South Korea’s Amy Yang claimed the biggest victory of her career , outdueling Japan’s Nasa Hataoka down the stretch to win the LPGA Tour Championship in Florida.
The 34-year-old Florida-based Yang carded a six-under-par 66 to complete a three-shot victory at the Tiburon Golf Club in Naples and earn the $2 million first prize. “I still can’t believe I did it,” said Yang, whose four prior LPGA titles all came in Asia.
Hataoka had been at the top of the leaderboard since the opening round, and went into Sunday’s sharing the lead alongside Yang after shooting a seven-under-par 65.
But after going through the first 54 holes of the tournament without shooting a single bogey, Hataoka finally blinked when it mattered most in Sunday’s tense back nine shootout with Yang.
Hataoka missed her birdie putt from off the green, giving Yang three putts from eight feet to seal victory.
World number one Lilia Vu finished six shots off the lead on 21 under for the tournament after a seven-under-par final round, with Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul in fifth on 20 under after finishing with a six-under-par 66.
