WOAD LEADS A STAR-STUDDED CHASING PACK
July 25, 2025
England’s Lottie Woad continued to prove to the golfing world that she is the real deal as she sits at the top of the leaderboard at the halfway mark on her professional debut.
Adding a bogey-free 65 to her first round 67 she sits at 12 under, two shots clear of World No 1 Nelly Korda and Denmark’s Nanna Koerstz Madsen in tied 2nd place at the 2025 ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open
Playing alongside Korda and England’s highest ranked player, Charley Hull for the first two days might have added to the nerves of many a young player making their debut but not so Woad, who seemed totally unfazed. Woad made a single bogey in her opening round and was blemish free in round two with an impressive tally of seven birdies.
In her last event as an amateur, the Amundi Evian Championship, Woad finished tied third, having won the KPMG Women’s Irish Open the week before.
Woad said of her remarkable professional debut…
“I played in seven majors now so I’ve had all that experience, and obviously the LET events, too. So wasn’t really new things I guess. I kind of knew how to deal with it.
On how she will approach the weekend…
“I’m just going to stick to the plan I’ve had all week and same strategy, and just keep trying to play well. Obviously, people will be chasing me but I am just not going to change anything.”
On playing with Korda and Hull….
“It’s been great. We got good crowds as well. Everyone was playing pretty well, so that was nice. They are people I’ve looked up to, so to play alongside them was really cool.”
Notable numbers
- Three of the current top five are major winners (Korda, Sei Young Kim and Hyo Joo Kim)
- Tournament leader Lottie Woad missed out on approximately £58,000 after winning the Irish Open and $547,000 after finishing tied 3rd at the Amundi Evian Championship playing as an amateur.
- The first-place prize this week is $300,000
- There are three qualifying spots available for next week’s AIG Women’s Open
- A total of 71 players made the cut
World No.1 Nelly Korda carded an impressive 6-under 66 with just one bogey to sit in a tie for second place with Denmark’s Nanna Koerstz Madsen.
On what worked so well for her today…
“I started out strong with two birdies on my first two holes, and then the wind kind of died down throughout the day, so capitalized on the weather. I just hit it really well and I have only missed four greens through two days so happy with that. Hopefully I can continue trending in the right direction.”
On the Scottish crowds…
“I think they’re just very enthusiastic. Obviously with Lottie and Charley being from close by they have kind of a home feel here and they have kind of a home crowd in a sense. definitely a good bit of support for them.”
No.72 on the Rolex World Golf Rankings, Nanna Koerstz Madsen was an early finisher, delighted with her morning’s work where her 66 took her to -10 and saw her spend much of the day topping the leaderboard until Korda and Woad finished in the early evening.
Clearly delighted, Madsen said of links golf…
“It’s fun. I like to play this golf twice a year; not every week. But, no, it’s really fun to get creative with the shots and, yeah, I enjoy it.’
Scotland’s Gemma Dryburgh enjoyed a bogey-free round of 5-under 67 to make the cut after starting the day at 6-over and is the only Scot to do so this weekend.
On her second round…
“I got off to a nice start with a birdie on the 10th hole there, my first hole. Kind of needed a hot start today and needed to go low. My Caddie said to me ‘what’s the lowest round you played in Scotland?’ I didn’t know what it was, but I said 5- or 6-under. And he said ‘One of those today would do.’”
On her mindset today…
“I just wanted to enjoy myself to be honest. Got all my family here. They weren’t here yesterday so I need to tell them to come every day now. My parents were here but the rest of the family came today. It was nice to play well for them and just enjoy being in Scotland.”
With the field down to 71 and the weather forecast set to be fair. Moving Day is set to be a big one, tickets are still available to buy here online and on the gate. Adults for £17, U23 £12 and U16 Free.
Full list of tee times for Round 3 can be found here