How an incredible golf rules decision determined winner of Women's World Amateur

Find out how a non-counting golf score saw United States crowned winners of the Women's World Amateur Team Championship

Updated: 06 Oct 2025

Team USA benefitted from a handy rules decision

Pos	Team	Score	R1	R2	R3	R4
1	United States	-18	136	141	142	139
T2	Republic of Korea	-18	137	138	141	142
T2	Spain	-18	139	138	143	138
T4	England	-16	141	141	139	139
T4	People's Republic of China	-16	141	140	139	140

The United States won the Women's World Amateur Team Championship at the weekend albeit aided by a huge stroke of luck with the rules.

USA, Spain and Republic of Korea all finished the 72-hole tournament tied on 18-under par at Tanah Merah Country Club in Singapore.

Each team featured three players, but only two scores counted each round.

Instead of heading to a three-way playoff, the rules indicated the winning team would be determined by the lowest non-counting score from the final round.

Only the scores were still tied between USA and Spain.

Tournament officials therefore had to go back to the lowest non-counting score between USA and Spain from the third round to find the winner.

Fortunately for USA, the lowest non-counting score belonged to reigning US Amateur champion Megha Ganne of Stanford University.

Ganne shot 72 in the third round, which was low enough to clinch the win.

The victory for the Americans saw them lift the coveted Espirito Santo Trophy for a 15th time in 31 appearances in the biennial contest.

It marked their first win since 2018.

Catherine Park and Farah O'Keefe also represented the USA.

"We are beyond happy," said Ganne.

"We don’t get to do this often, to play for country, so we were just excited to be here.

"We were so impressed at the level of golf from Korea and Spain.

"It’s a heartbreaking tiebreaker for them, but we knew that the third score yesterday and today could matter."

United States captain Kendra Graham, who previously worked in rules and competitions at the USGA, said: "With my rules official background, I was very conscious of the tie-breaking element.

"The first phone call I had with each of them, I told them every single player was in it every single day… if it ever comes to a tiebreaker, we are going to that score."

Graham added: "I'm over the moon. I'm so happy for the girls. They all contributed big time. I mean, unbelievable the way each one of them played. ... I didn’t say much going into the round. I don’t give pep talks. I just said, just do what you do. You’re all really great."

England, which was made up of Annabel Peaford, Nellie Ong and Patience Rhodes, finished two shots back in a tie for fourth on 16-under par.

The World Amateur Team Championship was first played in 1958 on the famous Old Course of St Andrews, which last week hosted the annual Dunhill Links won by home favourite and Ryder Cup hero Robert MacIntyre.