Monday, November 25, 2013

Ko pleased her first event as a pro is over




NAPLES, Fla. – Lydia Ko breathed a sigh of relief after putting out for a 2-under-par 70 Sunday at the CME Group Titleholders to finish off her first event as a professional.

At 4-under-par 284, Ko was tied for 21st when she signed her scorecard. If the tournament had been over, the 16-year-old would have taken home roughly $16,000 as her first paycheck.

“I didn’t think about money this week, which is great,” Ko said of her pro debut.

Ko wasn’t overly nervous in her debut, but . . .

“I am pretty happy my first week is gone,” she said. “It’s not a week that comes again, so, yeah, I’m glad that it’s over . . . I’m excited it’s over and excited to begin a new year.”

Ko isn’t going straight back to her New Zealand home after CME. She’s going to Orlando. Ko and her mother are scouting potential places to set up an American base. In two weeks, Ko will make her second professional appearance, this time in Taiwan at the Swinging Skirts Invitational. She has plans to play more than golf there. She said she would like to buy a nice Canon camera with her first paycheck, and she’ll look for one in Taiwan.

After Swinging Skirts, Ko plans to return home to Auckland. Her next pro start will be the LPGA season opener at the Pure Silk Bahamas (Jan. 23-26). She also will attend rookie orientation there. From the Bahamas, Ko flies back to New Zealand, where she plans to defend her title at the ISPS Handa New Zealand Women’s Open (Jan. 31-Feb. 2). After that, she’ll tee it up in the LPGA's second event, the ISPS Handa Australian Women’s Open (Feb. 13-16).

Ko doesn’t have any endorsement deals yet, but she said she would like to have one before the LPGA season opener in the Bahamas. She visited Callaway’s and TaylorMade’s testing facilities in California before coming to Naples this week.

“It would be great to get some things sorted by Bahamas,” she said. “Obviously, I don't have a sponsor right now, and I don't know if that's a good thing or not.”
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Wes Short Jr. earns Champions slot

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Wes Short Jr. earned one of five Champions Tour cards for next season in his first attempt at the 50-and-older circuit.
 
Short turns 50 on Dec. 4. He closed with 68 to tie the Champions Tour Q-school record at 20-under 264. He earned $30,000 for his five-shot victory over Mike Reid and Jim Rutledge of Canada. Rutledge started the final round outside the top 12 and closed with a 65 in rainy conditions at the TPC Scottsdale to earn his card.
 
The final two spots were decided in a playoff Saturday morning because of the rain.
 
Scott Dunlap and Jeff Hart each made par on the first playoff hole to get full exempt status for the 2014 season.


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press
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Madsen wins 1st European Tour title

JOHANNESBURG -- Morten Orum Madsen of Denmark won his first European Tour title Sunday as Charl Schwartzel struggled in the final round of the season-opening South African Open.
 
Madsen shot a 67 for a 19-under total of 269 and a two-shot victory, overtaking Schwartzel and Hennie Otto of South Africa.
 
Schwartzel had a triple-bogey 6 on No. 6 and a double bogey on No. 10 to lose his overnight lead. Otto, the 2011 champion, lost the lead when he bogeyed the 15th hole and had a double bogey on the 16th.
 
Madsen had five birdies and no bogeys.
"I expected to play well, but I didn't expect to stand here," he said during the trophy presentation.
 
Madsen was ranked No. 244 in the world before the tournament.
Jbe Kruger shot a final-round 65 to tie Otto for second at 17 under. Marco Crespi and Schwartzel tied for fourth at 16 under.



Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press
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Stacy Lewis wins Vare Trophy

Although she didn't win the LPGA Tour season finale, Stacy Lewis did walk away with one piece of hardware Sunday at the CME Group Titleholders.
Lewis captured the Vare Trophy for low scoring average on the 2013 LPGA Tour at 69.484 strokes per round, the first time an American won the award since Beth Daniel in 1994.
 
"As Americans, we hear about that all the time -- it's been 18 years or it's been 20 years or whatever it is," Lewis said. "I'm just glad to have that kind of checked off the list. We've got to get American golf on the map. That's been the goal and I'm just fortunate I've been playing good golf."
 
Lewis, with rounds of 71-73-63-71, finished the event tied for sixth and held off Norway's Suzann Pettersen for the scoring honor.
 
According to the LPGA, 2013 marks the first-time in tour history three players finished with sub-70 scoring averages including Lewis, Pettersen (69.696), and Inbee Park (69.869).
 
