Playoff win in Indy puts Park back on top of LPGA world
INDIANAPOLIS — Sung Hyun Park blew one chance to jump back on top of the world Sunday.
The South Korean star made sure it didn’t happen again.
After missing a short birdie putt on the final hole of regulation and leaving the door open for Lizette Salas, Park made a 15-foot birdie putt on the first hole of a playoff to win the Indy Women in Tech Championship and reclaim the No. 1 spot.
“I’m very honoured to be ranked No. 1 and I hope to main- tain that ranking for a long time,” she said through an interpreter after shooting a 3-under 69 for a four-round total of 23-under 265. “I will try my best.”
The 25-year-old South Korean held top spot for one week last November.
If she continues playing like she did this weekend, Park could retain it for quite a while.
She became the second threetime winner on tour this season and now won five LPGA Tour titles over the past two years — including two majors.
And aside from a rare mishit, which led to a double bogey Saturday, Park played the Brickyard Crossing Golf Course almost flawlessly.
She opened with a 68 on Thursday, followed with a 63 on Friday and started in the next-tolast pairing after settling for 66 on Saturday.
Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., surged back up the leaderboard Sunday, matching Park’s 63 to drop into a tie for seventh at 18-under.
Quebec City’s Anne-Catherine Tanguay (69) ended at 11-under, Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (72) at 8-under and Maude-Aimee Leblanc (70) of Sherbrooke, Que., 1-under.
After finishing, Park was whisked away to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s finish line, where she celebrated by kissing the bricks and taking the traditional sip of milk — though she declined to take the milk bath as the event’s inaugural winner, Lexi Thompson, did last year.
“I didn’t expect that tradition, but I was pleased to do it,” Park said.
But she needed some help to reach the winner’s circle. Salas had a two-shot lead after a birdie on the par-4, 13th and seemed perfectly positioned to end her personal victory drought of more than four years — even after Park cut the lead to one with a birdie at No. 14.
Then the tournament that had been full of low scores and light on drama suddenly switched.
Salas, who had missed only three fairways all week, hit drives into the rough on the last two holes of regulation. She dropped into a tie after making bogey at the par-4, 17th and got a reprieve when Park’s birdie putt for the lead on No. 18 slid just to the right of the hole. Salas then hit her approach shot from the deep rough on No. 18 within five feet, giving her a chance to win. But after backing away from the putt, she also missed.