Ashleigh Buhai – her first LPGA Tour win is a major – photo R&A via Getty Images
Perth’s Minjee Lee has recorded her 6th top 5 finish of the 2022 LPGA season when sharing 4th place at the AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield this week.
Lee put together a final round of 69 to share 4th place with Leona Maguire and Madelene Sagstrom and just three shots from the playoff for the event, won eventually by South African Ashleigh Buhai who won with a sand save par at the fourth extra hole.
“I’m not sure where I’m going to finish but I feel like I played pretty good considering how windy it was all week,” said Lee. “You know, missed some birdie opportunities here and there but I still played pretty solid today, so I’m happy with how I played.
“I mean, I’ve always really loved links golf and just playing in the wind in general, and how challenging it is. Yeah, I kind of embrace it when I get the chance to come over here and play, so no, I always have lot of fun.”
When asked as to how she felt about her season to date in 2022 Lee responded; “I’ve had some really great finishes at the majors. I won the U.S. Open and I did really well at the KPMG, and I think I’m going to finish pretty well here, too. I feel like I’m trending in the right direction, and pretty excited for the rest of the season.”
Lee adds another US$309,000 to her already massive earnings in 2022 and she continues to dominate the LPGA Tour money list, leading by some US$1.15 million over In Gee Chun.
Minjee Lee during this week’s AIG Open – photo R&A via Getty Images
Sydney’s Stephanie Kyriacou and New Zealand’s Lydia Ko finished as the next best of the Australasians when they tied for 7th and for LPGA Tour rookie, Kyriacou, it was an impressive performance on a final day where she recorded three double-bogeys en-route to a round of 71 and her best LPGA Tour finish.
“I played pretty solid the whole week, said Kyriacou. “Today was a bit yucky. I hit maybe three bad shots that cost me more than three shots. But yeah, still lots of positives to take. Still a couple things to work on but yeah, everything for me is trending, which I can’t be too mad about that.
“I definitely have confidence in myself. It might sound a bit arrogant but I think I’m going to win majors. It’s just a matter of time I feel.”
Kyriacou’s cheque for US$160,000 is her biggest of her career to date.
Stephanie Kyriacou – recorded her best finish on the LPGA Tour when she tied for 7th – photo R&A via Getty Images
Of the other Australians in the weekend field, Hannah Green was 35th and Whitney Hillier 48th.
But the day belonged to Buhai who, after beginning the day five shots ahead of In Gee Chun, was still in control of the outcome before a triple bogey at the 15th had her tied for the lead. That she was able to dig deep and par her last three holes and then survive a playoff against three time major champion Chun.
“A little overwhelmed to be honest,” responded Buhai when asked how she felt. “You know, trying to take a breath, but obviously fantastic to win this championship, the AIG Women’s Open, it’s a dream come true.
“Obviously In Gee is a major champion, and I knew I had to go out and win it. I mean, 18 played so tough the whole week, so it was going to be a grind and then it started to get cold and windier.
“But I was just very proud of how I managed to stay focused on myself and try to do what I needed to do.
“I started working with a sports psychologist, mental coach, someone called Duncan McCarthy in February this year, and if you told me in February this year that I would be sitting here, I would never have believed you with the mental state I was in to be honest.
“I had been swinging good for a long time and could not keep myself in the moment. He’s given me the tools, we say, to stay in the moment, and all I can control, and stay away from outcome. We get so lost in what can happen, and sure, it’s easy to drift and you’re going to go there, but as long as you bring yourself back, it’s fine.”
RESULTS
Seven Australasians make Fed Ex Cup playoffs as Tommy Kim wins Wyndham
Joo Hyung (Tommy) Kim – photo Getty Images PGA Tour
With the completion of this week’s Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, the PGA Tour’s regular season has drawn to a close, leaving the leading 125 eligible players in the FedEx Cup standings with full status on the PGA Tour next season.
Those players are also entitled to tee it up in the opening event of the FedEx Cup playoffs in this coming week at the FedEx St Jude event in Memphis with the leading 70 at the completion of that event moving on to the BMW Championship in Delaware and the leading 30 at the completion of the BMW heading for the Tour Championship in Atlanta.
