Kang caps birthday with second Shanghai crown
SHANGHAI: Danielle Kang capped her 27th birthday with a nailbiting onestroke win at the Buick LPGA Shanghai yesterday, fending off fellow American Jessica Korda for her second victory at the tournament.
Korda was the overnight frontrunner at 15 under, with the defending champion trailing by one in the second edition of the US$2.1 million event.
Both had finished the penultimate day six under par after Kang rallied from twin bogeys on the first two holes.
But a bogey for Korda and a birdie for Kang flipped the lead on the first hole, with the defending champion’s commanding short game keeping her ahead for most of the day.
“It was a really stressful day but I definitely really played well out there,” said Kang, who said she had “never been more nervous” than during her final stroke on the 18th.
Korda’s superior driving drew her level twice, but a narrow miss on the green of the 11th notched her third bogey and she trailed for the rest of the round.
Kang played solidly through the day to finish 16 under for the tournament with two birdies, dodging trouble on the 11th with a masterful recovery from the bunker with her second stroke.
It was Kang’s third professional tournament win after last year’s Shanghai victory and the 2017 Women’s PGA Championship at Olympia Fields in Illinois.
First round leader Nasa Hataoka mounted a determined challenge through the day but was dogged by a rough patch through the back nine on the second day, finishing three strokes off the pace for the tournament.
The Japanese world No.4 tied for third with America’s Kristen Gillman and China’s Yu Liu.