# Ashleigh Buhai

Ashleigh Ann Buhai (née Simon, born 11 May 1989) is a South African professional golfer who won the 2022 Women's Open, one of the major championships in women's golf.

## Amateur career

Buhai had a successful amateur career. She was the youngest player to win the ladies’ South African Amateur Stroke Play and Match Play double. She represented her country in the mainly professional Women's World Cup of Golf three times while still an amateur.

## Professional career

Buhai turned professional the day after her 18th birthday. She won the 2007 Catalonia Ladies Masters, which was her third event as a professional. She became the youngest ever professional winner on the Ladies European Tour (South Korea's Amy Yang won the 2006 ANZ Ladies Masters at a younger age as an amateur).
Ashleigh now plays under the name Ashleigh Buhai after marrying her husband, David, in December 2016.
Buhai earned her LPGA Tour card for 2014 at qualifying school.
On 7 August 2022, after 221 LPGA Tour starts, Buhai won her first major title by winning the AIG Women's Open at Muirfield, Scotland. She defeated Chun In-gee on the fourth hole of sudden-death playoff after both players finished regulation play at −10.
In December 2022, Buhai won the ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open by 1 stroke over Jiyai Shin. In December 2023, she successfully defended her ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open title with a 1 stroke victory over Minjee Lee at The Australian Golf Club

## Amateur wins

* 2004 Jack Newton Junior International Classic (Australia), South African Amateur Stroke Play, South African Amateur Match Play
* 2005 South African Amateur Stroke Play
* 2006 South African Amateur Stroke Play, South African Amateur Match Play, AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions (USA)
* 2007 South African Amateur Stroke Play, South African Amateur Match Play

## Professional wins (22)
### LPGA Tour wins (2)

* Legend
* Major championships (1)
* Other LPGA Tour (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up | Winner's share ($) |
| 1 | 7 Aug 2022 | AIG Women's Open | 70-65-64-75=274 | −10 | Playoff | Chun In-gee | 1,095,000 |
| 2 | 11 June 2023 | ShopRite LPGA Classic | 69-65-65=199 | −14 | 1 stroke | Kim Hyo-joo | 262,500 |
$^1$ Co-sanctioned by the Ladies European Tour.
LPGA Tour playoff record (1–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
| 1 | 2020 | Cambia Portland Classic | Georgia Hall | Lost to par on second extra hole |
| 2 | 2022 | AIG Women's Open | Chun In-gee | Won with par on fourth extra hole |

### Ladies European Tour wins (5)

| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
| 1 | 17 June 2007 | Catalonia Ladies Masters | 70-68-70=208 | −8 | 2 strokes | Becky Brewerton Kirsty Taylor |
| 2 | 15 May 2011 | ISPS Handa Portugal Ladies Open | 66-67-67=200 | −16 | 3 strokes | Gwladys Nocera |
| 3 | 10 Mar 2018 | Investec South African Women's Open (3) | 69-71-67=207 | −9 | 2 strokes | Karolin Lampert |
| 4 | 7 Aug 2022 | AIG Women's Open | 70-65-64-75=274 | −10 | Playoff | Chun In-gee |
| 5 | 11 Mar 2023 | Investec South African Women's Open (4) | 64-65-69-68=266 | -22 | 4 strokes | Ana Peláez |
$^2$ Co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Ladies Tour. $^3$ Co-sanctioned by the LPGA Tour.
Ladies European Tour playoff record (1–0)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
| 1 | 2022 | AIG Women's Open | Chun In-gee | Won with par on fourth extra hole |

### WPGA Tour of Australasia wins (2)

* 2022 ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open
* 2023 ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open

### Sunshine Ladies Tour wins (12)

* 2014 (3) Chase to Investec Cup Glendower, Ladies Tshwane Open, Chase to Investec Cup Blue Valley
* 2015 (1) Sunshine Ladies Tour Open
* 2017 (3) Cape Town Ladies Open, Sun International Ladies Challenge, Investec Royal Swazi (Ladies)
* 2018 (2) Joburg Ladies Open, Investec South African Women's Open (3)
* 2019 (1) Canon Sunshine Ladies Tour Open
* 2020 (1) Jabra Ladies Classic
* 2023 (1) Investec South African Women's Open (4)
$^4$ Co-sanctioned by the Ladies European Tour.