Australia will be represented in Memphis by Cameron Smith, Lucas Herbert, Marc Leishman, Cameron Davis, Adam Scott, and if he is well, Jason Day.
They will be joined by fellow Australasian, Danny Lee of New Zealand.
The leading Australian in this week’s event in Greensboro was Cameron Percy who by finishing 8th will advance his standing in the year long FedEx Cup standings to 142nd which will retain some limited status for him next season and also allow him to tee it up in the Korn Ferry Tour’s three event, final series beginning on August 18th.
The leading 25 players from that three-event series, in which players ranked from 126 to 200 in the FedEx Cup standings will join with players ranked between 1st and 75th in the Korn Ferry Tour’s season rankings, gain, improve or regain their PGA Tour status.
This week’s event in Greensboro was won by the brilliantly talented Joo Hyung (Tommy) Kim who in winning became the second youngest (20) winner on the PGA Tour since WWII. Only Jordan Spieth was younger.
Kim has already won several events on the Asian Tour and spent seven years in Melbourne during his teenage years.
He led the New Zealand Open into the final round in 2020 before being passed by Brad Kennedy, Lucas Herbert and Nick Flanagan but even then, at the age of 17, he displayed much of the calm and patient manner which saw him overcome a quadruple bogey at his very first hole on Thursday this week to go on and win by five.
“Yeah, it’s crazy. I mean, I’ve never won a golf tournament starting with a quad,” said Kim referring to his horror start on Thursday. “It’s 24 strokes later and here we are. I played great this week. It was hard to stay in the moment in the final round just knowing that I was so close, but I just never let my guard down until I holed that putt on 18.
“It’s been a crazy month. Just before the Scottish I was just trying to get enough points to get in Korn Ferry Finals, and finishing third there, you know, finishing third, I think I was zero points, how many points away from getting special temporary membership, I had to make the cut at The Open and I did.
“I played 3M, Detroit and Wyndham and really it’s been a five-week stretch for me, but it feels like three months.
Yeah, it’s been a hectic month and a lot of things have changed, for sure.”
Kim has been playing on a special temporary PGA Tour membership but the win guarantees him full PGA Tour status and access to the FedEx Cup playoffs over the next three weeks given he is now in 34th place in the FedEx Cup standings.
SCORES
Minjee Lee shares 4th as Ashleigh Buhai wins AIG Women’s Open
Ashleigh Buhai – her first LPGA Tour win is a major – photo R&A via Getty Images
Perth’s Minjee Lee has recorded her 6th top 5 finish of the 2022 LPGA season when sharing 4th place at the AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield this week.
Lee put together a final round of 69 to share 4th place with Leona Maguire and Madelene Sagstrom and just three shots from the playoff for the event, won eventually by South African Ashleigh Buhai who won with a sand save par at the fourth extra hole.
“I’m not sure where I’m going to finish but I feel like I played pretty good considering how windy it was all week,” said Lee. “You know, missed some birdie opportunities here and there but I still played pretty solid today, so I’m happy with how I played.
“I mean, I’ve always really loved links golf and just playing in the wind in general, and how challenging it is. Yeah, I kind of embrace it when I get the chance to come over here and play, so no, I always have lot of fun.”
When asked as to how she felt about her season to date in 2022 Lee responded; “I’ve had some really great finishes at the majors. I won the U.S. Open and I did really well at the KPMG, and I think I’m going to finish pretty well here, too. I feel like I’m trending in the right direction, and pretty excited for the rest of the season.”
Lee adds another US$309,000 to her already massive earnings in 2022 and she continues to dominate the LPGA Tour money list, leading by some US$1.15 million over In Gee Chun.
Minjee Lee during this week’s AIG Open – photo R&A via Getty Images
Sydney’s Stephanie Kyriacou and New Zealand’s Lydia Ko finished as the next best of the Australasians when they tied for 7th and for LPGA Tour rookie, Kyriacou, it was an impressive performance on a final day where she recorded three double-bogeys en-route to a round of 71 and her best LPGA Tour finish.
“I played pretty solid the whole week, said Kyriacou. “Today was a bit yucky. I hit maybe three bad shots that cost me more than three shots. But yeah, still lots of positives to take. Still a couple things to work on but yeah, everything for me is trending, which I can’t be too mad about that.
