SINGAPORE -- The 2009 season's first Rolex First-Time winner was named Sunday afternoon as Jiyai Shin, a LPGA Tour rookie, won the HSBC Women's Champions - and a $300,000 paycheck - by two strokes over 54-hole leader Katherine Hull (70-69-66-74=279, -9). Shin carded rounds of 72-73-66-66 for an 11-under-par 277 winning total. The 6-under-par 66 matched the career-low and tournament-low round she matched during Saturday's third round.
"Well, actually, this tournament, my goal was top 10," said Shin, who broke a LPGA Tour record in 2008 for most wins by a non-member with three (considered unofficial for her LPGA career). "I make it to the 15th hole, make a birdie. And Katherine, she at number 13, makes double bogey. So I know the score, so I'm more set in my game. Just keep it on the fairway and greens."
She kept it in the fairways, moving up to second place with birdies on her opening holes. Staying at even par on the day and 9-under-par overall until a birdie on the par-3 11th, followed by birdie on 15 around the time Hull was coming off of a double bogey-bogey pair on holes 13 and 14. On hole 13, Hull had to take an unplayable lie off of her drive, then chipped out of a flower bed onto the fairway. She followed up with 7-wood, pitching wedge to 25 feet and two putted for the double bogey, which brought her down to 10-under-par.
"I decided at the start of the week to hit 3-wood off that tee [13] and I did hit driver the other day with the wind and I figured there was enough wind today but I made the wrong choice. I should have hit the 3-wood but I was too greedy and over confident and that's unfortunately golf," said Hull, who earned $182,956 for her runner-up effort. "I am disappointed that I didn't win but Jiyai played well today and well deserved so full credit to her."
With the win, Shin earned 150 valuable points to take the lead in the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year race with 194 points, ahead of Michelle Wie (80 points), Mika Miyazato (67 points), Vicky Hurst (45 points) and Stacy Lewis (30 points).
Shin on the LPGA in 2009
SBS Open at Turtle Bay MC
Honda LPGA Thailand T13
HSBC Women's Champions Win
2009 HSBC Women's Champions by the numbers:
21 - countries represented
17 - of the top-20 players in the field from the Rolex Rankings
491 - total career victories among the 78-player field; 244 are LPGA Tour victories
18 - number of individual winners from the LPGA who are all in the field
$2 million - total purse, with the winner cashing a $300,000 check
Stanford loses a stroke, ties for third. Angela Stanford (69-72-66-73) faced a two-stroke deficit to Katherine Hull (70-69-66-74) entering Sunday's final round of the HSBC Women's Champions and, although she carded a 1-over-par 73, she still finished tied for third at 8-under-par with 2008 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Angela Park (67-76-69-68) and 36-hole co-leader Paula Creamer (67-71-72-70). The performance ($106,010) keeps Stanford atop the 2009 LPGA Official Money List at $322,571 - just over $22,000 ahead of 2009 HSBC Women's Champions winner Jiyai Shin - and is Stanford's ninth top-seven finish in as many consecutive events entered.
Stanford's top-10 run in consecutive tournaments entered.:
2008 Tournament Finish
Bell Micro LPGA Classic Win
Samsung World Championship T3
Longs Drugs Challenge second
Kapalua LPGA Classic T4
Lorena Ochoa Invitational by Banamex and Corona Light Win
ADT Championship sixth
2009 Tournament
SBS Open at Turtle Bay Win
Honda LPGA Thailand T7
HSBC Women's Champions T3
Creamer fastest to $6 million in career earnings. Leading U.S. Solheim Cup Team points' earner Paula Creamer notched her second consecutive third-place finish at the HSBC Women's Champions, cashing a $106,010 paycheck, which makes her the fastest player to earn $6 million in career earnings ($6,039,735) in 4 years, 14 days and 105 events. Creamer (67-71-72-70) tied for third at 8-under-par 280 - one stroke better than her 2008 third-place finish at 7-under-par 281. Creamer has battled illness earlier this week, as well as at the 2008 ADT Championship, where she also tied for third - her 15th top-10 finish of the 2008 season. She also earned a third-place finish at last week's Honda LPGA Thailand.
Kerr, Park cross million-dollar milestones. Eleven-time LPGA Tour winner Cristie Kerr (73-71-70-69=283, -5) tied for 11th at the HSBC Women's Champions and, in the process, crossed the $9 million mark in career earnings. Kerr, who joined the Tour in 1997, earned $36,310 on Sunday and has now accumulated $9,022,566 throughout her career, holding on to the sixth position on the LPGA Career Money List.
The 2007 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Angela Park is off to a strong start in 2009 with her tie for third (67-76-69-68=280, -8), crossing the $2 million mark in career earnings ($2,041,577).
Ochoa ties for sixth. Lorena Ochoa, the 2008 HSBC Women's Champions titleholder, carded an overall 7-under-par 281 (69-73-69-70) this week to finish in a three-way tie for sixth with second-year Tour member Jane Park (67-71-73-70) and four-year Tour member Sun Young Yoo (71-69-68-73). Since winning the HSBC Women's Champions title one year ago, Ochoa has competed in 23 more events, earning six victories and 12 additional top-10 finishes.
Shin earns a stay at Canyon Ranch. With her victory at the HSBC Women's Champions, LPGA Tour rookie Jiyai Shin earned an all-inclusive stay for two at a Canyon Ranch resort. In a combined effort to promote health and overall well-being among Tour players, Canyon Ranch will provide every winner of an LPGA event with one all-inclusive stay at one of Canyon Ranch's two destination resorts.
