lottie is older than when I first came on Tour,” Ko said. “She played, I think, three years of collegiate golf. … She’s been at a lot of those kind of tougher moments. Obviously, it’s different than being an amateur and playing collegiate golf to as a pro, but I think she’s been there and done really well in those pressure conditions, no matter what kind of environment she’s been in.”
In the first two rounds at Porthcawl, Ko will play alongside Woad and 2023 AIG champion Lilia Vu. And despite being one of the game’s greats, the 28-year-old New Zealander is looking forward to analyzing Woad’s game up close.
“It will be my first time playing with Lottie,” Ko, a 23-time LPGA champion, said, “so I’m excited. She’s coming in with a ton of momentum, and I think there's going to be a lot of people that’s going to come out and watch her. It’s going to be really cool for me to see and see the things that I could possibly learn from her and why she’s playing good.”
Korda had the opportunity to tee it up with Woad in Scotland for three days, and believes she’s as good as advertised.
“I was very impressed with [Woad’s] composure, her process,” Korda, a two-time major champion, said. “I think, when it comes to her shot routine, especially under pressure and in the heat of the moment, sometimes people seem to fidget and kind of doubt themselves, but she stuck to it, she stuck to her process every single time, and I think that’s one of the main things that I noticed is how mature she is for her age and how comfortable she was in the heat of the moment.”
Did the oddsmakers correctly select Woad as the favorite?
“Golf is a game of confidence,” Korda said. “And she’s definitely high up there right now, so she’s going to be trusting everything. Yeah, her worst finish in the past three events is theoretically second or third. I think she’s also riding a confidence high, too, with how well she’s playing.”
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Surprising AIG Women's Open Betting Favorite Has LPGA Stars in Awe of Recent Run.
