Bruins on Tour
UCLA on the LPGA Tour
Twenty-nine UCLA women's golf alumnae have appeared on the LPGA Tour and seven Bruins have won a total of 13 LPGA Tour events, inclduing three major championships. Currently, there are nine Bruins competing on the LPGA Tour: Brianna Do, Mariel Galdiano, Bronte Law, Alsion Lee, Sydnee Michaels, Ryann O'Toole, Louise Ridderström, Patty Tavatanakit and Lilia Vu.
Janet Coles (1975-76) became the first Bruin to notch a victory on Tour in 1978 when she won the Natural Light Lady Tara Classic at Brookfield West Golf & Country Club in Roswell, Georgia.
The Rise of Lilia Vu
UCLA women’s golf alumna Lilia Vu (2015-18) took the golf world by storm in 2023, winning four tournaments, including two major championships, which earned her status as No. 1 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings on Aug. 14, 2024. She is the first Bruin to ascend to No. 1 in the professional ranks.
Vu led all golfers on the LPGA Tour with four victories in 2023 coming at the Honda LPGA Thailand, The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican and two major championships at The Chevron Championship and AIG Women’s Open. The 25-year-old Vu also clinched the 2023 Rolex ANNIKA Major Award (RAMA), which recognizes the player who has the most outstanding record in all five major championships during the LPGA Tour season. She is the second American to win the award since its inception in 2014, joining Michelle Wie West, who won the inaugural award.
Vu’s meteoric rise has been storybook. In her debut season on the LPGA Tour in 2019, Vu made just one cut in nine events. Vu regained full membership for the 2022 season through the Epson Tour’s Race for the Card in 2021 after winning three times and earning Player of the Year honors. After eight top 10s and no wins in 2022, Vu burst onto the scene with her first career title in the second tournament of the 2023 season at the Honda LPGA Thailand. She is the third player since the inception of the LPGA in 1950 to enter a year with no career LPGA wins, then go on to win multiple majors that season (Se Ri Pak, 1998 and Meg Mallon, 1991).
Two months later, she won her first major at The Chevron Championship at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands, Texas in April. In August, Vu claimed took home a purse of $7.3 million in her second major title at the AIG Women’s Open at Walton Heath Golf Club in England. Vu was the first American since Juli Inkster in 1999 to win two major championships in a single season.
“Being the best in the world, that’s just crazy to me,” said Vu following her win in Surrey, England at Walton Heath. “Just thinking about the struggle I had this year and just to come out with that has been – it’s just incredible.”
In 2024, Vu added her fifth win at the Meijer LPGA Classic which is the most by a UCLA women’s golf alumna.
At UCLA, Vu was the Pac-12 Conference Golfer of the Year, WGCA Player of the Year and a Honda Sport Award Finalist in 2018. Vu, a three-time WGCA First-Team All-American, ranks first in UCLA history with eight victories and second with a 71.09 scoring average.
She posted two top-10 individual finishes at the NCAA Championships in 2016 and 2018. In her junior season in 2017, Vu became the fifth Bruin in program history to medal at the Pac-12 Championships, helping UCLA to its sixth team title and first in 11 years.
Bruins to Compete on the LPGA Tour
Victories on the LPGA Tour
* Indicates Major Championship
Janet Coles
1978 Lady Tara Classic
1983 Lady Michelob
Lisa Kiggens
1994 Rochester International
Bronte Law
2019 Pure Silk Championship presented by Visit Williamsburg
Melissa Martin
2014 Ricoh Women’s British Open*
Ryann O'Toole
2021 Trust Golf Women's Scottish Open
Patty Tavatanakit
2021 ANA Inspiration Championship*
2024 Honda LPGA Thailand
Lilia Vu
2023 Honda LPGA Thailand
2023 The Chevron Championship*
2023 AIG Women's Open*
2023 The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican
2024 Meijer LPGA Classic
Twenty-nine UCLA women's golf alumnae have appeared on the LPGA Tour and seven Bruins have won a total of 13 LPGA Tour events, inclduing three major championships. Currently, there are nine Bruins competing on the LPGA Tour: Brianna Do, Mariel Galdiano, Bronte Law, Alsion Lee, Sydnee Michaels, Ryann O'Toole, Louise Ridderström, Patty Tavatanakit and Lilia Vu.
Janet Coles (1975-76) became the first Bruin to notch a victory on Tour in 1978 when she won the Natural Light Lady Tara Classic at Brookfield West Golf & Country Club in Roswell, Georgia.
The Rise of Lilia Vu
UCLA women’s golf alumna Lilia Vu (2015-18) took the golf world by storm in 2023, winning four tournaments, including two major championships, which earned her status as No. 1 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings on Aug. 14, 2024. She is the first Bruin to ascend to No. 1 in the professional ranks.
