EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France — Brooke Henderson nearly pulled off a comeback for the ages on Sunday at The Amundi Evian Championship, ultimately falling to champion Haeran Ryu in a one-hole playoff in Evian-les-Bains, France.

The Canadian, who won this tournament back in 2022, carded a spectacular 64 in the final round of the year’s fourth major championship, one that saw her make three birdies, two eagles and a hole-in-one on the par-3 eighth hole at Evian Resort Golf Club.

Henderson began the day in a tie for third and a whopping seven shots behind Ryu, who led at 19-under total, an advantage she immediately chipped away at with a birdie on the first to move to 13-under. The 28-year-old then parred her next five holes before rolling in an eagle putt on the par-5 7th hole to climb to 15-under and reduce Ryu’s lead to four.

On the very next hole, the 14-time LPGA Tour winner had the moment of the week on No. 8 when her tee ball rolled in the cup for a hole-in-one from 169 yards, what is the fifth ace of Brooke’s career and a shot that got her to 17-under overall. And when Ryu bogeyed that same hole to slip to 18-under, the Republic of Korea native’s lead then shrank to one.

Henderson dropped a shot when she bogeyed the par-4 11th hole, now at 16-under and two back of Ryu with seven holes remaining. She threw a one-two punch of birdies at the par-5 15th and par-3 16th holes to tie both Ryu and Aki Iwai at 18-under, the latter of whom picked up a pair of birdies on 14 and 15 to put herself into contention.

Then, in a three-way tie for the lead with two holes to play, Henderson three-putted the 17th to fall one shot behind Ryu and Iwai and needed something special on 18 if she wanted to get into a playoff with one or both of the young talents. And that’s exactly what transpired as Brooke found the fairway, knocked her second shot to six feet and rolled in her eagle putt to tie Ryu, who made her only birdie of the day on the final hole to finish at 19-under and push the tournament to extra holes.

Henderson and Ryu then went back to the 18th tee to begin the playoff, but after Ryu found the green in two and Henderson was unable to chip in for birdie, it was ultimately the 25-year-old Korean who claimed the 2026 Amundi Evian Championship, what is her second major win in just 13 days.

And while it was certainly a disappointment for the two-time major champion to come up just short of a third career major victory, Henderson couldn’t be anything but pleased with how hard she battled on Sunday in France to overcome a mountainous seven-shot deficit.

“I played awesome today, which is really exciting,” said Henderson, who now holds the record for most eagles made in a major championship. “To finish second in a major and third a couple of weeks ago, definitely game is in a really good spot. Obviously, very exciting to get into the playoff. Wish I had played a little bit better, but Haeran has been playing great. Congrats to her. I am happy how I played. Lots of birdies and eagles, which is really fun.”

The runner-up performance is Henderson’s first solo second in a major since the 2023 Amundi Evian Championship, which was won by Frenchwoman Celine Boutier. It’s the first time since 2015, when she tied for fifth at both the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the U.S. Women’s Open, that Brooke has finished in the top five of back-to-back major championships, and the second-place performance is now her season-best result on Tour in her 13 total starts.

Henderson won’t be making the trip to Dundonald Links for the ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open, which means her next start will be at the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes. Brooke and that major have had a bit of a complicated relationship over the years, but considering just how well she has been playing in the game’s biggest events as of late, that narrative feels poised to change in a few weeks’ time in England.

“I feel like (my game is) in a really good spot, which is really exciting and something to look forward to,” said Henderson. “Coming into AIG I haven't played that well there in the past, so hopefully, this year will be a different story.”

For now, though, Brooke will chalk this performance up as a resoundingly positive affirmation about the state of her game and head home to Florida to hang with her family until the next major test rolls around in early August. In fact, she’s already planning for some baby snuggles with her weeks-old niece Sahalee, quality time that’s sure to ease the sting of this latest near-miss.

“It's been so exciting and so amazing to have my niece, and I'm looking forward to seeing her not tomorrow but Tuesday,” said Brooke with a smile. “It's just a really great time for my family.”

Brooke Henderson Makes Ace, Two Eagles to Threaten Ryu in Final Round of Amundi Evian Championship

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