Nelly Korda dominated the 2026 LPGA season with four wins and two majors, yet she will not take home the Vare Trophy. A strict eligibility rule knocked her out of the running for the lowest scoring average award. The top two players in the standings, Korda and Haeran Ryu, failed to hit the required number of rounds. The twist gives Japan’s Miyu Yamashita a chance to win the prize.
Across 53 rounds, Korda ended with a 69.38 average, whereas Ryu logged 69.44 over 61 rounds. Yamashita trailed at 69.47, merely 0.09 strokes behind Korda, yet her higher volume of play secured her the title. Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols stated on X that the top two standings players became ineligible, making Yamashita the leading eligible contender. The LPGA requires players to finish either 60 rounds or 60 percent of the official season rounds, whichever is fewer, using an individual score to qualify.
A Costly Decision to Rest
She played 15 LPGA events, missed both Asian swings in spring and fall, and took a deliberate two-month break after the Solheim Cup. Despite participating in four rounds of the team-format Dow Championship, she managed only 65 rounds, which left her five short of the required total. Though taking time off did not hurt her four victories and two major titles, it prevented her from earning one of the season’s most prestigious individual honors.
The fallout also impacted the Vare Trophy race for the world’s top player. Korda entered the season’s final two events just two points short of the 27 needed for LPGA Hall of Fame induction. Her Player of the Year award brought her total to 26 by adding one point, whereas the Vare Trophy would have supplied that final point.
Ryu’s Injury and Yamashita’s Path
Ryu’s ineligibility came under very different circumstances than Korda’s planned break. The two-time major champion sustained a finger-ligament injury after riding in a golf cart during Wednesday’s pro-am in Malaysia. The Associated Press reported Ryu suffered a “strained finger ligament” while riding in a golf cart during the Wednesday pro-am in Malaysia. She withdrew before hitting a competitive shot and had only eight potential rounds remaining in her season. She ultimately completed just one round fewer than the requirement for eligibility.
Yamashita had no such eligibility concerns during her campaign. The Japanese star finished 78 rounds, easily meeting requirements while staying within a tenth of a stroke of Korda’s season-leading average. Her standing in the race was secured not just by scoring but also by her consistent schedule. This consistency maintained her eligibility while the two players ahead of her failed to meet the rules. This is not the first instance in which Korda failed to secure a Hall of Fame point. Although she topped the 2021 tour in scoring, she did not qualify for the award because she failed to play enough rounds.
