Making her second start as the no. 1 player in the world, Lydia Ko captured her sixth-career victory on the LPGA, shooting a final-round two-under 71 at the Women’s Australian Open. The 17-year-old Ko finished with a tournament total nine-under, edging out her closest competitor, Amy Yang, by two strokes.
Via @theMichelleWie’s instagram
Rory McIlroy wasn’t the only one who had a pretty good weekend in South Korea. So did Michelle Wie, who fired a six-under 66, the lowest in the final round, to surge to T3 at the LPGA’s KEB-HanaBank Championship.
While Wie snared a share of the lead on the back nine on Sunday, she posted her score earlier than the leaders and then played the nail-biting waiting game. Turned out Amy Yang and Hee Kyung Seo both birdied the 18th and Yang beat Seo in a playoff.
Deep Blue: Thompson was in imperious form on Thursday.
Teenage phenom Lexi Thompson is two ahead of the chasing pack at the halfway mark of the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters after carding a flawless 66 in Thursday’s second round.
Yani "calls the hogs" after winning the LPGA NW Arkansas Championship
Yani Tseng successfully defended her title at the NW Arkansas Championship on Sunday, rolling in a four-footer for birdie on the first playoff hole to beat Amy Yang. Entering the final round tied with Tseng, Yang held the advantage for most of the day, making three birdies in the first seven holes, followed by 11 straight pars on her way to a bogey-free 68.
Sandra Gal hopped on the birdie train on Friday
Sandra Gal rolled in five birdies in the last eight holes to fire a five-under 67 for a one-shot lead over Amy Yang at the Avnet LPGA Classic in Mobile, Alabama. Gal, who won the Kia Classic last month, posted a two-day total of seven-under. After the round, she popped by the Royal Wedding Reception at the Grand Hotel in Point Clear. I found this picture, via the LPGA’s website, rather humorous:
Maria Hjorth accepts first-prize check at the LPGA Tour Championship
Maria Hjorth sank a clutch downhill eight-foot slider to capture the season-ending LPGA Tour Championship at Grand Cypress Golf Club in Orlando, FL. She dropped her putter and lifted her arms with joy before her baby daughter Emily gave her a congratulatory hug. (Kodak moment!)
Hjorth shot a final round even-par 72, five-under 283 for the tournament to edge out Amy Yang, who held the 36-hole lead, by one shot. Yang drained a huge 20-footer on 18 for birdie to put the pressure on Hjorth, forcing her to make her par putt.
Kristy McPherson high-fives her caddie at LPGA Tour Championship in frigid Orlando morning
“It was like going into a fan and getting an ice bucket thrown in your face,” said Kenny Ebalo, who is caddying for Andres Gonzales.
Ebalo was referring to the chilly conditions on Thursday morning at Orange County National in Orlando, Florida, the site of this week’s PGA Tour Q-school. That’s right — it was 44 degrees, but felt like 37 degrees with the wind chill at around 9am. Andres, Ebalo and Michael Putnam, who is playing to get better status on the PGA Tour next year, had just sat down for lunch and were exchanging battle stories from grinding in the “really” cold temperatures.
Co-leader Amy Yang hits an approach during the first round at Grand Cypress
It’s never a surprise to see South Koreans atop the leaderboard of an LPGA event. Amy Yang and Seon Hwa Lee, relative unknowns to the casual American LPGA fan, shot a pair of five-under 67s to open the season-ending LPGA Tour Championship. These ladies are playing without pressure unlike their fellow Koreans Jiyai Shin and Na Yeon Choi, who are in the tight race to become the first South Korean to take home the LPGA’s most prestigious honors.
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