“I definitely have confidence in myself. It might sound a bit arrogant but I think I’m going to win majors. It’s just a matter of time I feel.”
Kyriacou’s cheque for US$160,000 is her biggest of her career to date.
Stephanie Kyriacou – recorded her best finish on the LPGA Tour when she tied for 7th – photo R&A via Getty Images
Of the other Australians in the weekend field, Hannah Green was 35th and Whitney Hillier 48th.
But the day belonged to Buhai who, after beginning the day five shots ahead of In Gee Chun, was still in control of the outcome before a triple bogey at the 15th had her tied for the lead. That she was able to dig deep and par her last three holes and then survive a playoff against three time major champion Chun.
“A little overwhelmed to be honest,” responded Buhai when asked how she felt. “You know, trying to take a breath, but obviously fantastic to win this championship, the AIG Women’s Open, it’s a dream come true.
“Obviously In Gee is a major champion, and I knew I had to go out and win it. I mean, 18 played so tough the whole week, so it was going to be a grind and then it started to get cold and windier.
“But I was just very proud of how I managed to stay focused on myself and try to do what I needed to do.
“I started working with a sports psychologist, mental coach, someone called Duncan McCarthy in February this year, and if you told me in February this year that I would be sitting here, I would never have believed you with the mental state I was in to be honest.
“I had been swinging good for a long time and could not keep myself in the moment. He’s given me the tools, we say, to stay in the moment, and all I can control, and stay away from outcome. We get so lost in what can happen, and sure, it’s easy to drift and you’re going to go there, but as long as you bring yourself back, it’s fine.”
RESULTS
Australian hopes fade as Buhai takes control at Muirfield
Ashleigh Buhai leads by five – photo R&A via Getty Images
Australians Stephanie Kyriacou and Minjee Lee may be just four shots out of second place at the AIG Women’s Open Championship at Muirfield, but the problem they and the rest of the elite field face is that the leader, Ashleigh Buhai has opened up a five shot lead over second placed Hinako Shibuno and In Gee Chun, and if they have any hopes a contending for the title in tomorrow’s final round they will need a likely record breaking final round a lot of help from Buhai.
After a relatively slow start on Thursday, South Africa’s Buhai added best of the day rounds of 65 on Friday and a 64 today to storm into a five shot lead and it appears a first major title for the former childhood prodigy is now hers to win or lose.
Formerly Ashleigh Simon, the now 33-year-old, was the youngest ever person to win the South African Women’s Open at the age of 14 and turned professional at 18 but while her 15 years in the professional ranks have been rewarding enough they have perhaps not met the hype surrounding her amateur career.
Tomorrow, she has the chance to change all of that by winning one of female golf’s major titles as her first LPGA Tour success and given that she has recorded only one top ten in more then forty starts in major championships, Sunday is looming as the greatest day in Buhai’s golfing life.
Such anticipation of course only adds pressure to the task at hand but the manner in which she has played her last 36 holes suggests she is up to the task but how she handles the expectation will be fascinating to watch.
Sydney’s Kyriacou is an LPGA Tour rookie in 2022 and while she has recorded just one top ten to date, she is a proven winner while playing the Ladies European Tour. Today, Kyriacou birdied three of her first five holes and at that point was breathing down the neck of the leaders.
She would though drop shots at the 7th, 8th and 14th holes before a birdie at the 17th saw her finish with a round of 70 and tied in 6th place with Minjee Lee.
“Well, I started pretty good actually,” said Kyriacou. “I was like 3-under through five and I made a couple soft bogeys which kind of killed the momentum.
“But I mean, I didn’t make too many mistakes, and the back nine I find harder. So I just didn’t give myself many close chances and had to scramble a bit more and just made a birdie on 17 and 1-under, pretty basic golf. Nothing too interesting.
“I will definitely be more aggressive (tomorrow). I’m a few shots back. I mean, it’s not impossible but it’s going to be harder. I think the only way to win is to be aggressive. You don’t come here to come second place.”