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Shanshan Feng wins season finale


NAPLES, Fla. -- The only trouble Shanshan Feng faced Sunday was figuring out how to light the cannon that signaled the end of the LPGA Tour season.
She made the golf look easy at the LPGA Titleholders.

Two shots behind going into the final round, the 24-year-old from China ran off four birdies in the opening six holes to seize control, and she closed with a 6-under 66 to win by one shot and claim the richest prize in women's golf.
It also was her second win this year, which meant as much to her as the $700,000 check.
"I had a goal to win two tournaments," she said. "I won in China. I didn't think I was going to achieve my goal, and I made it in my last tournament in Florida."
Feng said her win last month in Beijing required a little luck -- a shot that took a weird and wild bounce out of the rough, raced across the green and crashed into the flagstick to set up a tap-in eagle.
Sunday was sheer skill.
Feng was in such control of her game that she missed three birdie chances inside 6 feet in the middle of her round that kept the outcome in doubt until the end. Gerina Piller stayed within one shot of Feng, and she hit a 7-iron into 10 feet for a chance at birdie to force a playoff. The putt narrowly missed, and Piller had to settle for a 69 and her best finish on the LPGA Tour.
Pornanong Phatlum of Thailand had a 70 and finished alone in third.
Feng finished at 15-under 273, the number she had in mind at the start of the day -- even if it didn't result in a win.
"Before I started, I never thought I was going to win," Feng said. "I knew I was only two behind. But I thought all the people in the last group were really strong competitors."
No one was stronger than Feng, who played the final 31 holes without a bogey.
Natalie Gulbis, tied for the 54-hole lead with Pornanong and Piller, wasn't up to the task. Going for her first win in six years, Gulbis didn't make a birdie until the 14th hole, and by then she couldn't stop a spectacular slide. Gulbis closed with an 82.
Stacy Lewis had to settle for only one prize. The Women's British Open champion became the first American since Beth Daniel in 1994 to win the Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average. She had to win to capture the money list, but after an early birdie, Lewis never regained any momentum. She closed with a 71 and tied for sixth.
"As Americans, we hear about that all the time -- it's been 18 years or it's been 20 years or whatever it is," Lewis said. "I'm just glad to have that kind of checked off the list. We've got to get American golf on the map. That's been the goal and I'm just fortunate I've been playing good golf."
Inbee Park, who clinched player of the year last week in Mexico, had a 68 to finish fifth. She won the LPGA Tour money title.
The only other award at stake Sunday was rookie of the year. That went to Moriya Jutanugarn of Thailand, who closed with a 72. She won by one point over Caroline Masson of Germany.
Feng just stole the show on the final day of the season.
As winner of the CME Group Titleholders, she lit the cannon to signal the end of the year. That proved far more difficult than the 7-iron she hit into 8 feet for birdie on the 15th, or that pitch up the slope on the 17th hole that led to her final birdie.
"I was really nervous," she said. "I don't know how I did it. Once it touched the thing and then it just went out in like a half a second, and I was shocked it released so fast and it was gone already. I was really excited."
As for that paycheck?
Feng says she is not a big spender and said she would put it in the bank, perhaps buy herself a small gift later.
Piller put up a good fight. She stuffed her approach on No. 15 to within 4 feet for birdie to pull within one shot. Feng was in the group ahead and went over the green on her second shot into the par-5 17th, and then hit a chip that settled within tap-in range to reach 15 under. Piller matched her birdie at the 17th with a solid up-and-down from a collection area, but she couldn't get that last birdie to force a playoff.
"I was happy with the way I hit the putt," Piller said. "I just didn't read enough break."
The win should take Feng to No. 4 in the world.
Park, who went into a minor slump after winning her third straight major at the U.S. Women's Open, closed out her LPGA season with two top 10s. She still has one event left in Taiwan before taking a long winter's break, with plans to go to Australia to prepare for next season.
She won the money title for the second straight season.
"I played better this year," Park said. "There is definitely room to improve for next year and I probably have a little more pressure on me next year, but I think I have a lot of pressure this year, anyways. A little bit more doesn't really make a difference for me."


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press


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Kevin Kisner wins at Pebble Beach

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- Kevin Kisner made a 15-foot par putt on the 18th hole for a 2-over 74 and a one-stroke victory over Chesson Hadley at the Pebble Beach Invitational on Sunday.
 
Kisner began the day with a two-stroke lead and finished at 13-under 275 after a tumultuous final round in the tournament featuring 80 professionals from the PGA, LPGA, Champions and Web.com tours.
 
