Choi wins at Samsung World Championship

Posted on 21/09/09. Source: LPGA.com (By Staff writer)

LPGA (US) - Samsung World Championship
Venue: Torrey Pines Golf Course; San Diego, CA
Date: 17-20 Sep 2009
Defending Champion: Paula Creamer (US)

South Korean Na Yeon Choi birdied the 72nd hole at the Samsung World Championship to become the sixth Rolex First-Time Winner of the season on Sunday.

Choi's four-day total of 16-under-par 272 (71-67-63-71) was one stroke better than Ai Miyazato (68-68-68-69=273, -15). The 21-year-old banks $250,000 for the victory and moves into ninth on the 2009 LPGA Official Money List with $945,701.

"I can't believe I just won my first tournament," Choi said. "And that putt (on 18) was, I feel like I can't say, I was really nervous and I feel I just turned pro now."

The famed Torrey Pines South Course provided the stunning backdrop for what looked like a sure victory for Choi early in the day. She took a six-stroke lead on Sunday with birdies at holes two and four and an eagle at six, but three consecutive bogies at nine, 10 and 11 dropped her advantage to two shots. Miyazato took the lead after birdies at 12 and 16 and a bogey by Choi at 15, but the 18th hole proved to be the deciding factor. Miyazato hit her second shot into the greenside pond, took a drop and two-putted for bogey. Choi, playing in the last group after entering the final round with a lead for the first time in her career, two-putted for birdie from just in front of the green to seal the victory.

Choi was the runner-up to Yani Tseng in the race for the 2008 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year award. Last season, she recorded then-career-best runner-up finishes at the Sybase Classic Presented by ShopRite and the Evian Masters, where she lost to Helen Alfredsson in a three-hole, sudden-death playoff. Choi was the last person to gain entrance to the elite 20-player field based on her position on the 2009 Official Money List following the Safeway Classic Presented by Pepsi.