Staff WriterAt the 2025 Hanwha International Crown, there’s no such thing as a quiet Friday. Under a cool Korean sky at New Korea Country Club, the world’s best women went to work with their usual precision—and a fair bit of punch. Australia, the United States, Japan, and Sweden all took turns lighting up the leaderboard, while China showed signs of life with a gritty win over the Aussies.
China Strikes First Blood
Ruixin Liu and Ruoning Yin drew first blood for Team China, edging out Australia’s Hannah Green and Grace Kim, 1 up, in a four-ball battle that swung harder than a pendulum in a windstorm.
Australia opened with a birdie and held the lead early, but Yin’s answer on the fifth set the tone for China’s resilience. By the time the pair won the sixth and seventh holes, the Aussies were suddenly on the back foot. Green clawed back with a birdie on 12 and another on 16 to make it a nail-biter, but when both sides matched birdies on 17 and pars on 18, it was China who sealed their first full point of the week.
“Our swing is pretty good, so we just tell ourselves we’ve got to get it close because putting-wise we’re not as good as they are today,” Liu said. “We just tried to knock it close and have a chance. That’s what we tried to do, stay patient out there.”
Yin added, “I think we played really, really solid. But Hannah and Grace, they made everything. Every time I watched Hannah putt, I felt like she’s going to make it. I think overall we both played very solid, and I’m happy about the result.”
For China, still chasing Pool A leaders USA and Australia, the mission on Saturday is clear: win again. “I think if we can win once,” Yin said, “we can win twice.”
Lee and Kyriacou Rally for Australia
The second Hanwha International Crown match between the two nations saw the Australians flip the script. Minjee Lee and Steph Kyriacou came from 2 down to beat China’s Yan Liu and Weiwei Zhang, 2 and 1, after an unfiltered pep talk on the back nine.
“We kind of had a little pep talk there on 11, a few swear words so probably can’t repeat it here,” Kyriacou said, laughing. “We started off really slow and didn’t really give ourselves many chances and then Minjee started stumping it, and I started holing some things and then it kind of went our way.”
The Aussies now sit just two points behind the U.S., and Lee—ever the steady hand—is ready for what’s next. “I think it’s going to be pretty exciting,” she said. “I don’t know what the other scores are at the moment, but I think we have a good chance come tomorrow, and hopefully we can put up a good show.”
Japan’s Youth Continues to Dazzle
Japan’s rookies are playing like veterans at this year’s Hanwha International Crown. Miyu Yamashita and Rio Takeda handled Sweden’s Madelene Sagstrom and Ingrid Lindblad, 3 and 2, never once trailing. Birdies on two and three put them 3 up early, and though Sweden showed brief signs of recovery, Japan shut the door on 14 and cruised home.
“It was nice to win,” said Yamashita. “We did play well like we did yesterday and then like we could make many birdies today, so it was a nice atmosphere, and it was nice.”
Sweden’s Maja Stark and Linn Grant returned the favor in the second match, defeating Ayaka Furue and Mao Saigo, 3 and 2, to finally put a point on the board. “We had a solid day,” Grant said. “I think we both contributed today and just went back and forth. Just kind of very simple. A simple day.”
Stars and Stripes Dominate Pool A
The United States look unstoppable. Yealimi Noh and Angel Yin delivered a masterclass, hammering Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul and Pajaree Anannarukarn, 5 and 4. After a slow start, the Americans caught fire—winning seven of the last 11 holes to close out the Rolex World No. 1 and her partner with authority.
“We started out a little rocky, and then in the middle, we won five holes in a row and then seven out of the last 11, so pretty amazing stats,” Yin said. “I think we really found a rhythm, and we bounce off each other amazingly. I think that really showed up on the score.”
Lauren Coughlin and Lilia Vu added another win, dispatching Thailand’s Chanettee Wannasaen and Jasmine Suwannapura, 3 and 2. Vu, ever modest, credited her partner. “I was basically Lauren’s cheerleader on the back nine. She’s the backbone of this match,” she said. “I’m having a little more fun this year. I think the weather is nicer. I’m not as cold as I was at TPC Harding (Park).”
With four points in Pool A, the U.S. has officially clinched its semifinal spot.
Home Heroes Hold On
Korea’s Jin Young Ko and Haeran Ryu tied with World Team’s Wei-Ling Hsu and Brooke Henderson in a back-and-forth thriller that saw neither side lead by more than one. Henderson birdied the last hole to tie things up, sending the local fans home both proud and slightly heartbroken.
“I was just telling Brooke on 18 when she holed that putt uphill like, oh, my God, this is incredible,” Hsu said. “All my hair stand up and I feel like, whoa, what a match we had today.”
In the day’s final contest, Lydia Ko and Charley Hull edged Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim and Hye-Jin Choi, 1 up, thanks to Hull’s clutch birdie on 18. “Felt like Lydia hit it a lot closer than me,” Hull explained. “But I managed to whack it, but I don’t want to whack it too hard because I don’t want to have a fiddler coming back. So just thought hole it and save the stress.”
The Stage Is Set
After two days of gripping four-ball play at the Hanwha International Crown, the Americans are flying, Japan’s rookies are fearless, and Australia’s heart is beating strong. Korea, meanwhile, is hunting its first win in front of a home crowd that refuses to sit down.
If Friday was fireworks, Saturday could be a full-on display.
