Yana Wilson grew up playing in the Southern Nevada Junior Golf Association and practicing at Legacy Golf Club in Henderson, a Vegas suburb. She always had the dream of winning an LPGA Tour. After winning the Dow Championship with Gina Kim, heardream is a reality. Photo: {LPGA and Getty)
The duo closed with an 8-under 62 in best-ball play for a two-stroke victory over Hyo Joo Kim and Hye-Jin Choi. Kim and Wilson finished at 17-under 263 at Midland Country Club.
“I haven’t been in a leading position for a long time,” the 19-year-old Wilson said. “Even as a team, I feel like both of us haven’t been in this leading position. We walked down 18 just now and we were like, `Does this feel weird to you? Like this is so weird.′ So it’s a little nervy out there. I feel like we handled it really well.”
Wilson has been a winner at every level, from junior golf to high school golf to professional golf. She won her first Epson Tour event last year at Spanish Trail Country Club and won again later in the year.
Now, she is the first rookie to win in the 2026 season of the LPGA Tour. A few months ago, we interviewed her as she was just getting started on the LPGA Tour.
“Winning is probably my favorite feeling in the world,” Wilson said, just a few days after a tie for 48th in her first official LPGA Tour event. “I think I perform very well under pressure. I don’t really know why—I just like being a performer, especially with big crowds or people watching. I try to entertain. I think that’s why I do well. It takes a lot of grit and overcoming any fears or doubts, which I don’t really have. I really enjoy winning. I strive to win, and that’s why I work hard—to feel that reward. Golf also lets you meet a lot of cool people and go to great places, but at the end of the day, my goal is to play well and win.”
Kim and Yana played together on the Epson Tour and became friends through competition. The partnership was a natural.
“Part of the reason I asked Yana to be my partner is we actually played in the final group on Epson and we’ve played together numerous times,” Gina Kim said. “So, I knew she was really, really good under pressure and I trusted her.”
The two catapulted into the lead during the final round when
Kim holed out from the fairway for eagle on the par-4 fifth.
“I knew I hit a really good shot and I was thinking, `Oh, OK, maybe I’ll tap in in for birdie.′ And then it just disappeared,” she said. “I think that really set the tone for the day.”