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Kung claims fourth USLPGA title

Candie Kung overcame a late bogey to shoot a 69 in the final round to win the US$1.6 million USLPGA Hana Bank Kolon Championship yesterday.

Kung finished at six-under, one ahead of Australian Katherine Hull, to grab her fourth USLPGA win and first since 2003. Since the tournament began in 2002, the Taiwan-born American is only the second non-Korean champion.

Kung began the day two shots off the leader Kim In-kyung, who was at five-under. But Kung opened with a birdie on the first hole and jumped to the lead with an eagle on the par-five ninth.

She parred the next six holes to stay in front. A birdie on the par-five 16th got her to seven-under but a bogey on the following hole dropped her back to six-under.

But Kung closed out with a par on the 18th and pointed to the eagle, the only one on the ninth during the entire tournament, as the turning point of her day.

“I didn’t think I hit it hard enough,” Kung said. “But it dropped in for an eagle.”

First-round leader Hull recorded four birdies on the back nine to shoot a 69. Playing a group ahead of Kung, Hull only managed a par on the closing hole and failed to put pressure on the eventual champion.

Four golfers finished tied for third at four-under.

Among them, Sophie Gustafson of Sweden reached five-under with a birdie on the 14th but lost a stroke right away on the 15th.

Jang Jeong scored back-to-back birdies on the ninth and 10th to reach five-under but her charge was halted by a bogey on the 13th.

Second-round leader Kim In-kyung committed two bogeys on the front nine to fall out of contention early. She had three more bogeys in shooting a 76.

Karen Stupples, who was one shot off Kim’s lead at the start of the day, had a double bogey on the par-three 12th and shot 75.



■SUZHOU TAIHU LADIES OPEN

AFP, SUZHOU, CHINA

World No. 3 Annika Sorenstam won her 89th career title when she clinched the Suzhou Taihu Ladies Open in a tense play-off with China’s Ye Liying yesterday.

Sorenstam shot a seven-under 65 at the Suzhou Taihu International Golf Club for a three-round total of 13-under 203 to tie with Ye at the end of regulation play.

Both Ye and Sorenstam birdied the first play-off hole but the Swede prevailed at the second play-off hole when Ye missed a close putt.

Tied in third place were Thailand’s Porani Chutichai, Amanda Moltke-Leth of Denmark and Australia’s Karen Lunn.
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