Qualifier: Shot 71-67--138 at Essex County Country Club, in West Orange, N.J., on May 11

Kang qualified for her first U.S. Women's Open by posting 4-under-par 138 to earn one of the four available berths at Essex County Country Club, in West Orange, N.J., on May 11. Kang played her collegiate at Truett McConnell University, a small Christian school in Cleveland, Ga. In 2022, she claimed the NAIA national title, the same year she won the Georgia Women's Amateur. She turned professional shortly thereafter and has competed on both the LPGA Tour and Espson Tour. On the Epson Tour in 2023, she made 20 of 22 cuts, including a share of second in the Hartford HealthCare Women's Championship to earn her LPGA Tour card (5th on the money list) for the 2024 season. After making just 8 of 19 cuts in 2024, she returned to the Epson Tour and finished ninth on the money list to regain LPGA Tour status for 2026.