The LPGA has its next potential star: Lottie Woad. 

And this week at the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open, she’s making her professional debut close to home. 

“Obviously, very excited,” she said. “Yeah, been thinking about making my professional debut for a long time. Excited to do it more on home soil, as well. It’s going to be really fun.”

Woad is a 21-year-old rising senior at Florida State University and was the top-ranked amateur player in the world. She has already put together a distinguished resume, claiming the 2022 British Amateur, the 2024 Augusta National Women’s Amateur and low amateur honors at the 2024 AIG Women’s Open and 2025 U.S. Women’s Open.

A few weeks ago she made more history. 

Woad, as an amateur, beat out a strong field at the Ladies European Tour’s Women's Irish Open, winning by six strokes. She earned status on that tour with the victory, but it only took her another week to earn an LPGA card.

She did that by finishing third at the Amundi Evian Championship, one of women’s golf’s five major championships. 

Through the LPGA Elite Amateur Pathway program (LEAP), which began late last year, Woad crossed the 20-point threshold status needed to secure full status. She’s fully exempt on the circuit until the end of next season, forgoing her final season at FSU. 

“(Evian) was really cool,” she said. “Sunday was obviously a really fun day being in contention and being close in the end. Yeah, and then obviously got my LPGA card from that, and so it was a pretty easy decision once I’d spoken to my coaches and my team.”

And Woad’s newest competitors expect big things from her. 

“I’ve not been in Lottie’s shoes,” said Lauren Coughlin, the Scottish Open’s defending champion. “So I don't know what it might feel like. She makes it look so easy sometimes at a young age. So I’m kind of a little jealous.”

Now, she’ll make her debut on a links setup. Woad hasn’t played much golf across the Atlantic this year, but feels the “transition to it is kind of not too bad since I grew up playing amateur stuff on links golf and kind of know how to flight the ball down and stuff like that, which always really helps playing in the wind.”

Woad is also open to finishing her degree, as former amateur standout Rose Zhang is doing, but isn’t sure she will because she wants “to put a lot of my focus into this.”

In 2023, Zhang became the first player to win in their pro debut since Beverly Hanson in 1951. Woad, just two years later, would love to follow suit. But for now it’ll be business as usual. 

“Not really, no,” Woad said when asked if she feels different after turning professional. “Just try and do the same as I was doing before.”


This article was originally published on www.si.com as The LPGA's Next Potential Superstar Will Make Her Pro Debut This Week.

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