Year of the comeback
Past champion Lilia Vu returns to Chevron after back injury last year made her fear her career could be over
Lilia Vu is sprayed with champagne in celebration of winning the 2023 Chevron Championship.
Carmen Mandato
THE WOODLANDS, Texas — Lilia Vu made the famous jump into the pond after her win the Chevron Championship here in 2023 for the first major title of her career.
It was a core memory full of joy and excitement and euphoria. So very different from last year. Vu was hitting clubs on the driving range before the tournament started at The Club at Carlton Woods and soon wondered if she’d ever play golf again.
The former World No. 1 had a back injury so severe she could barely hit, causing her to withdraw. Fast forward another year to this week’s Chevron and Vu—back to being ranked fourth in the world—has that joy back, on and off the course.
“I was on the range, and I couldn't hit the ball past 40 yards,” Vu said on Tuesday of her 2024 preparation. “If I'm not doing that, how would I ever finish a round, let alone tee off? At that point, you think about different things. Not even defending that tournament. I can't even play one hole, so that was kind of going through my mind. It was a good time to reevaluate everything.”
Being sidelined was difficult, but there was a silver lining. The injury forced her to make changes professionally and personally. The 27-year-old former UCLA star began to think about herself and her career differently. And, of course, the desire to get back here and compete for this championship once again. She didn’t get to defend her title last year, when World No. 1 Nelly Korda got to cannonball into the pond. But for Vu, being able to play in this major again is a victory of sorts.
“I would definitely say that it was a motivation, but I think last year I was so much in panic with would I ever play a golf round again, let alone a tournament round,” Vu said. “Definitely took two months off, and that was probably the hardest two months of my life because I love competing and seeing everybody go to the U.S. Open and all the majors after that. I was able to be back by KPMG, but it was a lot of just re-evaluating what I had to do with my body and how to get back out here. I would say I'm in a much better place than I was last year.”
Part of that is changing her identity, which once was Lilia Vu, professional golfer. Period. When she couldn’t compete, that was taken away. She’s found inspiration in many other ways.
“I've read so many books,” Vu said. “I think my most favorite one that I'm trying to be better at and listen to it was “Be Water, My Friend,” by Shannon Lee, Bruce Lee's daughter. It talks about how when you hit water, it hits you back. It's very adaptable. It can be so beautiful and serene, and at the same time there could be a storm coming and you could see how destructive it is.
“What my takeaway from that book is to be adaptable. That's what I try to be every single day.”
Lilia Vu hits a tee shot in the 2025 Ford Championship.
Mike Mulholland
She’s had to be adaptable with her back injury and manage it in different ways during her career. One of those ways is by practicing good posture. She’s added what she calls a “movement guy,” Dr. Jon Yamada, to her team. He’s all about preaching good posture.
“He comes down and he'll watch and say, ‘You were out of posture on that shot, and it was the worst shot I hit that day.’ It's kind of funny when he can see that,” Vu said. “He can keep me in check after that, and after the round he'll be like, ‘your posture was really good when you walked.’
“It all starts from that. You start walking sloppy and the left side of your back hurts and leads to other things. Very diligent. It also helps me keep my mind off golf a little bit, because I don't like to think about a whole lot of golf when I'm out there. Just when I get to the ball.”
Vu began 2025 at the Honda LPGA Thailand with a tie for 69th and notched a T-29 in the HSBC. Back in the States, she was vastly improved, losing a playoff to Hyo Joo Kim at the Founders Cup. She’s played four tournaments and most recently missed the cut at last week’s JM Eagle LA Championship. The five-time tour winner’s last victory came nearly a year ago in June’s Meijer LPGA Classic, following her return from the back injury.
Vu’s longtime caddie, Cole Pensanti, is an instrumental part of her team. She attended his wedding earlier this year during the season-opening Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions. She remembers his wise words that shook her out of a frustrated mode on Sunday back nine of the Chevron Championship in 2023. She was complaining about not making birdies and didn’t know where she was relative to the field. He told her that the course was hard for everyone and that if she didn’t stop complaining, he wouldn’t give her the putter. She birdied the 17th and 18th to force a playoff she won over Angel Yin. She then quickly won a second major, the AIG Women’s Open, and was the LPGA’s player of the year.
She’s come a long way through injury, struggle and triumph after that.
“Yeah, [the injury] affected me deeply. I think not being able to compete, which is something I love so much, I think that's why I do it. I love golf,” Vu said. “When you love your job and you love competing and you're not able to do that and your body is letting you down, it's kind of hard. You feel handicapped.
“And then after that, too, was another battle coming back. I feel like I lost a lot of strength, and it almost felt like I had to make up for my game in other parts. Like I relied heavily on putting or short game because now I'm hitting maybe one club more than everyone else across the field.
“So that was also something that affected me a little bit. Still working through that.”