The recovery is the result. Ryu's 73 on Thursday left her tied for 70th, while the LPGA said Yoon opened with a tournament-record 63. Ryu then moved through the field with a 64 on Friday and a 68 on Saturday before closing with a 70. The official leaderboard records a 275 total and first place.
Haeran Ryu round scores at the 2026 KPMG Womens PGA Championship. Source: KPMG Womens PGA Championship leaderboard, 2026.
That scoring path keeps the story away from vague comeback language. A 10-shot first-round deficit is a specific gap, and Ryu erased it with the week's best stretch of golf rather than one late swing. Her Friday 64 did most of the structural work; Saturday's 68 put her into the lead; Sunday's 70 protected enough of it to finish ahead of Yoon.
The LPGA's own player page gives the clean line: Hazeltine National Golf Club, Chaska, Minnesota; 73-64-68-70; 275; 13 under; first. The LPGA's tournament story, carried by Associated Press, said it was Ryu's first major title. ESPN also framed the win around the 10-shot opening deficit and the two-stroke margin.
Yoon's role matters because it sets the scale of the chase. Her opening 63 put the field in a different tournament on Thursday, and Ryu still had to finish ahead of the player who had created that gap. A two-stroke margin is comfortable on the final leaderboard; it is not comfortable when the winner started the week 10 behind the same opponent.
The win also changes Ryu's record without needing exaggeration. The LPGA's Rolex Annika Major Award standings item said the four-time LPGA Tour winner finished 13 under with rounds of 73, 64, 68 and 70, two shots ahead of her closest competitor. The KPMG title gives her a first major, not merely another tour win.