"I wish I would had about a six-stroke lead, so it wasn't so stressful," said Kisner, who rejoined the PGA Tour this season. "The back nine was playing brutally hard. I just got unlucky."
 
Kisner, who had a tournament-low 64 Saturday at Spyglass Hill, moved to 17 under and a six-stroke margin after 11 holes. But he bogeyed the 12th, double-bogeyed the 14th and bogeyed the 17th.
 
"I just hung in there," said Kisner, who in March claimed his second Web.com Tour win at the Chile Open in Santiago. "Things like this always happen when you are in the hunt. Only when you are in a position to win does it seem to happen."
 
Hadley shot a 70 and was four shots in front of Scott Langley (68) and William McGirt (73), who tied for third at 8 under.
 
Hadley, playing in the final group with Kisner, began the day trailing by five shots. But he remained steady while Kisner stumbled.
 
"When Kevin double-bogeyed 14, I definitely thought I still had a chance," said Hadley, a 2014 PGA Tour rookie. "The conditions were tough out there, but I thought I had a chance on the 18th, but Kevin made a downhill 15-footer to win. My hat's off to him."
 
Mina Harigae had a 71 to top LPGA finishers and finished tied for fifth with Sam Saunders (74) and Mark Brooks (70) at 281.
 
Brooks, who has won the event three times, moved into contention and was six under on the day and 11 under for the tournament halfway through the final round before faltering.
 
Tommy Armour III (68) and Kirk Triplett (72) were the top Champions Tour finishers and were among five players at 282.
 
Jason Kokrak started the day in second two shots back, but shot 80 and finished among seven players at 283.
 
Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam, who has played in the event several times since retiring from the LPGA in 2008, finished at even par after a final-round 75.
Kisner earned $60,000 of the $300,000 purse.


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press
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Rory McIlroy settles legal dispute

One down, one to go for Rory McIlroy.
 
The Northern Irishman has reportedly settled a legal dispute with a former sponsor, Oakley.
"The legal claims brought by Oakley against Rory McIlroy in California have been amicably settled to the satisfaction of both parties," according to a statement released on McIlroy's behalf said.
 
The former world No. 1 golfer still has a lawsuit pending against Horizon Sports Management, which used to represent him. A trial date is scheduled for October next year.
 
McIlroy's last victory came at the 2012 European Tour finale in Dubai. He's expected to play in this week's Australian Open and then the Tiger Woods-hosted World Challenge in California.
 
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Luke Donald defends title

MIYAZAKI, Japan -- Luke Donald shot a 5-under 66 on Sunday to defend his title at the Dunlop Phoenix and claim his first victory of the year.
 
Heading into the final round with a two-stroke lead, Donald carded seven birdies against a pair of bogeys at the par-71 Phoenix Country Club to finish at 14-under 270.
 
The 35-year-old Briton, who hadn't won since winning the title here last year, claimed the $400,000 winner's prize.
 
Kim Hyung-sung of South Korea finished second at 8 under after a final round 70 while Japanese tour veteran Shingo Katayama shot a 65 to finish third, one stroke behind Kim.
 
Spain's Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Japan's Shunsuke Sonoda tied for fourth and money leader Hideki Matsuyama shared sixth place with Australian Brad Kennedy and South Korea's Lee Kyoung-hoon.


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press
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John Daly Continues Comeback

MALELANE, South Africa -- John Daly will play in the European Tour's Alfred Dunhill Championship this week as he comes back from elbow surgery.
 
The two-time major winner is in the field at Leopard Creek Golf Club near Kruger National Park in northern South Africa for only his second tournament since an operation in July to repair a shattered tendon in his right elbow.
 
The American got off to a promising start at last month's BMW Masters in his return to golf, before fading over the weekend to finish 5 over and in a tie for 48th.
 
"I'm really fresh and I want to play," Daly said Monday. "I don't want to waste the end of this year. I'd like to get something going for the end of this year so I can get on track for next year."
 
Daly returns to South Africa for the first time since the early 1990s, when he won a couple of tournaments to kick-start his career.
 
It's been nearly a decade since the 1991 PGA Championship winner and '95 British Open champion won on the U.S. or European tours, but he showed encouraging signs at the BMW Masters in China by opening with a 68.
 
He goes up against 2011 Masters winner Charl Schwartzel and Brendon de Jonge this week, but the Leopard Creek course could suit him.
 
"It's a ball striker's golf course," Daly said after his first look at the layout. "You've got to hit the fairways. And the greens are tricky. It's the kind of course where you'd almost prefer a 20-footer to a 10-footer on these greens."
 
