Tseng Wins Again at HONDA Thailand

Yani Tseng winner of 2011 HONDA LPGA Thailand

Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Tseng shot 6-under-par 66 on Sunday to win the season-opening Honda LPGA Thailand by five shots over Michelle Wie. 

The 22-year-old began her 2011 season with victories on the Ladies European Tour (LET) at the Australian Open and Australian Ladies Masters in consecutive weeks prior to this week’s LPGA season opener. She is projected to retain the No. 1 spot in women’s professional golf entering next week’s HSBC Women’s Champions. Tseng has now teed it up four times in 2011, including a small professional event in Taiwan, with four victories.

The overnight leader, Tseng kept herself in contention with six birdies in her first 13 holes before her first-and-only blemish of the day at 14, where she made bogey. She rebounded with a birdie at 15 and never looked back, claiming her sixth-career LPGA Tour victory at 15-under-par 273. 

With the win, Tseng earns $217,500 and an early lead on the LPGA Official Money List and Rolex Player of the Year race.

"I just tried my best and I know I had lots of confidence, but with all the great golfers out here, you never know until the last putt drops in. I really enjoyed the tournament this week." Tseng said afterwards.

Yani Tseng, Michelle Wie and Karrie Webb punched their “Ticket to Titleholders” at the Honda LPGA Thailand. 

By virtue of their top-three finishes, Tseng, Wie and Webb each earned a spot in the season-ending Titleholders event, to be held November 17th - 20th, 2011 at Grand Cypress Golf Club in Orlando, Florida. 

The inaugural Titleholders, a season finale with a field made up of three qualifiers from every official LPGA Tour tournament, is a format never previously used in professional golf. Despite tying with I.K. Kim for third place, Webb qualifies with a lower final round score.

Michelle Wie earned runner-up honors at 10-under-par 278 on Sunday. The long-hitting Hawaiian shot 2-under-par 70 playing alongside winner Yani Tseng in the day’s final group. Wie, a two-time LPGA winner, banks $140,360 with the second-place finish.

Tseng is going to Canyon Ranch. With her victory at the 2011 Honda LPGA Thailand, Yani Tseng 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.

In-Kyung Kim was in contention until the 17th hole where she carded a quintuple-bogey 9. She finished the week in a tie for third with Karrie Webb after tying the tournament-record on Thursday with a 9-under-par 63

Defending champion Ai Miyazato tied for 29th at 4-over-par 292, 25 shots worse than last year

15-year-old Thai amateur Ariya Juntanugarn tied for eighth at 3-under-par 285.

Karen Stupples of England finished in a share of 29th place overall after a level par final round 72 to end the tournament on 4 over par.

HONDA LPGA Thailand Results

Tseng Leads Honda LPGA Thailand

Yani Tseng

Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Tseng leads entering the final round of the Honda LPGA Thailand after the 2010 Rolex Player of the Year eagled the par-5 18th hole on Saturday to take a one-shot lead at 9-under-par 207 over first- and second-round leader I.K. Kim and Michelle Wie. 

Tseng is in search of a win for the third-consecutive week following victories on the Ladies European Tour in Australia each of the last two Sundays. The Taiwan native and Orlando resident has five-career LPGA victories, including three major championships, and is quickly approaching the $5 million mark in career earnings. Tseng carded five birdies, three bogies, one double bogey and the 18th hole eagle for a round of 2-under-par 70.

Some of the LPGA’s top names are in pursuit of Tseng for the season-opening title. Michelle Wie, seeking her third LPGA title in three years, and three-time winner I.K. Kim are tied for second at 8-under-par 208. Each closed Saturday’s second round with back-to-back birdies to put the pressure on Tseng come Sunday. Reigning U.S. Women’s Open champion Paula Creamer birdied three of her final five holes to sneak into solo fourth. 

Creamer, who would cross the $8 million mark in career earnings with a win tomorrow, is in search of her 10th LPGA victory and redemption for a withdrawal from the 2010 Honda LPGA Thailand due to a thumb injury. 

Not to be forgotten is LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member Karrie Webb, who turned in a 4-under-par 68 on Saturday to move into fifth at 6-under-par 210. Webb, a 36-time winner Tour winner, is second all-time in LPGA history with more than $15.7 million earned.

15-year-old Thai amateur Ariya Jutanugarn turned in the round of the day with a 4-under-par 67 and sits in a tie for 11th

LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member Juli Inkster held the third-round lead after birdies at holes one and three, but shot 2-over-par 74 and is tied for seventh.

