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By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, July 28 (Yonhap) -- Having won the past two LPGA major tournaments, Ryu Hae-ran can turn her memorable season into a historic one this week in England.

Ryu will try to become the fifth golfer in LPGA history to win three major titles in one year as she prepares to tee off at the 50th AIG Women's Open on Thursday at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club in Lytham St Annes, England. The winner will take home US$1.5 million.

Ryu, world No. 3, won the KPMG Women's PGA Championship for her maiden major title at the end of June and then won the very next major tournament, the Amundi Evian Championship, two weeks later.

Only four LPGA players have previously won three major championships in one season: Babe Zaharias in 1950, Mickey Wright in 1961, Pat Bradley in 1986 and South Korea's Park In-bee in 2013.

There were only three majors contested in 1950. Wright won three straight majors in a four-major era, while Park captured the first three out of the five majors 13 years ago.

This year, Ryu and world No. 1 Nelly Korda have split the first four majors. Korda is the leader in the Annika Major Award, established in 2014 to recognize the player with the best overall performance at major championships each season.

Players earn points based on top-10 finishes, with a win worth 60 points. Ryu has 120 points from her two wins, but she did not earn points at the other two majors. She finished tied for 12th at the Chevron Championship and sat out the U.S. Women's Open due to an injury. Korda, in addition to her wins at the Chevron Championship and the U.S. Women's Open, tied for eighth at the KPMGA Women's PGA Championship for 126 points in the Annika Major Award race.

Korda also leads Ryu in the Player of the Year standings, with 225 points giving her a 73-point edge over the South Korean.

Players earn 30 points for a win at a regular event and 60 points for a major win.

In another major category, Ryu sits second behind Korda in the scoring average with 69.40, 0.35 back of the American star.

Among other South Koreans, Kim Hyo-joo, world No. 4, will seek her first major title since the 2014 Evian Championship. The 31-year-old veteran has won twice this year, joining Ryu, Korda, Hannah Green and Jeeno Thitikul as the multiple champions.

Jenny Shin is the latest South Korean winner on the tour, having ended her 10-year drought with a Women's Scottish Open victory Sunday. She jumped 62 spots to reach No. 36 in the rankings, her highest position since 2016.

Kim Min-sol, who leads the Korea LPGA (KLPGA) Tour this season with three victories, will also tee off this week. At No. 16, Kim is also the top KLPGA members in the world rankings.

"I am looking forward to competing against and learning from the best players of the world," said Kim, who is the KLPGA leader in money and Player of the Year points. "My objective is to play all four rounds."

Former champions Shin Ji-yai and Kim In-kyung are also in the field. Kim, the 2017 winner, will make her first LPGA tournament appearance since announcing her retirement at the 2024 tournament. Shin, who now plays in Japan, will play at her second major of this season after tying for 34th at the U.S. Women's Open.

jeeho@yna.co.kr

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