An emotional Hannah Green secured the third LPGA Tour victory of her career with a playoff triumph over China’s Xiyu Lin and India’s Aditi Ashok in Los Angeles.
The 26-year-old Green was in tears after she tapped in for par at the second playoff hole to win for the first time since September 2019.
Earlier she had holed a 25-foot birdie putt on the par-3 18th hole to reach the playoff in the JM Eagle LA Championship at Wilshire Country Club.
The Perth star hit a superb 8-iron shot at the first playoff hole (also the par-3 18th) and made the birdie from four feet, but Lin also made birdie to take them back to the 18th tee, while luckless Ashok lipped out for birdie from close range.
Ultimately Green, who shot a closing 69 with just two birdies and no bogeys, was steadier in the clutch, using all the experience of her six years on the tour to find the green and two-putt for par, while Lin made bogey from the front-right bunker.
Both Ashok and Lin were chasing their first LPGA wins but for a player of the calibre of the world-ranked 27 Green, it has been somewhat of a drought as well.
“It’s been a long few years,” said Green. “I played really well last year, but getting across the line has been really difficult, so I’m really proud of myself for hanging in there because I really didn’t think I’d be in it, with how I was playing and making so many pars. I’m obviously really happy but the other emotions are coming out right now.”
Green made 14 straight pars with an ice-cold putter today, despite hitting the ball beautifully. Her first birdie did not come until the 15th hole, and even that was a two-putt at a par-5 where she knocked her second shot on the green. But her par-save from right of the green at the 17th and her birdies at the 72nd and the first playoff hole showed her mettle.
“I knew you didn’t need a low score today to win,” she said. “This weekend it played a lot different to the first couple of days. My caddie said to just stay patient. You always say that but it’s harder said than done. I’m proud of holing that putt on 18 in regulation and obviously the putt on the last couple of holes.”
Fans at the Wilshire Country Club demanded Green perform a ‘shoey’ (as she did when she won the Vic Open and the TPS Murray event in 2022), and she was willing to oblige: “I guess I have to give the fans what they want, right? I wish I had new shoes!”
It was the fourth win in three weekends overseas by Australians; Mark Hensby (PGA Champions), Lucas Herbert (DP World Tour) and Grace Kim (LPGA Tour) have all logged career-changing victories.
Kiwi Steven Alker’s victory in the Champions Tour’s Insperity Championship in Texas was the other Australasian highlight for the weekend.
It was Alker’s first win for 2023 after his incredible four-win season in 2022 on PGA Champions.
David Micheluzzi used his sponsor’s invitation to the DP World Tour’s Korea Championship to log a T25 finish to pick up a cheque as he prepares to join that tour full-time later this year.
In the LIV tour’s Singapore event, Cameron Smith contended for two rounds but treaded water on the final day to finish T6 as Talor Gooch won a playoff against Sergio Garcia to record back-to-back victories.
Veteran Geoff Ogilvy, making another of a few starts on the PGA Tour in the 2022-23 season, played nicely with four solid rounds to finish T39 along with Aaron Baddeley in the Mexico Championship.
Victorian Su Oh rattled home with a closing 63 on the Epson Tour to finish T5 as she looks to recapture the form that made her a regular LPGA Tour player.
Results
PGA Tour
Mexico Championship
1 Tony Finau 65-64-65-66 260 $US1,386,000
T39 Geoff Ogilvy 70-68-69-70 277 $30,415
T39 Aaron Baddeley 70-68-69-70 277 $30,415
T60 Cameron Percy 70-70-71-70 281 $17,940
MC Greg Chalmers 71-71
MC Harrison Endycott 72-71
DP World Tour
Korea Championship
1 Pablo Larrazabal 68-70-71-67 276 (Euro) 308,791
T21 David Micheluzzi 69-70-76- 68 283 18,345
MC Daniel Hillier (NZ) 73-72
MC Wonjoon Lee 71-79
MC Jun-seok Lee 78-74
LPGA Tour
LA Championship
Wilshire Country Club, California
1 xx $US450,000
Hannah Green 68-69-69-69 275 $US
T13 Sarah Kemp 70-68-71-71 280 $46,477
T44 Minjee Lee 65-76-72-72 285 $12,026
T53 Stephanie Kyriacou 71-72-69-74 286 $9,450
MC Grace Kim 71-76
LIV Singapore
Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore
1 Talor Gooch 64-65-67 196 $US 4 million
T6 Cameron Smith 65-66-70 201 $655,000
T16 Marc Leishman 69-68-68 205 $280,000
T16 Jed Morgan 70-67-68 205 $280,000
T30 Matt Jones 70-67-72 209 $175,000
Japan Tour
The Crowns
Nagoya Golf Club
MC Brendan Jones 78-68
DQ Anthony Quayle
PGA Champions
Insperity Championship
The Woodlands, Texas
1 Steve Alker (NZ) 66-69-66 201 $US 405,000
T30 Stuart Appleby 70-75-73 218 $20,340
T33 Richard Green 70-75-74 219 $16,650
T48 Rod Pampling 73-75-74 222 $7,171
T52 Mark Hensby 74-76-73 223 $5,400
T63 John Senden 75-76-75 226 $3,375
Challenge Tour
Abu Dhabi Challenge
Abu Dhabi Golf Club, United Arab Emirates
1 Ricardo Gouveia 71-66-66-66 269 Euro 43,594
43 Maverick Antcliff 69-73-71-71 284 1,416
54 Jordan Zunic 70-74-72-70 286 967
MC Jarryd Felton 73-80
Korn Ferry Tour
Home Grown Lenders Championship
The Ledges, Huntsville Alabama
MC Brett Drewitt 73-68
MC Dimi Papadatos 73-73
WD Rhein Gibson
WD Steven Bowditch
Epson Tour
Copper Rock Championship
Hurricane, Utah
1 Savannah Vilaubi 63-69-69 201 $US34,500
T5 Su Oh 68-72-63 203 $10,047
T14 Robyn Choi 68-72-67 207 $3,507
T24 Hira Naveed 71-69-69 209 $2,411
T45 Gabriela Ruffels 71-72-70 213 $1,234
T50 Amelia Garvey (NZ) 71-73-70 214 $1,060
MC Cassie Porter 75-71
MC Sarah Jane Smith 75-71
STORY: Martin Blake | Australian Golf Media