14 players are within six shots (the number Ai Miyazato trailed entering last year’s final round) of the lead and three players – Tseng, Wie and Creamer – have broken par each round.

Karen Stupples of England finished with a 77 on Saturday after a double bogey on the par four 13th adding to three more dropped shots to slip back down the field.   

Kim Holds Lead in LPGA Thailand

In-Kyung Kim 

In-Kyung Kim maintained her lead following a 1-over-par 73 on Friday at the Honda LPGA Thailand although the 22-year-old struggled early with bogies at holes two, three, six and nine, turning in 39 thanks to a birdie at the par-3 fourth. 

Kim managed three birdies on the back nine with a bogey at 15 to shoot 73 and drop to 8-under-par 136, one shot ahead of Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Tseng (69-68=137, -7) and Michelle Wie (69-68=137, -7). 

Kim, who noted that the Thailand heat and humidity may have gotten the best of her on Friday, will tee off in the final group alongside Wie tomorrow afternoon. 

A native of South Korea and resident of San Diego, Kim has victories in each of her last three years on Tour, including the 2010 Lorena Ochoa Invitational Presented by Banamex and Corona Light, where she pledged to donate her entire winner’s paycheck to charity.

Star-studded leader board includes Wie, Tseng, Creamer, Inkster and company. Newly crowned Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Tseng leads a cast of characters chasing I.K. Kim for the season-opening title at the Honda LPGA Thailand. Tseng, a back-to-back winner on the Ladies European Tour entering this week, shot 1-under-par 71 on Saturday to move into a tie with Michelle Wie. 

The Hawaiian tied the best round of the day (Anna Nordqvist, Karrie Webb) with a 4-under-par 68. LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member Juli Inkster is tied with reigning U.S. Women’s Open champion Paula Creamer, Rolex Rankings No. 5 Na Yeon Choi and Japan’s Momoko Ueda at 5-under-par 139.

Defending champion Ai Miyazato shot 3-under-par 69 on Friday to move into a tie for 25th at even-par 144.

For the second consecutive day, preferred lies were in place due to soggy conditions following an early week rainstorm.

LPGA member Pornanong Phatlum leads all Thai players at 4-under-par 140… Friday’s scoring average (72.366) was nearly identical to Thursday (72.365)

Michelle Wie, who is seeking her third LPGA win, has never won in the United States.

Karen Stupples of England slipped to eighteenth place on Friday following a round of 73.

LPGA Thailand Leader Board

Top Class Field at Honda Thailand

Paula Creamer

All roads will lead to Thailand this week as the top 50 lady professional golfers from the LPGA money list including Paula Creamer, Michelle Wie, Tseng Yani, Shin Jiyai, Choi Na Yeon, and the defending champion Ai Miyazato, plus all five LPGA’s “Best of 2010” play the Honda LPGA Thailand 2011 at Siam Country Club Pattaya Old Course alongside with four Thai golfers, Pornanong Phatlum, Ariya Juthanugarn, and two winners from Honda qualifying tournament. 

Honda Automobile, BBTV Channel 7 and IMG are proud to announce the development of the fifth edition of Honda LPGA Thailand, one of the premier ladies professional golf tournaments in the region. The tournament featuring a 60-player field comprising of the top 50 players on the LPGA Money list and 10 sponsors' invites competing in a 72-hole stroke play with no cut for the purse prize of US$ 1.45 million. 

Atsushi Fujimoto, President of Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co. Ltd., revealed, “We can expect a thrilling and exciting play with highly-respected players such as Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr and Michelle Wie from the USA, world’s No. 1 Jiyai Shin and last year LPGA’s money winner Na Yeon Choi from South Korea, and defending champion Ai Miyazato from Japan who have all confirmed to play Honda LPGA Thailand.”

This tournament also gives young Thai golfers an opportunity to play with world-class players and raise their standard of golf. This year, four Thais have been invited by Honda to compete in the tournament. Among the Thais selected are Pornanong Phatlum, the only Thai professional player who made the final round of the LPGA qualifying tournament in Daytona Beach, Florida, held last December, and Ariya Jutanugarn, currently Thailand’s best female amateur player. Jutanugarn first took part in the Honda LPGA Thailand when she was only 11 years old, is making her third appearance in the tournament as a sponsor invite,” Mr. Fujimoto added.

To spice up the competition, a Honda Accord 2.0 EL worth 1,280,000 baht will be awarded to the first pro who makes a hole-in-one on the Par-3, 16th Hole. 

www.hondalpgathailand2011.com