Lee also recorded a round of 70 and like Kyriacou she began well with two early birdies but her final nine was played in 1 over par and she has a big task tomorrow if she is to add this title to the US equivalent won a few weeks ago.
“I started off pretty good,” said Lee. “I had two birdies on the front nine, and then were a few too many bunkers. Made a few bogeys coming in, but had two birdies on the back as well, so finished 1-under.
“It was really windy out there, so I feel like I probably could have had a little bit — a little lower score but considering where I hit it, I think I’m happy with where I’m at.
“Yeah, I think I’m going to have to shoot a really low score (tomorrow) and hope for her (Ash) to come back a little bit. Yeah, that’s pretty much what I want to do, just play my game and try to make as many birdies as I can.”
Hannah Green began round three as the leading Australian but after bogeys at her opening two holes, she would eventually record a 3 over 74 and at 2 under, she tied with Lydia Ko and others in 19th place.
SCORES
Australians well placed at AIG Women’s Open Championship
Hannah Green – file photo LPGA Getty
Australians find themselves well placed at the AIG Women’s Open Championship at Muirfield, three of them inside the top ten as the event heads into the weekend at the famed Scottish layout.
West Australian, Hannah Green, leads the way amongst them, having put together a second round 0f 66 which included a late rush of four birdies in her last five holes to finish the 36 holes at 5 under in a share of 5th place and three shots behind the leader, In Gee Chun.
Sydney’s Stephanie Kyriacou and Perth’s Minjee Lee are another shot back in a share of 7th place at 4 under.
New Zealand’s Lydia Ko and Perth’s Whitney Hillier are at 1 under and tied for 26th, Hillier making her the cut for the first occasion in now six attempts in the event.
Describing just how she is coping with Muirfield Green responded; “It’s been tough. Definitely glad I played last week at Dundonald, at least get used to some links golf. I’ve heard a lot of wind is going to come this weekend. I feel like it’s been pretty tame so far so we’ll see what happens.
“I enjoy this style of golf environment – it’s so different to what we get everywhere else in the world, so to spice it up and do something different, I really like it.”
When asked how she feels about being in contention for a second major as she heads into day three Green would say; “Yeah, I feel like I’ve been playing a lot more consistent this year. It’s about trying to contend as much as possible in majors and hopefully get my name on the trophy again.
“It’s nice to see the progress that I’ve made in the preseason reflecting on the golf course. It was nice to actually go home before Evian as well and get a little bit of a break mentally. So I’m really excited for the back end of this year.”
Green already has a major title to her name having won the 2019 KPMG Championship so she is no stranger to what she will likely face over the weekend.
Lee struggled to build momentum throughout her round but the issue was really on the greens rather then getting to them.
“I gave myself quite a few birdie opportunities when I hit some good shots in, and then had plenty of putts, like 25 feet for birdie as well. I played really smart out there,” said the current US Women’s Open Champion. “I couldn’t quite capitalise on my birdie opportunities, so hopefully they will all drop tomorrow.”
Minjee Lee – in action today – photo R&A Getty Images
Kyriacou is in her first LPGA Tour season and although still finding her feet at this level, is considered to be a star of the future having won twice on the Ladies European Tour before her move to the US this year. A 10th place at the recent KPMG PGA Championship highlights her ability.
The leader, In Gee Chun is chasing a 4th major championship following her victories at the 2015 US Women’s Open, the 2016 Evian Championship and this year’s KPMG PGA Championship.
As was the case at the KPMG Championship, Australian Dean Herden is caddying for her and it has been a game the pair played that has assisted her in keeping focused on the job this week.
“So before I start tournament, my caddie, Dean, and I talk about the course. And after that, we had a little bit of betting, our game. If I make the bogey-free round, he said he’s going to buy dinner and pay me like $100 for each day if I can make it.
“So before I start round, I always like setting another goal to make bogey-free round. I think that mindset was help a lot on the course. But I hit two bogeys last day, last two days. But I want to keep trying to make bogey-free round next two days.”
Chun played with Jessica Korda over the opening two rounds and was buoyed by comments on her game and swing made by the American.
“During the round, Jessica said she love to hear my sound from my swing, is what she said. And I said sometimes I watch your swing on your Instagram, because when I heard about that mentioned from other players, it make us so happy. It’s always good to play with her. So I had a great time with her.”
