The Australian team defeated the United States Team to win the 2025 Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown in the Republic of Korea. In 2023, Team Australia were the runners-up to Team Thailand at TPC Harding Park.
Let’s take a look at how Team Australia and Team U.S.A. met in the final match. Both teams were in Pool A, with the United States finishing first and Australia finishing second. In the semifinals, the American team played Japan while Australia played the winner of pool B the World Team.
Semifinals: U.S. Team vs. Japan Team
Angel Yin defeated Rio Takeda 2&1 to win the first singles match for Team America. Yin went 2 UP on Takeda. The pair traded birdies and headed to the 16th hole with Yin being 1 UP. After Yin won the 16th hole to go 2 UP with two holes to play, Yin closed out Takeda on the 17th hole to earn America’s first point of the semifinal match.
Yealimi Noh defeated Miyu Yamashita 4&2 to win the second singles match for Team America. After the first five holes, the match was all square after each player won one hole each. Noh took a 2 UP lead after making back-to-back birdies on the 9th and 10th holes. Yamashita won the 12th hole to go 1 DOWN, but Noh responded with a birdie on the 13th to go 2 UP. Noh won the 15th and 16th holes to close out her match and send the American Team to the finals.
In the foursomes match, Team Japan’s Ayaka Furue and Mao Saigo took the lead on the third hole and never gave it up. On the 16th hole, Team Japan was awarded a 1 UP victory after Team America won both singles matches to reach the final. Lauren Coughlin and Lilia Vu represented Team American in this match.
Semifinals: Australia Team vs. World Team
Charley Hull defeated Hannah Green to earn the first point for the World Team in the semifinals. Hull got hot quickly, winning the first three holes to go 3 UP on her competitor. Green won her first hole on the par-5 eighth to go 2 DOWN. After tying the previous eight holes, Hull closed out Green on the 17th hole 2&1 to earn the point.
Minjee Lee defeated Brooke Henderson 1 UP to earn a point for Team Australia. Henderson went 3 UP after winning the third, fifth and eighth holes. Lee won the 13th and 14th holes to get back to 1 DOWN. She then birdied the 16th hole to tie the match with two holes to play. Lee made another birdie on the par-5 17th hole to take a 1 UP lead on Henderson. Both players settled for pars on the 18th hole, giving Lee and Team Australia a crucial point.
The foursomes match saw Team Australia’s Steph Kyriacou and Grace Kim defeat the World Team of Lydia Ko and Wei-Ling Hsu 1 UP through 20 holes. The World Team was 2 UP after winning back-to-back holes on seven and eight. The Australian Team got one back after making birdie on the 11th hole. Heading to the 18th hole, Team Australia needed to win the hole to force playoff holes. Ko missed her birdie putt from 25 feet to set up Kim for a chance to send the match into a playoff. Her 10-foot birdie rolled and just caught the left side of the hole, sending the match into a playoff.
The first playoff hole was tied, with each team going up and down for par. The World Team hit a poor drive and had to punch out with their second, giving Team Australia an opportunity to win the hole. The Australians won the playoff with a par that sent them to the finals to face Team America.
Finals: Australia Team vs. U.S. Team
The first singles match of the finals saw Lee defeat Yin 2&1. Yin took the lead with birdie on the fourth hole, but Lee responded by winning the fifth hole to tie the match. Lee birdied the ninth hole to go 1 UP, but Yin responded with a birdie of her own on the 11th hole to tie the match once again. The next four holes saw each player win two holes a piece to go to the 16th hole all square. Lee, the only player in the field to play in every International Crown, won the 16th and 17th hole to close out Yin 2&1. This win put the first point on the board for Team Australia in the finals.
In the second singles match, Green defeated Noh 2&1. Green won holes 4 through 6 to go 3 UP, but Noh battled back and won two holes to cut the deficit to 1 UP after 11 holes. Green birdied the 12th hole to go back to 2 UP, with Noh answering with a birdie on the 15th hole to go 1 DOWN. On the 17th hole, both players had crucial birdie putts. Noh went first and missed hers, giving Green a chance to win the International Crown if her putt fell. The major champion calmly hit her 12-foot birdie putt into the center of the hole to win Australia’s first International Crown.
The foursomes match saw Vu and Coughlin of the United States go against Kim and Kyriacou of Team Australia. The Australians won the first hole and kept the lead through the first four holes. The Americans took a 1 UP lead after the first 10 holes. The Australians took a 1 UP lead on the 14th hole. Kim and Kyriacou conceded the 17th hole to go and celebrate with their teammates Lee and Green.
Consolation Match: World Team vs. Japan Team
Hull defeated Furue 4&3 in the first singles portion of the consolation match. Hull went 5 UP through 10 to take control of this match. She closed out Furue on their 15th hole of the day to finish the tournament with a record of 3-1-1.
Ko defeated Takeda 3&2 in the second singles match. Ko was 2 UP through five and never looked back. She extended her lead to 3 UP through 12 and closed out Takeda on their 16th hole to finish the tournament with a 2-2-1 record.
The foursomes match saw Saigo and Yamashita defeat Henderson and Hsu 4&3. Team Japan was 2 UP after the first two holes and never gave that lead up. They extended their lead to 3 UP after the opening nine holes. Saigo and Yamashita birdied their 14th and 15th holes of the day to close out Henderson and Hsu, but the World Team had already won the match.
