Cool, calm Ji collects her fifth Tour title
Golfer Eun-Hee friends affectionately her Mickey Mouse.
The native of South Korea certainly looked right at home Sunday in Orlando on her way to winning the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions.
While some of the biggest names in the women’s game faded away amid blustery conditions at Tranquilo Golf Course, the unflappable Ji maintained her composure and silky smooth golf swing following a shaky start to earn a two-shot victory over Mirim Lee.
Ji carded a final-round 1-under-par 70 to finish with a 14-under 270 total. Ji’s fifth victory on the LPGA Tour earned her $180,000 and a return trip to the Tournament of Champions.
“It was really, really fun,” the cheerful 32-year-old said. “I love this tournament. Actually, with celebrities, they’re really funny and it makes me laugh every hole.
“It was just fun.”
Ji and 25 other winners from the past two years on Tour teed it up for four days with a host of star athletes and celebrities.
Ji played Sunday with LPGA star Lydia Ko and Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz. Playing the Modified Stableford scoring format, the Atlanta Braves’ legend overcame some shaky shots and nerves to win his side of the bracket by three points over Mark Mulder, picking up $100,000.
“It was a grind,” Smoltz said. “I’ve learned a lot. This feels good.”
Ji was all smiles, too, after beginning the final day of the LPGA’s seasonopening event tied for the lead with Ko, who had shown the form that made her at age 17 the youngest player to reach No. 1 in the world.
With winds gusting to 25 mph, the par-71 Tranquilo Golf Course layout played every inch of its 6,654 yards.
Ji promptly paid the price. She bogeyed her first two holes but quickly settled Ji’s call down with consecutive birdies, beginning with a chip-in on the par-3 third hole.
“I was like, ‘OK, wait a minute. I need to play this,’ ” Ji said of her tough start. “But I have 16 holes and just trusted my swing after that.”
Ji still would bogey the par-4 sixth hole to reach the turn at 12-under to remain tied with Ko atop the leaderboard.
Ji then slowly pull away.
Ko started the day with seven straight pars until a bogey at the par-4 8th hole. Things would get only worse for the 21-year-old New Zealander who now calls Orlando home.
Ko’s chances effectively ended when she pulled her tee shot on the par-5 13th hole into heavy vegetation and could not locate her ball. Ko eventually reached the green with her fourth shot but then three-putted for a double-bogey 7.
Ji seized her opening, hitting her 89-yard third shot to inside 5 feet to set up a birdie for a three-shot swing on Ko and a threeshot lead on the entire field.
Ko missed another short putt a hole later, this time for bogey. By the time she hooked her tee shot into the water on the daunting par-3 18th hole, the wheels had come off for Ko. She finished with a 6-over 42 on the back nine on her way to a final-day 77 after rounds of 66-68-66 during the first three rounds.
“Hey, it just wasn’t my day,” Ko said “A lot of good things to take from this week. I was invited to play this event prior to this year, and I feel bad I didn’t play because it was so much fun.”
Ko was not the only player who had a bad day.
Canadian Brooke Henderson, the 18- and 36-hole began to leader, entered Sunday one shot behind Ji and Ko but never found her rhythm on her way to a 4-over 75.
Current world No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn had a rough two days. She followed consecutive 67s to get into contention Friday with consecutive 75s on the weekend to finish the week even par, 14 shots behind the winner.
Ji’s victory gave her wins in three straight seasons and made her the oldest South Korean women’s winner since Hall of Famer Se Ri Pak’s final victory, in 2010.
Sunday’s victory also continued Ji’s rise following a winless stretch of eight years. The drought followed Ji’s victory at the 2009 Women’s U.S. Open and a subsequent swing change that left her searching for her game.
“After that, I struggled with my swing, I was nervous all the time,” Ji said.
Those days are long behind Ji now.
Meanwhile, Smoltz hopes his breakthrough win is just the beginning for the 51-year-old who has traded his fast ball for the long ball off the tee.
When he is not working as an analyst for MLB Network, Smoltz is working on his golf game. Last year, he even qualified for the U.S. Senior Open but carded a humbling 85 during the opening round.
This time, Smoltz was able to keep his game together despite the difficult conditions and internal pressure.
“I learned a lot from just my past year of qualifying for the Senior Open,” he said. “That, to me, has prepared me to kind of grind out a game. I’m not even close to where I want to be, but I’m getting closer.”