SCORES
In Gee Chun – photo R&A via Getty
Sue Wooster misses out in US Senior Women’s Amateur final
Sue Wooster in action in today’s final – photo Steve Gibbons USGA
Victorian golfer Sue Wooster has again missed out on the US Senior Women’s Amateur title after being beaten in today’s final in Anchorage, going down to American Shelley Stouffer 4&3 in the 18 hole final at the Anchorage Golf Club.
It was the third occasion that 60 year old Wooster has made it to the final but as yet she has been unable to claim the trophy.
To even get to the final Wooster was forced to produce a stunning comeback in yesterday’s semi-final against American Christie Blasi, surging back from 3 down on the front nine to win, 3 and 2, to advance to the final for the third time in four years.
The final would turn out to be a one sided affair unfortunately with Stuffer racing to a 5 up lead at the turn and although Wooster dragged one hole back it was a case of too little too late, the match finishing on the 15th green.
Moments after Wooster missed an 8-foot birdie putt at what would be their final hole, Stouffer calmly rolled in a 3-footer for par to end the match. She raised her arms in celebration and hugged her 15-year-old son, Brett, who caddied for her throughout the championship in Alaska.
“I’m so proud of myself for making three finals in four years,” said Wooster. “I’m not going to give up on winning this trophy one day. It didn’t happen today, but things happen in funny ways. I think my day will come.”
Minjee Lee starts well at Murifield
Minjee Lee – file photo LPGA / Getty Images
Minjee Lee has made a strong start in her quest to add the Women’s British Open to her US Women’s Open title in 2022 with an opening round of 68 at Muirfield in Scotland and finds herself in a share of 5th place and three shots from the leader, Hinako Shibuno of Japan.
Lee took a while to get warmed up today and it was not until the 12th hole that she was able to move under par for the round. She finished off with two further birdies for her afternoon round. Tomorrow she will have the benefit of an early tee time (7.58).
“I made really quite a few good up-and-downs on the back nine and to be 3-under the back nine, I think is quite good considering like 14 and 15, they play really tough.
“You know, I feel like the wind got up — it was pretty similar to yesterday when I played in the Pro-Am, so I think kind of the — I got a little used to the conditions while I was out there yesterday.”
LPGA Tour rookie, Stephanie Kyriacou, from Sydney, did best of the other Australasians in the field with a round of 70 to be tied for 13th while Hannah Green and Lydia Ko had rounds of even par 71, Whitney Hillier 72 and Su Oh 77.
Hinako Shibuno in action today – photo R&A via Getty Images
Shibuno, the 2019 champion in this event, birdied her opening three holes today and would go on to record a total of eight birdies in her round of 65 as she looks to add a second consecutive win on the LPGA Tour for Japan following her countrywoman, Ayaka Furue’s success in the Scottish Open last week.
Shibuno leads by one over Jessica Korda, who, despite significant success on the LPGA Tour, is yet to record a victory in a major.
SCORES
Australian golf’s unsung hero, Sue Wooster, at it again
Sue Wooster in action today – photo Steve Gibbons USGA
The remarkable run of Victorian golfer, Sue Wooster, continued today when she reached the quarter-finals of the US Senior Amateur Championship in Anchorage in Alaska.
In June, Wooster, from the National Golf Club on the Mornington Peninsula, won the European Senior Women’s Championship to go with her many other Senior Amateur titles worldwide and she has now earned the right to play Idaho golfer, Terri Frohnmayer in tomorrow’s quarter-final.
60 year old Wooster qualified in 9th place in the 36 hole strokeplay on Monday and Frohnmayer six shots worse in 32nd position. Frohnmayer, though, was the 2011 US Senior Amateur Champion.
Wooster comfortably won her opening two match play encounters before taking on 8th qualifier Suzi Spotleson of Ohio today who she defeated in impressive fashion by a 5&4 margin.
Wooster has not trailed through three matches and did not lose a hole against Spotleson.
Wooster was runner-up in both the 2018 and 2019 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateurs and has made the match play stage in all nine U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur appearances.
