The 2025 LPGA Tour season is officially underway, and Bradenton Country Club is kicking things off in style by hosting the first full-field event—The Founders Cup presented by the U.S. Virgin Islands. This year’s tournament is mixing things up, moving to a February spot on the calendar and heading to a brand new location in Florida. Previously held in Arizona and New Jersey, the Founders Cup is now calling Bradenton home, where it’s sure to deliver some serious drama. In 2024, with four birdies in her last five holes, Rose Zhang became a two-time LPGA Tour winner at the Founders Cup. 

The 21-year-old added another victory to her resume in less than a year on the LPGA Tour. It was the 13th year of the event. Now, 120 of the top-ranked players in women’s golf are ready to battle it out for a $2 million purse. Many of them will be making their season debuts, and a few familiar faces are even coming out of retirement to join the action. Here are the top players you must look out for while following the 2025 Founders Cup.

1. Nelly Korda

Nelly Korda is once again back to follow yet another year of greatness. Remember her 2024 season? Well, it is hard to forget. She appeared in seventeen events and made cuts in fourteen of them. She finished eleven of them in the top 10, and well, seven of them were wins! The Rolex Ranking No. 1 player earned a whopping $4.4 million in just one year.

She kickstarted the 2025 season with the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, where she lost the trophy to A Lim Kim by just two strokes, finishing solo second. The Founders Cup will be her redemption ground. Both for the TOC and the tournament last year. Last year, she finished at T7, and this year, she is ready to give her best and grab the win!

2. Lydia Ko

If someone came even close to having a season as great as Nelly Korda last year, it was Lydia Ko. She bagged the Gold medal at the National Olympics in Paris and became the only LPGA Tour player to have all three colored Olympic medals! And well, that was not all for her season. She earned a whopping $3.2 million in her 21 appearances, bagging three wins. Lydia Ko missed the cut in only two events last year.

And she concluded the opening tournament of the 2025 LPGA season with a sixth finish. Ko has a motive at the 2025 Founders Cup of course. Remember her disappointing T35 finish at the same event last year? It surely has taught her the pain points, and her fans expect her to come back with a better form at the Bradenton Country Club!

3. Hannah Green

Hannah Green did not have a great start for the 2025 LPGA Tour Season. At the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, she finished with a disappointing 2-under, being placed at T20. Regardless, she still is placed sixth in the Rolex Rankings, and why wouldn’t she be? Just like Lydia Ko, she bagged three wins last season, and missed only four cuts, out of her 20 appearances. Green took home a whopping $2.1 million last year.

However, the Founders Cup is not her best suit. Last year, she dropped down to T18. Now whether the 2025 Founders Cup will be her way around or not, it is yet to find out!

4. Ayaka Furue

The 24 YO Ayaka Furue is doing wonders in the golf world! She started playing on the LPGA Tour in 2022, and in just three seasons, has already managed to bag two wins. The second win came at the Amundi Evian Championship last year. She only missed one cut and took home $2.8 million.

However, last week, she failed to give her best and had a terrible even par T25 finish. Now whether she will be able to accelerate her pace or not this week, we are yet to find out!

5. Charley Hull

Charley Hull might have had only two wins in the past decade on the LPGA Tour, but her presence has always been strong on the course. Last year, she had five top-10 finishes and took home a total of $1.1 million in season earnings. She will be kick-starting her 2025 season with the Founders Cup, and who knows, maybe this season will bring her some luck!

Who are you rooting for at the second event of the 2025 LPGA Tour season? Let us know in the comments section below!