The daughter of first-generation Vietnamese immigrants, she enrolled at UCLA in 2015, where she went on to rank number one on the all-time UCLA career victories list with eight wins. She reached number one in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, and was on the winning Curtis Cup team in 2018. She first joined the LPGA Tour as a professional in 2019, but dropped off the tour at the end of the year and played on the Symetra Tour instead. She claimed her first three professional victories on the Symetra Tour in 2021 and rejoined the LPGA Tour for 2022. In 2023, she won four titles on the LPGA Tour, including her two major successes, and reached number one in the Women's World Golf Rankings for the first time in August. She won her fifth LPGA Title at the Meijer LPGA Classic in 2024 and also competed in the Summer Olympics that same year.
Early life, college and amateur career
Vu's maternal grandfather Dinh Du lived with his family in Can Tho in Vietnam. He spent several years constructing a boat, and in 1982, Du, his family, and a number of other Viatnamese residents set sail and left the country with 82 people on board. The boat developed a leak, and after releasing a flare, they were picked up by the USS Brewton of the United States Navy. The family eventually reached the United States and settled in California.[3][4] Vu was born and raised in Fountain Valley, California, to parents Douglas Vu and Kieu Thuy.[5][6] She began playing golf at aged seven after watching her father and brother at the driving range.[7] Her father acted as her coach, and her older brother Andre later played golf for the University of California, Riverside.[1]
Vu was the winner of the 2013 AJGA Junior at Robinson Ranch.[6] In 2014, she won the KNC Champions Junior Classic, which earned her entry into the Kraft Nabisco Championship where she finished T46th.[8][9] She also triumphed at the CIF-WSCGA Championship in 2014, and the SCGA Women's Amateur in 2016. She later placed second at the Canadian Women's Amateur in 2017.[6]
Vu enrolled at UCLA in 2015. As a UCLA Bruin, she was awarded 2016 Pac-12 Conference Freshman of the Year, and in 2018 she was WGCA Player of the Year, Pac-12 Conference Golfer of the Year, and a finalist at the Honda Awards. She was also a three-time WGCA First Team All-American and All-Pac 12 performer, and finished top of the all-time UCLA career victory list with eight individual titles.[6]
Vu turned professional in January 2019 and finished T27th at the inaugural LPGA Q-Series to earn status for the 2019 LPGA Tour, where she missed the cut in eight out of nine starts.[15] She lost her tour card, and subsequently joined the Symetra Tour (now known as the Epson Tour) for 2020. This initially proved unsuccessful, Vu missed the cut at four of the seven events that she entered during the year and posted a highest finish of T29th.[16] During this period, Vu almost gave up golf and considered going to law school, but was encouraged to continue in the sport by her mother.[17]
Ranked number 33 in the world, Vu secured her first victory on the LPGA Tour after securing a one-stroke win at the Honda LPGA Thailand in February. She began her final round trailing the leader by six strokes, but shot a final-round 64 to claim victory.[32] Vu won her first major at the 2023 Chevron Championship in April. After making birdies on both the 17th and 18th holes of her final round, she reached a playoff where she overcame Angel Yin on the first extra hole. Afterwards, Vu revealed that in order to help herself cope with her emotions during the tournament, she had used the memory of her late grandfather as an inspiration, saying "Today, I was getting really upset on the course, and I just had to remind myself, 'Grandpa is with you and he'd be really disappointed if you were getting upset like this and that you didn't get your act together'."[33][34] In May, she represented the United States at the International Crown, in which they finished in third position.[35]
Vu missed the cut at four of the next six events that she played following her maiden major win, as she initially 'struggled' to adapt to the higher expectations that she faced as a major winner. She then secured her second major with a six-shot victory over Charley Hull in the 2023 Women's British Open at Walton Heath.[36][37] The win moved her to number one in the Women's World Golf Rankings. Reflecting on her achievement, Vu said "Being the best in the world, that's just crazy to me," and added "Just thinking about the struggle I had this year and just to come out with that has been - it's just incredible."[38] In August, Vu secured the Rolex Annika Major Award for the player with the best combined record at the year's five majors. She became the first American to win the award since Michelle Wie West in 2014.[39]
Vu made her Solheim Cup debut for the United States in September, which was held at Finca Cortesin in Andalusia, Spain. The contest ended in a 14–14 tie with Europe retaining the trophy. Vu finished with a 1–3–0 (win–loss–tie) record, with her victory coming in the day three singles where she secured a 4 and 3 success over Madelene Sagstrom.[40][1] The following month, Vu was beaten by Angel Yin in a playoff at the Buick LPGA Shanghai.[41] In November, Vu claimed her fourth LPGA title of the year with victory at The ANNIKA. The win also took her back up to number one in the world rankings.[42] The following week, she finished fourth at the CME Group Tour Championship,[43] and at the end of the season, she was awarded LPGA Tour Player of the Year.[44] She won a total of $3,502,303 in prize money on the 2023 LPGA Tour.[24]
2024: Injury and comeback
On March 8, 2024, Vu withdrew from the Blue Bay LPGA after a back injury that had also caused her to pull out of the HSBC Women's World Championship midway through the event. She returned to competition in June at the Meijer LPGA Classic, having adjusted her swing routine to try and reduce the pain that she had been experiencing.[45][46] There, she prevailed in a three-way playoff against Lexi Thompson and Grace Kim to win her first LPGA title of the year. Vu had started her final round eight strokes behind Kim.[47] Vu also finished runner-up at two different majors as she looked to add to the two major victories that she had secured the previous year. At the Women's PGA Championship, she finished T2nd, three shots behind Amy Yang.[48] She then competed at the Women's British Open as the defending champion. There, she three-putted from fifteen-feet on the final green to finish the event in a tie for second, two shots adrift of Lydia Ko.[49]
Vu represented the United States at the 2024 Summer Olympics in August, where she finished T36th.[50] In September, she was part of the United States team that won back the Solheim Cup from Europe. The United States secured the trophy with a 15.5–12.5 victory, with Vu finishing the event with a 1–2–1 record. Her victory came in the day one foursomes partnering Sarah Schmelzel, and she halved her match with Albane Valenzuela in the final day singles.[51] Across the LPGA season, Vu made the cut at 16 of the 18 tournaments that she entered and concluded the year with $2,088,335 in prize money.[24]
2025
Vu missed out on the Ford Championship title in March after being defeated in a playoff by Kim Hyo-joo.[52] She missed her fifth consecutive cut of the year at the Evian Championship in July,[53] and she then proceeded to miss the cut at the Women's British Open as well, her fourth missed cut at a major in 2025.[54]
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