In 2018, she won the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur, the Canadian Women’s Amateur, the Australian Senior Women’s Amateur and the North & South Senior Women’s Amateur.
SCORES
Min Jee Lee and Lydia Ko provide Australasian hope at Muirfield
Minjee Lee at her media conference today – photo R&A via Getty Images
The fifth and final major of the season for women’s golf, the US$6.8 million AIG Women’s Open, begins on Thursday at the famed Muirfield in Gullane in East Lothian to the north and east of Edinburgh.
Typically, the event has been rotated around most of Britain’s great courses in the last 45 years but more especially in the last twenty years with most of the Open Championship’s venues being used.
A notable absentee from that list has been Muirfield and in 2022 it gets its chance to expose its great layout to the elite of the female game.
Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist arrives as the defending champion following her narrow one-shot victory at Carnoustie last year.
From an Australasian perspective, however, the genuine chances of success appear to lie with Minjee Lee, Lydia Ko and Hannah Green although Ko and Lee are in the best recent form, Ko in particular, producing six top five finishes in her last eight LPGA Tour starts.
Lee on the other hand is the current US Women’s Open Champion and two starts later finished runner-up in the following major at the KPMG PGA Championship.
She can be forgiven for two finishes below that level in her last two attempts at the Evian Championship and the Women’s Scottish Open but Lee remains as the leader of the LPGA Tour’s Race to the Globe in 2022 and is the world number two behind Jin Young Ko.
Lee has recorded top 5 finishes in each of the last two starts in this particular event, her last round of 66 at Carnoustie last year the best of the day so her chances of adding a third major championship to her resume appear good.
Referring to her 18th place finish last week at the Scottish Open, Lee suggested she was transitioning to links style golf again after her time in Asia, the US and France to date this season
“I think just getting into the rhythm of playing on links-style courses. It wasn’t quite that windy at Dundonald, so I’m not sure how windy it’s going to be here. But I feel like Muirfield is maybe a little bit more traditional like links golf.
“I live in Dallas and it’s really windy and I grew up in Perth, which is also very windy. So I think just playing — I think playing in the wind, you just subconsciously kind of know how to spin the ball properly in the wind and also keeping it through the wind, like how it’s going to affect it, I think I know what it’s sort of going to do. So I think that’s what makes you sort of a better wind player.”
When asked if winning the Women’s British open would mean a lot to her Lee responded; “It’s the British Open. I really love playing at links golf courses.
“It’s just — I just really love like the hard conditions that we get and just how much creativity we have to sort of — we sort of have to think about around these types of courses. It could be really cool and it would be a great honour to be able to win the British.”
Ko, on the other hand, while playing some fine golf at present, does not enjoy a great record in this event for one of her standing. In ten starts at the Women’s British Open Ko has recorded just one top ten, that coming in 2015 when 3rd behind Inbee Park.
Both Ko and Lee are facing the prospect of a third major championship, Lee with her two in the last twelve months and Ko earning her two in her first over an eight month period in 2015 and 2016.
Ko indicated last week following her 5th place at the Women’s Scottish Open that while her record at the Women’s British Open is not as she would like playing Muirfield was an exciting prospect.
“I haven’t had the greatest I think track record at The Open, said the New Zealander. “So I’m excited for Muirfield. Obviously it’s the first time that the women’s championship is there, so it’s a pretty historic venue and historic championship.
“I’m excited. I’ve heard a lot of great things about it. Seen it on TV. So I’m excited to go play. It’s going to be pretty different to here even though they are both links. So just enjoy it and see what happens at the end of next week.”
Hannah Green, Stephanie Kyriacou, Su Oh and Whitney Hillier are the other Australasians in the field.
Green has played the event on four occasions for a best of 16th, Kyriacou twice for an impressive best of 13th last year, Oh on eight occasions for a best of 15th and Hiller is playing the event for the sixth occasion but has yet to make the weekend in any.
Henrik Stenson’s instant success in LIV Golf
Henrik Stenson wins at his first attempt at LIV Golf – Liv Golf
Henrik Stenson has just experienced the most bizarre ten day period in his life.
