Two-time LPGA winner Lottie Woad was making her debut at the US Women’s Open this year. However, her Saturday took a frustrating turn. The current world No. 6 made the cut on the number at Riviera but had a mishap on the par-4 ninth the very next day. She was penalized for improving her stance, but the final verdict came after much chaos.

Her approach shot ended up buried in the right greenside bunker. The lie was awkward as the ball sat on the upslope. Woad tried to find balance, and therein she made the mistake. The English golfer, in an attempt to find proper balance, pushed her foot too much on the back. According to a Golf.com, her caddie also tried to brace her by planting his left foot. The duo talked to the rules official for possible relief due to the bunker liner but was denied. Reportedly, the rules official warned them against inadvertently building a stance while trying to find balance. In fact, broadcasters noticed it too.

According to the same Golf.com report, one TV analyst also opined that she was not allowed to gather sand, which she seemed to be doing. The TV analyst feared that the youngster dug in her heels too much and moved the sand, which is not allowed. Lottie Woad eventually hit the first shot, but she lost her balance after the impact and ran backward. The ball rolled back to the center of the bunker. In her second attempt, she got out. She wasn’t assessed a penalty at that time; however, just two holes after the bunker nightmare, she learned that her bogey would become a triple-bogey seven.

The USGA officials reviewed the situation and deemed that Woad’s actions amounted to improving her stance on the bunker, which is prohibited. As a result, she was assessed a two-stroke penalty. Her bogey turned into a triple-bogey seven, and her round ended at 3-over 74.

Rule 8.1a prohibits golfers from improving their lie and stance. They’re not allowed to press down on sand or loose soil. This is not the first time Lottie Woad has found herself in a complicated rules situation in a major.

The rising star, who is just 22 but has won twice on the LPGA Tour, found herself in another tricky lie in her first ever major. At the 2025 Women’s Open Championship, Lottie Woad’s ball disappeared into thick rough. While trying to hack it out her ball barely moved inches and got stuck in a muddy lie. Believing that she can take embedded ball relief, she called in a rules official.

After a lengthy discussion, the ruling didn’t go in favor of her. So she called a second rules official. However, the verdict remains the same. She went to make a triple bogey but made six birdies afterward to remain in contention. At the U.S. Women’s Open, it’s a markedly different scenario. She is at T60 after three rounds. While this was her first documented penalty in a professional tournament, golf has a long history of rules rulings influencing major championships.

One such instance occurred for Anna Nordqvist at CordeValle in 2016. She was tied with Brittany Lang after 72 holes at the U.S. Women’s Open and played the par-4 17th in a three-hole playoff. During her backswing, her 5-iron touched the sand, and while no one on the course noticed, a television camera caught it on replay. As a result, the USGA gave her a two-stroke penalty under Rule 13-4b.

Nordqvist only learned about the penalty after she had played her approach on the last playoff hole. Lang finished her hole with a par while Nordqvist ended up with a bogey and lost by three shots.

Lexi Thompson‘s 2017 ANA Inspiration stands out for its timing. During the final round on Sunday, a television viewer emailed the LPGA to report that Thompson had replaced her ball incorrectly on the 17th green in Round 3. The penalty was two strokes for the incorrect placement and two more for signing an incorrect scorecard. Despite this, she managed to birdie her way into a playoff but lost to So Yeon Ryu on the first hole.

Next was Carlota Ciganda at the 2023 Amundi Evian Championship during the second round. She got a two-stroke penalty for slow play on her last hole. She didn’t accept the penalty, signed her scorecard without it, and was disqualified. But for Woad, who dominated the amateur world, this is a new lesson to learn.

Lottie Woad’s amateur career made her the last person you’d expect here

Before turning professional, Woad established herself by winning the 2024 Augusta National Women’s Amateur. She became the first European champion in the event’s history. In June, she reached World No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

Woad was also awarded the Mark H. McCormack Medal as the leading female amateur of 2024, and for this, as well, she was the first Englishwoman to achieve this. She turned professional in the summer of 2025 and became the first player to secure an LPGA card through the tour’s LEAP program.

Success in the LPGA didn’t take time either. She won the Women’s Scottish Open on her professional debut by three shots. Her second LPGA title came at the Kroger Queen City Championship in May 2026.

Notably, her transition from World No. 1 amateur golfer to No. 6 in the LPGA ranking took less than a year. Now, how her Sunday turns out at Riviera remains to be seen.