### Other wins (4)

* 2004 Acer South African Women's Open (as an amateur)
* 2005 Pam Golding Classic (Ladies Africa Tour) (as an amateur)
* 2006 Nedbank Masters (Ladies Africa Tour) (as an amateur)
* 2007 Acer South African Women's Open (2) (as an amateur)

## Major championships
### Wins (1)

| Year | Championship | 54 holes | Winning score | Margin | Runner-up |
| 2022 | Women's British Open | Five shot lead | −10 (70-65-64-75=274) | Playoff | Chun In-gee |

### Results timeline

Results not in chronological order.
| ! Tournament | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Chevron Championship | | | | | | | | | | | | CUT | T75 | CUT | CUT | CUT | T18 | CUT |
| U.S. Women's Open | | | CUT | | | | | CUT | | CUT | T27 | T57 | T55 | T30 | CUT | | T68 | T51 |
| Women's PGA Championship | | | | T31 | | | | T40 | CUT | T50 | T36 | T47 | CUT | T18 | CUT | T21 | T39 | T52 |
| The Evian Championship ^ | | | | | | | | CUT | | | | CUT | T37 | NT | T58 | T15 | T20 | WD |
| Women's British Open | CUT | CUT | | CUT | T43 | CUT | T47 | CUT | T66 | T47 | T30 | CUT | 5 | T11 | CUT | 1 | CUT | T22 |
^ The Evian Championship was added as a major in 2013.
CUT = missed the half-way cut WD = withdrew NT = no tournament T = tied

### Summary

| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
| Chevron Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 |
| Women's PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 9 |
| U.S. Women's Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 6 |
| The Evian Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 4 |
| Women's British Open | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 9 |
| Totals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 53 | 30 |
* Most consecutive cuts made – 7 (2022 WPGA – 2023 Evian)
* Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (twice)

## LPGA Tour career summary

| Year | Tournaments played | Cuts made* | Wins (Majors) | 2nds | 3rds | Top 10s | Best finish | Earnings ($) | Money list rank | Scoring average | Scoring rank |
| 2005 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 2006 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | T7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 2007 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T16 | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 2008 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T35 | 20,330 | 157 | 74.27 | 144 |
| 2009 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T23 | 39,752 | 118 | 73.18 | 101 |
| 2010 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T43 | 12,810 | 140 | 73.25 | n/a |
| 2011 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Cut | 0 | n/a | 73.50 | n/a |
| 2012 | 0 ** | 0 ** | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T56 | 3,146 ** | n/a | 76.25 | n/a |
| 2013 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T47 | 10,554 | 142 | 73.75 | n/a |
| 2014 | 18 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T15 | 78,294 | 98 | 72.64 | 95 |
| 2015 | 17 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T42 | 40,831 | 117 | 73.12 | 114 |
| 2016 | 16 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T22 | 73,210 | 107 | 71.87 | 66 |
| 2017 | 21 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 461,094 | 42 | 71.60 | 66 |
| 2018 | 28 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | T7 | 254,692 | 72 | 71.93 | 77 |
| 2019 | 27 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 407,546 | 51 | 71.60 | 77 |
| 2020 | 16 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 429,628 | 24 | 71.83 | 55 |
| 2021 | 24 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | T8 | 229,695 | 75 | 71.27 | 63 |
| 2022 | 24 | 15 | 1 (1) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1,553,004 | 10 | 71.19 | 60 |
| 2023 | 23 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1,016,049 | 26 | 70.76 | 33 |
| 2024 | 23 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 569,681 | 67 | 71.49 | 63 |
| Totals^ | 270 (2008) | 167 (2008) | 2 (1) | 2 | 2 | 22 | 1 | 5,197,170 | 89 | | |
^ official as of 2024 season
* Includes matchplay and other tournaments without a cut.
** *ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open not counted by LPGA

## World ranking

Position in Women's World Golf Rankings at the end of each calendar year.
| Year | World ranking |
| 2012 | 173 |
| 2013 | 170 |
| 2014 | 163 |
| 2015 | 212 |
| 2016 | 223 |
| 2017 | 113 |
| 2018 | 115 |
| 2019 | 104 |
| 2020 | 70 |
| 2021 | 84 |
| 2022 | 24 |
| 2023 | 23 |
| 2024 | 57 |

## Team appearances

Amateur
* Espirito Santo Trophy (representing South Africa): 2004, 2006 (winners)
Professional
* World Cup (representing South Africa): 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008