Australian Stephanie Kyriacou wasn’t tall enough to see exactly where her tee shot ended up on the par-3 8th hole at Royal Porthcawl Golf Club.
But the roar of the Welsh crowd let the 24-year-old know that her ball had ultimately found the bottom of the cup for an ace, a spectacular shot that saw Kyriacou tally her first career hole-in-one since joining the LPGA Tour in 2022.
Kyriacou’s ball barely touched anything other than air as it flew straight into the cup from 105 yards, a swing of a gap wedge that jumpstarted what had been a quiet round up to that point for the Aussie. And while an ace typically warrants a much more spirited reaction, Kyriacou purposefully kept her celebration muted until she knew for a fact that she had indeed jarred it, not wanting to be disappointed if she had only ended up right next to the hole.
“I actually didn’t know. I didn’t want to celebrate if it wasn’t in the hole,” Kyriacou said. “I thought maybe it hit the flag and just went somewhere, so the reaction is probably pretty poor for a hole-in-one. I just gave everyone a high five and then waited until I got to the green to confirm.”
After holing out, Kyriacou birdied the par-5 9th hole to turn in 33, now at 1-under for the tournament, as she had shot 2-over on day one in Wales. She stumbled with a bogey on 10 to drop back to even, but erased that mistake with another birdie on the par-3 12th hole. Kyriacou birdied the par-5 13th before rattling off four consecutive bogeys on her next four holes, an over-par streak that threatened the made cut she was eying coming down the stretch at Porthcawl.
But Kyriacou dug deep as she played her final hole on Friday, holing out from the greenside bunker for an eagle three to finish out her round at even par for the tournament and handily make the cut. And while the two hole outs she recorded on day two at the AIG Women’s Open certainly helped the Aussie in her pursuit of a weekend tee time at the year’s final major championship, they also saw her pick up some more ground on a season-long wager she has with her caddie Wei Wang.
“I have a bet with my caddie Wei, which I didn’t do last year. It was 10 hole-outs for the year, but I only got up to six, so I owe him a pair of shoes,” said Kyriacou, who has also recorded an albatross this year in the final round of the Black Desert Championship in Ivins, Utah. “This year, I’m on nine, and I’ve got to get to 10. I think that’s why I like holing out.”
There will be plenty of work for Kyriacou to do over the next 36 holes if she wants to climb the AIG Women’s Open leaderboard. She’s likely a bit too far back to contend for the title, but a solid weekend could see Kyriacou add to her 2025 top-10 tally, one that currently has seen her finish in the top 10 three times so far this season at the T-Mobile Match Play presented by MGM Rewards (T5), the Black Desert Championship (T6) and the Mizuho Americas Open (T5).
The test will be challenging as the conditions in Porthcawl, Wales continue to be predictably unpredictable, but it’s a battle that Kyriacou is more than up for, now having plenty of good momentum on which to lean as she prepares to tackle the final two days of major championship golf this year.
“I’m a bit behind the eight ball,” Kyriacou said. “I was wanting to make some early birdies when the wind was down this morning. I think it’s just having a bit of luck with the elements. I think having a bit of that and having the foot on the gas this weekend will get me close.”
