Associated Press
| Associated Press
Midland, Mich. – Somi Lee poured in an 8-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to team with fellow South Korean Jin Hee Im to win the Dow Championship on Sunday, denying Lexi Thompson her first LPGA title in six years.
Thompson’s partner, Megan Khang, had a chance to extend the playoff, but she missed a 5-foot birdie putt that was on the low side of the hole from the start.
Thompson made an 8-foot birdie putt on the par-3 18th hole, with Khang still facing a 6-foot birdie attempt, as the American duo closed with a 10-under 60 in the fourballs format. They were the first to post at 20-under 260.
Lee made a 10-foot birdie putt to tie for the lead on the 17th. Im and Lee missed birdie chances on the 18th in regulation for the win.
The playoff switched to foursomes. Thompson hit the tee shot on the 18th to just 5 feet right of the cup. Im went nearer the pin but 8 feet long, setting up Lee for the winning putt.
“Bummer to miss the last one in the playoff to force another hole, but very happy how we played,” Khang said.
Thompson has not won since the ShopRite LPGA Classic in 2019 and decided last summer to no longer play a full schedule. The Dow Championship was her eighth tournament this year.
Im and Lee are in their second year on the LPGA Tour and this was their first title in America, though both were prolific winners on the Korea LPGA. Im has won six times on the KLPGA, while Lee has five KLPGA titles.
“I can’t believe it,” Lee said after making her winning putt.
Lindy Duncan and Miranda Wang had a 59 in the better-ball format and tied for third, two shots out of the playoff. They were joined by Manon De Roey and Pauline Roussin-Bouchard, who teamed up for a 64.
Albane Valenzuela and Sarah Schmelzel, who had the 54-hole lead, closed with a 66 and failed to make birdie over the final seven holes. They finished fifth, three shots behind.
Thompson did not indicate when she would play again. Next on the LPGA schedule is the Evian Championship in France, a major Thompson has skipped every year dating to 2019.
The Dow Championship is the only official team event on the LPGA schedule.
U.S. Senior Open
Padraig Harrington’s decision when he walked down the 18th fairway Sunday was whether to play a safe approach and take a chance with the Broadmoor’s curling, curving greens, or be aggressive and not leave the putting to chance.
He picked the second option, knocked his shot to 8 feet, and the only big decision over the next few minutes was whether he should wait for the man he beat by one, Stewart Cink, to putt out before he tapped in to claim his second U.S. Senior Open title.
Harrington came out on top in a major that felt more like match play, parlaying the approach into an easy two-putt par to seal his second title over the last four years in senior golf’s most prestigious event.
Harrington shot 3-under 67 to finish at 11-under 209, edging Cink, who shot 68, on their fourth straight round in the same group.
“Sometimes playing it safe is not the right option,” said Harrington, who recalled advice Hale Irwin gave him years back when Irwin suggested that, when in doubt, it’s always better to play the shot you’d play if you were losing by a stroke.
After watching Harrington’s shot, Cink – trailing by one and playing 30 yards in front of him on the fairway – had to be perfect.
But his approach landed on the precipice of a ledge, then spun backward toward the middle of the green. It was exactly the kind of result Harrington had been hoping to avoid moments earlier. Cink’s ball didn’t come to rest until it was 35 feet away and his desperation birdie try missed to the right.
With both players within tap-in range of pars that would close the tournament, there were some awkward pauses and laughter as Harrington marked from about 3 inches so Cink could putt out and the Irishman could be the last to tap in on 18.
“It kind of validates your career,” said Harrington, whose majors came at the 2007 British Open and PGA, then the ’08 PGA. “It validates the past in a lot of ways. You’re reliving the past glories, hitting shots, waving at the crowds. People are coming out because they know you from the past.”
LIV Golf
Patrick Reed lost the lead with a 3-over 75 and then atoned for it by making a 15-foot birdie putt on the first hole of a four-man playoff Sunday to win LIV Golf Dallas, his first title since joining the Saudi-funded league in 2022.
Reed, who started the final round with a three-shot lead, fell behind late in the day at Maridoe Golf Club until Jinichiro Kozuma made bogey on the 18th hole and then made par on his final hole at No. 1 for a 68.
That got him into a playoff with Reed, Louis Oosthuizen (68) and Paul Casey (72).
On the first extra hole, Oosthuizen drove into the water and Casey took four shots to reach the green on the par-4 18th. Kozuma missed his 25-foot birdie try, setting the stage for Reed.
