Lee takes first ever LPGA title
Mirim Lee claimed her first ever LPGA Tour victory on Sunday when she beat fellow Korean Inbee Park in the Meijer LPGA Classic.
Lee, Park and Norway’s Suzann Pettersen were tied for the lead at 14 under with three holes to play, but Pettersen bogeyed at the 16th hole to drop a shot behind.
Lee and Park made par on the 17th and 18th holes, to finish the fourth round on a two under 69 and 70 respectively, and tied for first place on 14 under overall, to set up a play-off.
The first extra hole to be played was the 18th and both Lee and Park finished on par with scores four. Park went on to miss a 15-foot birdie putt to par the 17th and second extra hole while Lee birdied the hole to take the title.
The 23-year-old Lee, a rookie on the LPGA Tour, is projected to jump to 29th in the world rankings.
Pettersen finished third after shooting 69 in the final round to finish on 13 under, while a three under 68 saw Japan’s Haru Nomura finish fourth on ten under.
Germany’s Sandra Gal, Denmark’s Line Vedal and Korea’s Amy Yang finished tied for fifth on nine under after shooting 66, 70 and 68 respectively in the final round.
Thailand’s Thidapa Suwannapura hit five birdies and one eagle to score a best-of-the-round 64 and match the Pettersen’s second round score. Suwannapura finished tied for 18th on four under.
The tournament was the first LPGA Tour event in Michigan since 2000 when the Oldsmobile Classic in East Lansing ended its nine-year run.
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