Smyth Salver

The omens are good for whoever gets their hands on the coveted Smyth Salver at Royal Lytham & St Annes this year.

All signs point to the prize – awarded to the best performing amateur to complete four rounds at the AIG Women’s Open – being an indicator of future golfing greatness. Some of the biggest names in the game have lifted the Smyth Salver since it was first awarded in 1979.

Marta Figueras-Dotti, Anna Nordqvist, Lydia Ko and Georgia Hall all won the amateur honour before going on to win the Championship itself, thrilling fans with an early demonstration of what they are capable of on the biggest stage.

And, encouragingly for this year’s crop of amateur contenders, huge names in Jeeno Thitikul and Amy Yang each lifted the Smyth Salver at Royal Lytham in their younger years, paving the way for future generations to follow.

Jeeno announces herself on the big stage

Aged 15, Jeeno’s success lives long in the memory. The Thai superstar, who is now (as of January 2026) the world’s top ranked player, put in a sensational performance as an amateur in 2018.

A year earlier she had become the youngest player to ever triumph in a professional golfing event, enjoying a record-setting success at the 2017 Ladies European Thailand Championship.

She then won the inaugural Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific at the start of 2018, earning her spot at Lytham in the process.

Having already announced herself to the golfing world, she underlined her status as one of the most promising young players in the game by winning the Smyth Salver as the only amateur to make the cut.

The following year Jeeno qualified for her third consecutive AIG Women’s Open as an amateur and won her second Smyth Salver at Woburn Golf Club – emulating Lydia Ko who won the prize back-to-back in 2012 and 2013 (joint winner with Georgia Hall).

Since that early success, Jeeno has twice risen to the top of the game’s world rankings and forged a reputation as one of the very best players on the LPGA Tour – winning the Rolex Player of the Year award in 2025.

Amy Yang makes her mark

Twelve years before Jeeno’s first Smyth Salver success, Amy Yang managed the same feat when the Championship was staged at Royal Lytham & St Annes in 2006.

As a 17-year-old she earned the accolade of low amateur and collected the Salver after a thrilling week which saw Sherri Steinhauer win the main prize.

By this point Amy had already won on the Ladies European Tour at the ANZ Ladies Masters and, like Jeeno 12 years later, arrived in Lancashire with a reputation as one of the game’s best young talents.

The South Korean lived up to the billing, finishing the week as the low amateur and producing a performance which suggested great things to come.

Since then she has gone on to cement her position as one of the world’s best players, winning the 2024 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, and recording 12 top-five major finishes, including three at the AIG Women’s Open. She’s also won six LPGA Tour titles and three Ladies European Tour events.

Both Amy and Jeeno add weight to the notion the Smyth Salver is an indicator of future stardom. Who’ll follow their lead and introduce themselves on the biggest at Royal Lytham and St Annes this summer?

Smyth Salver winners:

1979 Sue Hedges

1980 Belle Robertson & Marta Figueras-Dotti

1981 Belle Robertson

1982 Marta Figueras-Dotti

1984 Mary McKenna

1985 Jill Thornhill

1986 Vicki Thomas

1987 Joanne Furby

1988 Kathryn Imrie

1989 Joanne Morley

1990 Sarah Bennett

1991 Akiko Fukushima

1993 Patricia Meunier & Joanne Morley

1994 Tina Fischer

1995 Lisa Dermott

1996 Barbara Heckett

1997 Silvia Cavalleri

1999 Giulia Sergas

2001 Rebecca Hudson

2003 Elisa Serramia

2004 Louise Stahle

2005 Michelle Wie

2006 Amy Yang

2007 Melissa Reid

2008 Anna Nordqvist

2010 Caroline Hedwall

2011 Danielle Kang

2012 Lydia Ko

2013 Georgia Hall & Lydia Ko

2014 Emma Talley

2015 Luna Sobron

2016 Leona Maguire

2017 Sophie Lamb

2018 Jeeno Thitikul

2019 Jeeno Thitikul

2021 Louise Duncan

2022 Rose Zhang

2023 Charlotte Heath

2024 Lottie Woad

2025 Paula Martin Sampedro