Vu led all golfers on the LPGA Tour with four victories in 2023 coming at the Honda LPGA Thailand, The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican and two major championships at The Chevron Championship and AIG Women’s Open. The 25-year-old Vu also clinched the 2023 Rolex ANNIKA Major Award (RAMA), which recognizes the player who has the most outstanding record in all five major championships during the LPGA Tour season. She is the second American to win the award since its inception in 2014, joining Michelle Wie West, who won the inaugural award.
Vu’s meteoric rise has been storybook. In her debut season on the LPGA Tour in 2019, Vu made just one cut in nine events. Vu regained full membership for the 2022 season through the Epson Tour’s Race for the Card in 2021 after winning three times and earning Player of the Year honors. After eight top 10s and no wins in 2022, Vu burst onto the scene with her first career title in the second tournament of the 2023 season at the Honda LPGA Thailand. She is the third player since the inception of the LPGA in 1950 to enter a year with no career LPGA wins, then go on to win multiple majors that season (Se Ri Pak, 1998 and Meg Mallon, 1991).
Two months later, she won her first major at The Chevron Championship at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands, Texas in April. In August, Vu claimed took home a purse of $7.3 million in her second major title at the AIG Women’s Open at Walton Heath Golf Club in England. Vu was the first American since Juli Inkster in 1999 to win two major championships in a single season.
“Being the best in the world, that’s just crazy to me,” said Vu following her win in Surrey, England at Walton Heath. “Just thinking about the struggle I had this year and just to come out with that has been – it’s just incredible.”
In 2024, Vu added her fifth win at the Meijer LPGA Classic which is the most by a UCLA women’s golf alumna.
At UCLA, Vu was the Pac-12 Conference Golfer of the Year, WGCA Player of the Year and a Honda Sport Award Finalist in 2018. Vu, a three-time WGCA First-Team All-American, ranks first in UCLA history with eight victories and second with a 71.09 scoring average.
She posted two top-10 individual finishes at the NCAA Championships in 2016 and 2018. In her junior season in 2017, Vu became the fifth Bruin in program history to medal at the Pac-12 Championships, helping UCLA to its sixth team title and first in 11 years.
Bruins to Compete on the LPGA Tour
| Athlete | Years at UCLA | Rookie Year on LPGA Tour |
| Loretta Alderete | 1980-81 | 1986 |
| Eunice Choi | 1993-97 | 1999 |
| Kathy Choi-Rogers | 1992-96 | 2005 |
| Amie Cochran | 2004-06 | 2008 |
| Kay Cockerill | 1982-86 | 1987 |
| Janet Coles | 1975-76 | 1977 |
| Brianna Do | 2008-12 | 2013 |
| Mariel Galdiano | 2016-20 | 2019 |
| Tiffany Joh | 2005-09 | 2011 |
| Hannah Jun Medlock | 2003-07 | 2008 |
| Lisa Kiggens | 1990-91 | 1992 |
| Hana Kim | 2002-04 | 2005 |
| Stephanie Kono | 2008-11 | 2012 |
| Bronte Law | 2013-16 | 2017 |
| Alison Lee | 2013-15 | 2015 |
| Lee Lopez | 2010-13 | 2016 |
| Mo Martin | 2000-05 | 2012 |
| Charlotte Mayorkas | 2001-05 | 2007 |
| Sydnee Michaels | 2006-10 | 2012 |
| Ryann O'Toole | 2005-09 | 2011 |
| Jane Park | 2005-06 | 2007 |
| Jenny Park-Choi | 1991-96 | 2000 |
| Kristal Parker-Manzo | 1983-87 | 1995 |
| Louise Ridderström | 2012-16 | 2019 |
| Giulia Sergas | 1999 | 2002 |
| Patty Tavatanakit | 2017-19 | 2020 |
| Maria Jose Uribe | 2007-09 | 2010 |
| Lilia Vu | 2015-18 | 2019 |
| Jean Zedlitz | 1986-90 | 1993 |
Victories on the LPGA Tour
* Indicates Major Championship
Janet Coles
1978 Lady Tara Classic
1983 Lady Michelob
Lisa Kiggens
1994 Rochester International
Bronte Law
2019 Pure Silk Championship presented by Visit Williamsburg
Melissa Martin
2014 Ricoh Women’s British Open*
Ryann O'Toole
2021 Trust Golf Women's Scottish Open
Patty Tavatanakit
2021 ANA Inspiration Championship*
2024 Honda LPGA Thailand
Lilia Vu
2023 Honda LPGA Thailand
2023 The Chevron Championship*
2023 AIG Women's Open*
2023 The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican
2024 Meijer LPGA Classic