Haeran Ryu opened the Women’s PGA Championship with a 73, tied for 70th and 10 shots behind. Four days later she was holding the trophy on the 18th green at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Minnesota.
The 25-year-old South Korean closed with a two-under 70 to finish at 13 under par and win by two strokes. It is her first major and her fourth LPGA Tour victory. No player in 62 years had won this championship after trailing by 10 shots following round one.
The winner’s cheque was US$1.95 million (A$2.83 million), the biggest payday in women’s golf history.
A new putter, then a 64
Ryu struggled on the greens in that opening round and went back to a familiar Scotty Cameron putter. The switch worked at once. She shot 64 on Friday, her low round of the week, and a 68 on Saturday, and reeled in runaway first-round leader Ina Yoon.
Yoon, 23, had opened with a bogey-free 63, tying the championship record for the lowest round and setting a new course record at Hazeltine. She still led by five shots going into the weekend, but shot 70 on Sunday and finished alone in second at 11 under, the best result of her LPGA career.
Sunday
A weather delay of three and a half hours and tough winds tested everyone. Four players held at least a share of the lead at some point.
Ryu made three bogeys in her first five holes, and Canada’s Brooke Henderson briefly took the outright lead. Then Ryu holed long putts on the ninth, 10th and 12th and made four birdies in a mid-round stretch that put her back in charge. With a three-shot lead late, she parked it, tapping in for par on 18 before a champagne shower from fellow players.
Henderson shot 72 and tied for third at 10 under with Dewi Weber of the Netherlands, who had a 70. Americans Allisen Corpuz, Auston Kim and Alison Lee tied for fifth, six strokes back.
World No. 1 Nelly Korda shot 73 and tied for eighth at six under, falling short of becoming the third woman to win the first three majors of a season. Australia’s Karis Davidson began the day five shots back, shot 73 and finished at five under, a career-best tie for 12th. Her compatriot Grace Kim tied for 24th, a month before defending her Evian Championship title.
Ryu was playing her first event in six weeks after minor surgery. “It feels like a dream,” she said afterward. “I cannot trust it right now.” She credited her coaches: “just trust your shot and trust your caddie and trust yourself on the golf course.”
Sources
- Korean Ryu completes epic PGA Championship comeback
- Ryu Completes Historic Comeback to Capture KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