The Alfred Dunhill is the second of three straight tournaments in South Africa to start the new European season and the 2014 Race to Dubai.
 
Morten Orum Madsen won the South African Open on Sunday, while Henrik Stenson, Justin Rose, Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Schwartzel and De Jonge are part of a 30-man field at the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City on Dec. 5-8.


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press
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Emirates Australian Open: Rory McIlroy targeting victory Down Under

 
 
Rory McIlroy remains positive he can end his title drought in 2013 with two chances left to do so.
 
The Northern Irishman played a brief practice round at Royal Sydney on Monday ahead of this week's Emirates Australian Open.
 
The former world No 1 said he is eagerly looking forward to his duel with Australians Adam Scott and Jason Day.
 
McIlroy has had eight top-10 finishes in 2013 - including in his last two starts in Dubai and Shanghai - and he is hopeful of victory in Australia and then the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge in America next month.
 
He said: "I'm definitely not down here for a holiday.
 
"I've got two tournaments left. I've got here and then fly straight back to LA for Tiger's tournament, so it would be great to finish the year with a win."
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China's Shanshan Feng secures victory in LPGA Titleholders by one shot

 
Shanshan Feng came through the field on the final day to land the LPGA Tour season-finale, the Titleholders in Florida.
 
The world No 7 from China shot a closing 66 to land the $2m tournament, her third career title, with a closing 15-under total.
 
She began the day two strokes off the pace but soon closed that gap with four birdies in her first six holes.
 
Two more birdies at the 15th and 17th proved enough to hold off America's Gerina Piller by one shot - she carded a 69 to take second ahead of Pornanong Phatlum and fourth-placed Sandra Gal of Germany.
 
The third overnight leader, Natalie Gulbis, had a nightmare final day six bogeys, a double and a triple in a horrific round of 82 that dropped her into a tie for 29th place, 14 shots off the winner.
 
"I never thought I was going to win even though I was only two behind," Feng said. "All the people in the last two groups were strong competitors.
 
"I set a goal to finish 15-under par and that's what I was able to do. I'm really happy I'm at 15-under and I finally won.
 
"I set a goal early this year to win twice on the LPGA Tour this year. I hadn't won at all until I went to China. I left it to the last minute but I did it. I'm really happy. It means I can take a little more time off in the off season I guess."
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Rory McIlroy's legal dispute with former sponsors Oakley has been settled

 
Rory McIlroy has settled a legal dispute with his former sponsor, American sportswear company Oakley.
 
McIlroy did not disclose the terms of the settlement, which came about over his sponsorship switch to Nike in January.
 
That move prompted Oakley to launch legal action to try to retain its own deal, saying it had the right to match any improved agreement with another company.
 
"The legal claims brought by Oakley against Rory McIlroy in California have been amicably settled to the satisfaction of both parties," a statement released on behalf of McIlroy said.
"I am delighted the case is now behind me," McIlroy was quoted as saying.
 
He revealed earlier this month the legal worries had weighed on him this season and possibly contributed to his drop in performance.
 
In September, McIlroy terminated his contract with Dublin-based Horizon Sports Management to form his own management company - that split has also reached the courts.
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South African Open: Morten Orum Madsen sees off strong home challenge in final round

 
Denmark's Morten Orum Madsen claimed his maiden European Tour win with a two-shot success at the South African Open.
Madsen, the world No. 244, birdied three of his last six holes in a closing five-under 67 to finish on 19-under-par at Glendower Golf Club in Gauteng.
"It's been an amazing day," said Madsen, who had five birdies in all during a blemish-free round.
 
"It's a cliche to say it hasn't sunk in - but it hasn't. I'm so happy. Coming here I expected to play well but not to be standing here talking as the winner."
Jbe Kruger fired a best-of-the-day 65 to earn a share of second place with his fellow South African Hennie Otto (67) at 17-under-par.
Charl Schwartzel stretched his one-shot overnight lead to three with early birdies at the second, third and fourth.
But the world No.22, comfortably the highest-ranked player in the field, triple bogeyed the par-three sixth and ran up a six at the par-four 10th to derail his challenge.
Schwartzel, trying to win his national open for the first time, regained some lost ground later on with three back-nine birdies to sign for a 71, ending up tied for fourth on 16-under-par with Italy's Marco Crespi (70).
Otto, the 2011 winner, led by three shots with four holes to play but bogeyed 15th and double bogeyed the 16th to open the door for Madsen.
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