From being dropped from the Ryder Cup captaincy dues to his sign on with LIV Golf, to winning his biggest cheque in the game, Stenson’s decision to sign on with LIV was perhaps made considerably more palatable for him when he took out the US$4,000,000 winner’s cheque at the third event of the LIV Series in Bedminster in New Jersey. He added to that with another US$375,000 for his share of second place in the team’s event.
“Yeah, it has been a bit of a roller coaster, no question,” said Stenson. “You all seen that, and we talked about it earlier in the week.
“Now it’s about looking forward, for me at least, and yeah, I’m super proud with the focus I managed to have this week and to get my game in — I’ve been working pretty hard to get the game back in shape, and it’s certainly going in the right direction as we know now.
“Yeah, just thankful to the team that I work with and all the supportive from everyone. Yeah, super proud really to come out and grind it out like I did over the last three days and to sit here as the winner.
“I think there might have been a little bit of extra motivation in there this week. When we as players have that, I think we can bring out the good stuff. Yeah, I certainly did that this week.
“I guess that’s been a bit of a theme over the course of my career, I think, when I really want something I manage to dig a little bit deeper, and a lot of times we manage to make it happen.
“Yeah, very pleased with that, and I’m looking forward to some rest now.”
Stenson won by two over Matthew Wolff and Dustin Johnson, Wolff’s final round of 64 the best of the day.
Of the Australians, Matt Jones earns US$200,000 for sharing 19th, Travis Smyth US172,000 for his share of 22nd, Wade Ormsby US$124,000 for 46th and Jed Morgan US$120 for finishing in last place.
SCORES
Japan unearths another star as Ko finishes 5th in Scotland
A stunning final round of 62 earned rookie Ayaka Furue her first LPGA Tour win – photo Mark Runnacles LPGA
Lydia Ko has recorded her 6th top five LPGA Tour finish in her last eight starts with a share of 5th place at the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open at Dunbarnie Links.
Ko was unable to capitalise fully on the lead she held through both 36 and 54 holes and fell victim to a stunning late challenge by Japanese LPGA Tour rookie, Ayaka Furue, who began the final round four shots adrift of Ko and eventually finished five shots ahead of the New Zealander.
Ko was frustrated by the lack of progress especially after her brilliant start to the week but with the final major of the year for women’s golf, the AIG Women’s Open, just a few days away at Muirfield then there is a lot to be excited about as she chases a third major title.
“I feel like I wasn’t able to get things going over this weekend,” said Ko. “Never really got off to like a good momentum.
“Overall I played really solid. Even the last couple days, hit a couple not-so-good shots, but other than that, it was — I feel like there were a lot of good things, and like I said, sometimes when you get in a good rhythm of things, you’re able to keep it going.
“But I just was never on that train on this weekend but hopefully this is a good momentum for next week.
“I haven’t had the greatest I think track record at The Open. So I’m excited for Muirfield. Obviously, it’s the first time that the women’s championship is there, so it’s a pretty historic venue and historic championship.
I’m excited. I’ve heard a lot of great things about it. Seen it on TV. So I’m excited to go play. It’s going to be pretty different to here even though they are both links. So just enjoy it, and see what happens at the end of next week.”
Lydia Ko during her final round – photo Mark Runnacles Getty
The winner Furue won her first LPGA Tour title after graduating through the LPGA Tour Q Series last year. A prolific winner of seven titles on the JLPGA Tour, she has already been runner-up in one event earlier this season and at the age of just 22, Japan appears to have un-earthed yet another star.
Her round of 62 in one of her very early appearances on a links layout highlighted just how good she could become.
“I’m very happy. I was four shots back,” said Furue. “I thought it would be difficult to catch the top, good players. But I’m very happy I played good golf and I was able to come out as a winner.”
When asked how she managed to cope with such a foreign golf course she replied. “I didn’t change anything other than with my ball. I concentrated on how to play the wind.
“My caddie was very helpful. He gave myself a lot of good advice. He was very helpful with after it landed, how much it would roll. He calculated that very well and helped me out with wind direction and how the wind affects play.”
Furue won by three over Frenchwoman Celine Boutier with another shot back to Cheyenne Knight and Hyo Joo Kim.
of the Australians Minjee Lee was 15th and Hannah Green 34th.
SCORES