TARZANA — As Hannah Green approached the 18th green during the first playoff hole of Sunday’s JM Eagle LA Championship, a slight grin crept across her face. Green admitted her smile was the result of knowing she had missed nearly the identical birdie putt in regulation, and her confidence in feeling the second time around she wouldn’t miss.
A few minutes later, after Sei Young Kim and Jin Hee Im had both failed to make birdie, Green calmly stepped up and rolled her 20-foot birdie putt into the cup, earning the Australian native her third JM Eagle LA Championship title. Green is now 2-1 in playoffs during her career, with both wins coming at the JM Eagle LA Championship.
“It was pretty much the exact same read as what I had,” Green said of her winning putt. “It was still a tough putt to make. I had to have the right pace with the line that you decide to choose. I felt like I had a lot of moments where I do make lots of clutch putts, so I kind of felt somewhat confident. I think if I had maybe a six-footer, the putts that you expect to make, I probably would’ve felt more nervous putting. Yeah, it was just, I guess what Hannah does: Makes things really interesting.”
The title-winning putt capped off a furious back-nine push for Green, who rallied from five shots down over the final seven holes of regulation to earn a spot in the three-way playoff at 17-under par. Green, who has now won four times in 2026, earned $712,000 for the win, the largest payout outside of a major championship or the Tour championship in LPGA history. Kim and Im each won $386,536 for their runner-up finish.
Playing in the final group with Kim, who led after both 36- and 54-holes, Green said much of the round felt like match play. Kim made the first move with a birdie on the opening hole, but Green managed to counter with a birdie of her own on the second hole.
From that point on, Green said her momentum seemed to stall, and when Kim holed out for eagle on the par-5 11th hole, Green said for a moment she felt like her chances of winning were done. But instead of coasting to the finish, Green dug in her heels and got more aggressive.
“It was hard to get to some of the pins they had on those particular holes,” Green said. “I don’t think there was a leaderboard until perhaps nine, so I kind of saw that I was still within reach. I still needed a very good back nine. When she made the eagle on 11, I thought it was game over. It was somewhat of a match play, probably the last few holes. I don’t know if she felt that way, but it’s kind of hard to not get caught up in what someone else is doing. Seeing players make putts makes the hole look a little bit bigger sometimes and also makes it a little bit smaller. I just had to try my best to focus on what I was doing.”
As she started making birdies. Kim made a few bogeys, closing the gap to one shot as the two players headed to the par-5, 16th hole. Green hit a perfect drive, but Kim’s ball went left off the tee and hit some trees. While Kim’s ball bounced into the fairway, it was too far back for her to go for the green. Green was able to go for it and hit a beautiful approach that left her with a 6-foot putt for eagle. After Kim missed her birdie putt, Green stepped up with a chance to take the lead if her eagle landed. Unfortunately, Green picked that moment to hit her worst putt of the day.
“I was nervous over that putt because I felt like I really needed to make it to be in the tournament,” Green said. “I was a bit disappointed when that didn’t go in. I still made a birdie and still got one shot back. On the next hole, I went with a club that was going to go long of the hole because I feel like leaving it short of that green would’ve been a tougher two-putt. I guess I got fortunate that someone else unfortunately made a bogey. It was nice to walk up the last hole knowing I just needed to make par to get into the playoff.”
Holding the trophy at the end of Sunday’s final round wasn’t something that Green was seriously thinking about after completing her third round on Saturday, believing that Kim, who at one point led by eight shots in the third round, would be too far out ahead for Green to make a serious run on Sunday. But when Kim stumbled on her final nine holes on Saturday, Green’s mindset quickly changed.
“I hope I didn’t jinx Sei Young because I did think she was on a run,” Green said. “But coming into today, I just tried to keep doing what I had been doing. I have had three other wins this season, so I feel like I can kind of use those moments for when things felt tough or felt like I was pushing too hard, to then bring it back. When it’s such a low-scoring event, it’s hard to not get caught up in what other players are doing. If you have to make pars, it’s a little bit easier, but when you have to make birdies.”
Losing a tournament, she seemed destined to win for much of the event, was a tough pill for Kim to swallow. For much of the tournament, she played spectacular golf, but over the last 36 holes, the back nine at El Caballero Country Club, where she was a combined 9 under over the first two rounds, became a field of disaster.
“Just little disappointed because I had a good chance for the win,” Kim said following the playoff, “But she played well and had a strong finish back nine. She deserved it.”
Like Green, Im made a final round push to get herself into contention. She actually took the outright lead after making a birdie on the par-5 seventh hole and was sailing along until starting her back nine with a double bogey.
Im bounced back with a birdie on the par-5, 11th hole and pulled back into a tie with Kim when she converted a 50-foot eagle putt on the 16th hole. A hole later, she holed a 35-foot par putt, after having to blast out of a greenside bunker on the par-3 17th, a putt she admitted she felt lucky to make.
“After I made those putts, I thought, maybe I am supposed to win,” Im said. “I was just thinking if that trophy is mine, I can get that. If it is not, that’s it.”
It turned out that the trophy would once again go home with Green, who also won the 2023 JM Eagle title in a three-way playoff, that one at Wilshire Country Club.
“I think I’ve been lucky with both of playoffs that I’ve been in the last group, so I’m probably the most fresh into not having to wait around a little bit,” Green said. “Whether that really plays a contributing factor, I guess I’m not really sure. I do feel like that’s sometimes the benefit. I feel like Jin Hee probably had a little bit of time, and then I guess, thinking about what could happen. Playoffs are definitely interesting. I felt like I was still nervous and still had the confidence compared to probably the last hole in regulation.”
With her strong record of play in California events, Green can’t help but be excited about the fact that this year’s US Women’s Open is at Riviera Country Club, annual site of the PGA Tour’s Genesis Invitational.
Fellow Australian Adam Scott has long contended that Riviera plays very similarly to golf courses around Australia.
“I played Riviera probably back in 2021 for a pro-am, so it’s been a while since I was there,” Green said. “The kikuyu grass is pretty much what most of the courses in Western Australia have, so very familiar with that. And I really loved being on the Riviera. It’s such a cool place. So, I am really looking forward to U.S. Open. The Olympics is also on my mind. I would love to compete again for Australia in 2028. The more rounds I can get around Riviera, the better.”