13thBeach Links, Feb 9: Hee Young Park emerged victorious at the ISPS Handa Vic Open after winning an all-Korean three-way playoff against Hye Jin Choi and So Yeon Ryu on what was yet another brutal day at the 13th Beach Golf Links, where winds once again gusted in excess of 60 kph.
India’s Diksha Dagar had earlier missed the halfway cut.
The 19-year old Korean star Ayean Cho started the day with a one-shot lead over Swede Madelene Sagstrom, and as players in the leading groups struggled in the tough conditions and slowly dropped out of contention, it was former Australian amateur champion Hye Jin Choi who withstood the conditions, shooting a superb 3-under par round to set the early clubhouse lead at 8-under par.
Former world number 1 So Yeon Ryu looked like she had squandered her chance at victory after a double-bogey at the 14th hole, however the 29-year-old fought back with birdies at 16 and 17, followed by a brave par on the 18th after driving into the penalty area from the tee.
Hee Young Park started the day just three shots off the lead, and the 2-time LPGA Tour winner was another who had an up and down day, mixing 5 bogies with 4 birdies, including a vital one at the 72nd hole to join Ryu and Choi in the playoff.
The three players headed back to the 18th tee for a sudden-death playoff, and after Park missed an eagle putt for victory from three metres, the trio once again headed back to the 18th tee. This time around both Choi and Park made birdies, Ryu had to settle for a par and was eliminated. Third time around Choi bravely holed out from 2 metres to match Park’s birdie and the pair headed to the fourth playoff hole.
Choi drove into trouble in the right rough before hitting her second shot into the penalty area, leaving Park firmly in charge. The celebrations started as Park calmly 2-putted from inside 3 metres to take the title.
Australian Minjee Lee will rue her missed chances today, the 23-year-old was in the hunt to claim her third Vic Open title, however untimely bogies at 16 and 17 ruined the West Australian’s chances of a dream day for the Lee family, with brother Minwoo Lee taking out the men’s events.
The ALPG Tour now heads to Adelaide for next week’s ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open, where 144 players will compete for prize money of US$1.3million.
Min Woo Lee makes history, takes men’s title
Min Woo Lee made history as he stormed to his first European Tour victory at the ISPS Handa Vic Open, on the same golf course where his sister won her first professional title six years ago.
Lee joined his sister Minjee on the roll of honour at 13th Beach Golf Links with a four under par final round of 68, finishing two strokes ahead of New Zealander Ryan Fox on 19 under par. Minjee won the women’s ISPS Handa Vic Open, which has been played concurrently at this venue for the last eight years, as an amateur in 2014.
The 21-year-old, making just his 19th European Tour appearance, started the day three strokes clear of playing partners Marcus Fraser and Travis Smyth and showed no sign of nerves as he birded three of his first four holes, including a chip-in on the first.
The Australian maintained his composure as winds gusted up to 30 miles-per-hour on the Bellarine Peninsula, with ten consecutive pars before his fourth birdie of the day on the 15th hole.
Fox made his charge for a second European Tour victory on the back nine. The Kiwi birdied the 16th hole and carded his second eagle of the day on the 18th for an eight under par round of 64, setting the clubhouse target at 17 under.
Lee dropped to 18 under with a bogey on the 17th, but finished with aplomb as he birdied the 18th for a tournament-record score of 19 under par and a special victory on home soil.
Frenchman Robin Sciot-Siegrist matched Lee’s final round of 68 to finish in a share of third place with Australians Fraser and Smyth on 14 under, while Jake McLeod took sixth place on 12 under.
Sam Horsfield, who was in the first group of the day with Geoff Ogilvy and women’s competitor Peiyun Chen, moved to seventh on 11 under par, alongside fellow European Tour member Sami Valimaki of Finland.
Min Woo said, “I’m pretty proud of the way I played. I thought coming in I had a really good chance because I was hitting it really good, but I think I impressed myself with the game this whole week. Hopefully I’ll have more of these over my whole career.
“I felt really comfortable just because if I did exactly the same as I did yesterday, I felt pretty hard to stop. I started off really hot out the gate and was pretty comfortable those last few holes. I got a bit nervy, but I’m pretty proud of the way I finished.
“I hit one shot at a time. It’s a cliché, but it’s just that. You can’t really worry about anything else. I hit it so well, I’d give myself nine out of ten for ball striking this week. Coming into today I knew I could just stay calm and just hit every shot the same as the last three days. I was pretty calm until, you know, the last hole. I wasn’t nervous, just on my toes a little bit. I thought it’s a par five, straight downwind, the ball’s not going to curve much off the tee – stripe one down and I thought I had it in the bag from there.”
Read also:
Ayean leads, but brother-sister pair Min Woo and Minjee on cusp of history
Diksha has an off-day, misses cut in Australia; Madelene leads in Vic Open
Diksha Dagar opens with one-under 71 in Vic Open, Madalene leads
