03 Nov 2019 | Professional golf |
Minjee Lee's near miss in Taiwan playoff
by Martin Blake
Australia’s Minjee Lee lost a playoff to Nelly Korda at the LPGA Tour’s Swinging Skirts tournament in Taiwan today.
It left the Perth 23-year-old with a fourth second place finish for the season to go with her win in Los Angeles.
It was a case of so near but so far as Lee birdied the last hole of regulation to reach the playoff alongside Korda, the defending champion, and Germany’s Caroline Masson.
At the first hole of the playoff, long-hitting Korda reached the green of the par-five 18th hole in two, while Lee laid up short and could only make par. Korda won it with her two-putt birdie, defending the title she won in Taiwan last year to open her winning LPGA account.
Korda had to win the title several times on one day. Starting out with a three-shot lead, she was overtaken by Masson when she faltered on the back nine with three bogeys, ultimately shooting a 72 against Masson’s 68 and Lee’s closing 69.
Korda, incidentally, is the reigning ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open champion.
It was a good weekend for Australians, with Su Oh finished inside the top 10 in Taiwan, and Adam Scott closing strongly in the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai to finish tied-11th.
Rory McIlroy beat Xander Schauffele in a playoff to win that title.
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