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Evian-les-Bains was named on this sodden Sunday. The spectacular little seaside resort, nestled between Lake Geneva and the foothills of the French Alps, woke up in the rain for the last round of the Evian Championship, nature constituting an additional element of a real championship test brilliantly pbaded by Jin Young Ko.
With this win, the 24-year-old South Korean returns to the top of the Rolex standings and finishes in a series of 10 consecutive wins in the major tournaments. She also has a head start on the Rolex ANNIKA Major Award and the Rolex Player of the Year with her third win of the year. With ANA inspiration in April, Ko is the first big winner in one season since Inbee Park in 2015.
"These are my friends, Hyo Joo and Sung Hyun," said Ko about his comfortable last-lap couple with Hyo Joo Kim and Sung Hyun Park. "Then I thought last night that I could do it. If I play really well, I can win. So I will try to focus on my game. I have never seen other players shoot or score. It's good for me, so I won.
Ko had reached the top of the Rolex rankings after winning the Inspiration ANA contest, but sold it to Sung Hyun Park on June 30th. She could not give it up so quickly this time.
"I I do not know, I do not know, "she said to the question of how she would handle the attention of being # 1 this time around. "I have just tried the same thing as this week. I will find the motivation of my golf on the course. Hope it will be better. "
A bading 20-foot birdie on No. 17 gave Ko a comfortable two-run lead for par-5 18th and she played cautiously for a double that sealed the win.
Jennifer Kupcho may have attracted the attention of Juli Inkster, captain of the Solheim Cup, with a tie for second place with 271 points, Kim and Shanshan Feng, after a bogey win of 66, an effort impressive for a rookie in the last round of a major only doing his eighth LPGA Start by punctuating it with a birdie-birdie finish.
"It's crazy," Kupcho said. "I've played really well this week and it's exciting to see that I can compete where my game is. Excited for the rest of the season. "
The calm she showed on Sunday against significant championship pressure could be considered for one of two captain's choice for the American Solheim Cup team.
"Yeah, that was good." Kupcho said about pressure management. "I was just having fun. Arriving in the day, it was obvious that I was very far back and that it was as if I was going to play well. I play very well in the rain and I do not worry about that. I went out and I played really well.
Ariya Jutanugarn stumbled on the 18thth hole to finish at 273, a shot better than her sister Moriya, who was celebrating her 25thbirthday, and Sung Hyun Park. At 275, Inbee Park and Megan Khang, followed by Carlota Ciganda at 276, In-Kyung Kim and Ally McDonald at 277 and Lizette Salas, Mirim Lee and Mi Jung Hur at 278.
Kim led until the end in the last round until getting a horrible break on par 3 of 187 yards 14th hole when his tee shot plugged into the bunker against the lip. She exploded but the bullet came back and landed in her footprint. The next stroke took her to the periphery and, now troubled, she tried a triple bogey to give Ko the head in two.
"On the tee, I heard a loud noise and I thought I might have had to back off or change the target," said Kim about the shot that & # 39; She shot in the left bunker. "It was a really difficult trick. Many things have not worked today, so it's disappointing. There were a lot of opportunities that came up today and I think I learned a lot today. "
A week that began under a scorching heat of nearly 100 degrees is complete swaddled in waterproof events, the constant being the quality of golf, which matches the exquisite presentation of the tournament. As the game began in a continuous drizzle, Kim suddenly hit Park with four Ko at the back.
At Evian Resort Golf Club, it was a day that explored all elements of the players, testing not only the shot but the preparation, the patience and the ability to adapt on the fly to difficult conditions. The first adjustment was necessary when departure times were pushed back by two hours to prepare the course, which managed all the rain beautifully.
After a preliminary five-hole attempt in which neither Kim nor Ko managed to make a birdie, a frantic mountain race began in the sixth lap. as the lead bounced between one and two shots. Then came the catastrophe on No. 14.
Eventually, it was a tournament won by Ko. She hit the fairways, she hit the greens – he's missing only one every Sunday – and she made putts. It's now at the AIG Women's British Open that Ko has the chance to do something final at Inbee Park in 2013 – winning three major tournaments in one season.
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