Winner report
Nishimura goes wire-to-wire in Arkansas for first LPGA Tour win
Japan's Yuna Nishimura opened with two 63s, then eagled the par-5 14th in a closing 66 to win in Arkansas by five from Aki Iwai, Chanettee Wannasaen and In Gee Chun.
Yuna Nishimura closed with a 5-under 66 at Pinnacle Country Club to win the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship on 21 under par (192), five shots clear of the field. Nishimura, 26, led after every round.
Japan’s Aki Iwai, Thailand’s Chanettee Wannasaen and South Korea’s In Gee Chun shared second on 16 under. Iwai made the biggest move of the day with a bogey-free 62.
Back-to-back 63s gave Nishimura a five-shot cushion going into Sunday. Two bogeys in her first six holes cut into it. She birdied the 8th and 11th, and the tournament turned at the par-5 14th. Nishimura took on the water with a fairway wood, found the green and holed the eagle putt to stretch her lead to three. A birdie at the 15th followed, and she played the back nine in 30. Asked afterwards about her approach, she said: “I told myself to go aggressive until the very end.”
Nishimura is already a six-time winner on the Japan LPGA Tour, and this is her first LPGA Tour title. Her previous best finish in this event was third in 2023. With Iwai tied second and Miyu Yamashita tied eighth, three Japanese players made the top eight. The winner’s share of the $3 million purse is $450,000.
On Saturday Lauren Coughlin opened her second round with nine straight birdies, the first player in LPGA Tour history to do so, and her front-nine 26 is the lowest nine-hole score the tour has recorded. She finished that day with a 61 and ended the week tied 12th on 13 under. Sunday brought two holes-in-one, from Yealimi Noh and Mao Saigo. Charley Hull, two off the lead after round one, finished tied 22nd on 11 under.
Final leaderboard at Pinnacle
| Pos | Player | To par | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yuna Nishimura (JPN) | -21 | 63-63-66 |
| T2 | Aki Iwai (JPN) | -16 | 66-69-62 |
| T2 | Chanettee Wannasaen (THA) | -16 | 65-68-64 |
| T2 | In Gee Chun (KOR) | -16 | 67-65-65 |
| T5 | Jenny Bae (USA) | -15 | 66-68-64 |
| T5 | Jodi Ewart Shadoff (ENG) | -15 | 66-66-66 |
| T5 | Auston Kim (USA) | -15 | 67-64-67 |
| T8 | Miyu Yamashita (JPN) | -14 | 70-63-66 |
| T8 | Julia López Ramirez (ESP) | -14 | 69-64-66 |
| T8 | Jin Hee Im (KOR) | -14 | 65-67-67 |
| T8 | Mary Liu (CHN) | -14 | 67-64-68 |
54 holes, par 71.
Sources
- LPGA: Yuna Nishimura goes wire-to-wire to win the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship
- LPGA: Lauren Coughlin cards nine straight birdies, breaks two records
- LPGA: Yealimi Noh, Mao Saigo deliver final-round fireworks with pair of aces
- ESPN: Walmart NW Arkansas Championship final leaderboard
- AP via Yahoo Sports: Yuna Nishimura of Japan wins by 5 shots in Arkansas
- Sky Sports: Lauren Coughlin makes history with nine consecutive birdies
- Wikipedia: 2026 LPGA Tour (purse and winner’s share)
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