(Photo credit score: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports)
South Korean Hae Ran Ryu shot a 5-under 66 to finish a wire-to-wire win on the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship on Sunday in Rogers, Ark.
Ryu completed the week at Pinnacle Country Club 19-under 194, three pictures higher than Sweden’s Linnea Strom, who had a final-round 64. Tied for third at 15 underneath had been Bianca Pagdanganan of the Philippines (64 on Sunday), Yuna Nishimura of Japan (68) and South Korea’s Sei Young Kim (66) and Jenny Shin (67).
Ryu had received 5 occasions on the LPGA of Korea, however Sunday marked the 22-year-old tour rookie’s first LPGA title.
“Before the season, I wanted to get Rookie of the Year,” Ryu instructed the Golf Channel broadcast. “Now … I’m a winner on the LPGA Tour and I want to get Rookie of the Year, and so now it’s so meaningful.”
After capturing consecutive rounds of 64 to construct a two-stroke lead getting into the ultimate spherical, Ryu had a birdie and two bogeys in her first 5 holes on Sunday.
She steadied herself with 4 straight pars earlier than birdieing Nos. 10 and 12 to maneuver right into a tie for the lead. The massive transfer got here on the par-5 14th, when Ryu practically holed her second shot and had simply 3 ft for eagle.
“First nine hole, I felt so bad,” mentioned Ryu, who added birdies at Nos. 16 and 18. “… But after the ninth hole, I focus (on) my iron distance and I tried more anchoring my swing, and I made so many birdie.”
Strom tallied 5 birdies, one eagle and no bogeys to card her finest rating of the week and cost up the leaderboard. Her second-place end is the most effective results of her LPGA profession.
“I tried not to look at (the leaderboard), but I happened to see — when we were walking from 14 to 15, I happened to see that 14 under was in a good position at that time,” Strom mentioned.
“But then I know there is a few good birdie holes coming in with the tee moved up on 14 and downwind on 18, so I think I just tried to not focus on it and just try to make as many birdies as I could and see what happens.”
Hannah Green of Australia (69) positioned seventh at 14 underneath. Yealimi Noh (66) and Lexi Thompson (66) tied for eighth at 13 underneath.
–Field Level Media