Ruoning Yin became so emotional knowing she was going to win the FM Championship that she hadn’t even tapped in for birdie on the 18th hole at TPC Boston when the tears started flowing.
The 23-year-old won for the sixth time, but she hadn’t won in 34 starts. She won three times in 2024—a sizzling stretch in which she won three times in five starts and even finished second in the AIG Women’s British Open—but hadn’t won again on the LPGA until Sunday, when she emphatically pumped her arms and later held a trophy again.
Asked what she felt in that moment, Yin said: “Finally. I’ve been waiting for this trophy for so long. After the first putt on the 18th green I was super emotional. By time I lifted the trophy up, I’d kind of calmed down. I’m proud of myself and proud of my team.”
The Chinese sensation shot 71-65-68-70 and finished at 14-under-par 274 total. Hyo Joo Kim finished two shots back. Yin won $660,000 from the $4.4 million purse.
Hyo Joo Kim and Yin staged an exciting duel until the 16th, when Kim three-putted. Yin took a one-shot lead into the 17th and 18th.
On the par-5 18th hole, Kim got in trouble as she tried to lay up and landed in a fairway bunker. Knowing Kim was in trouble, Yin still decided to hit a 5-iron for an approach shot. Yin, ranked No. 8 in the world, pulled it off and two-putted for birdie and the win.
“My caddie, Dave [Jones], told me to go left a little bit. I said, ‘why don't we just go for it?’ I hit a really good 5-iron and, yeah, worked out pretty well,” Yin said.
It came down to the final two holes and Yin had to hold off Kim, who has nine career wins and already won twice this year.
“That was the longest 18 holes I’ve ever played,” Yin said. “They’re so good. They don’t really make mistakes. I thought if I played my game I had a chance to win. I think I did a pretty good job.”
Yin’s crazy streak in 2024 got her to her fifth victory. But then came a winless 2025, and that brought doubt and questions. She’s good friends with World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul and has watched her win with regularity over the last two years. Thitikul has won three times this year and has 10 in her career.
“It is hard, because everyone around me, like my friend Jeeno, she’s won multiple times this year. It’s just very hard to look at your friends and they're all winning but you're not. Just pretty tough,” Yin said. “But I think I got a little bit more mature right now and just kept telling myself it's coming.”
Yin has done plenty of work off the course to get in a better mindset after the winless drought. That includes a tough conversation with her caddie over a hot pot dinner in Singapore. He told her he thought she didn’t look happy on the course. She used the support from her team and an article to put things in perspective.
Alex Slitz
“At that time [in 2024] I was feeling like I'm one of the best players out there,” Yin said. “But I didn't win last year and that made me feel like, ‘am I still one of the best?’ I keep questioning myself. I think I've learned a lot this year. I read an article the other day says some people, their life starts at 40. Some people their life starts at 24. But life really starts when you don't live in other people's comments, don't live in other people's expectations. That's when your life starts. I get tears in my eyes even I think about it. I'm just glad I saw that article.”
Yin was set to have dinner and maybe some drinks in Boston to celebrate and then she will be on a flight with some of her colleagues back home to China. The LPGA will be on a break for the Solheim Cup before resuming in Arkansas in late September.
Speaking of the Solheim Cup, there were a couple of great finishes for two Americans. U.S. captain Angela Stanford has to like what she saw from Allisen Corpuz—who finished third—and Rose Zhang, who tied for fourth place. It’s good news for both players but especially Zhang, who had a back injury in Portland, then skipped the CPKC Women’s Open. Their play in Boston helps with momentum for the U.S. team, which will play in the Netherlands Sept. 11-13 and try to win in Europe for the first time since 2015.