Stacy Lewis holds on, wins LPGA event in Singapore
BY Associated Press
Monday, March 04, 2013
3/04/13 at 6:21 AM
American Stacy Lewis won the HSBC Women's Champions on Sunday for her sixth career LPGA title, overcoming two bogeys and some shaky putting on the back nine to hold off South Korea's Na Yeon Choi.
Lewis, the 2012 LPGA Player of the Year, shot a 1-under 71 in the final round at Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore to finish at 15-under 273, one stroke ahead of Choi.
"The last four or five holes, I was pretty nervous, I'm not going to lie," the former Arkansas standout said. "I just played hard and put my head down and tried to make as many putts as I could and fortunately I came away with the win."
Choi, who had a 72, was runner-up at the tournament for the second consecutive year. She lost to Angela Stanford in a four-player playoff last year.
Paula Creamer, hampered by a shoulder injury from a car accident last week in Thailand, briefly held a share of the lead early in the day but struggled with her putting on the back nine and faded to a 71 to finish third at 13-under.
Top-ranked Yani Tseng shot a 74 to finish a disappointing week in a share of 28th place.
Lewis started the day tied with Choi atop the leaderboard, but she was able to gain some distance with a superb shot on the par-5 7th hole.
After a long drive off the tee, Lewis hit a perfectly placed, 200-yard shot toward the pin that stopped about five inches short of going in for an albatross. She tapped it in for eagle, which put her one clear of Choi and two up on Creamer.
"It was probably one of the best shots I've ever hit," Lewis said. "It had to be pretty close. I couldn't really tell from where I was but it was perfect."
On the back nine, however, the 28-year-old American had to battle nerves and a determined challenge by Choi.
Leading by two shots on the 15th, Lewis hit her tee shot into the water for the second time this week and slammed her club into the turf in frustration. She took a bogey on the hole, allowing Choi to pull within one.
Then, on the 17th, Lewis hit into the bunker off the tee and missed a long par putt to card her second bogey of the back nine.
That gave Choi one last chance to even the score on the 18th, but she pulled her birdie putt wide by an inch. Lewis exhaled deeply after making her own par putt for the win.
Van Der Walt wins first European Tour title: In Centurion, South Africa, Dawie Van Der Walt became the fifth South African winner in 10 European Tour events this season with his two-shot victory at the Tshwane Open.
Van Der Walt posted a final round 5-under 67 to finish at 21-under overall for his first win on the Tour.
The Texas-based golfer is ranked 436th in the world. Van Der Walt was among four players tied for the lead after the third round, including fellow South African Darren Fichardt, who shot 69 to finish second at 19-under in the European and Sunshine Tour event.
Former Oklahoma State star Peter Uihlein, the 2010 U.S. Amateur champion, is still seeking his first pro win. He was fourth with a 69 that included an eighth hole-eagle for a 17-under total.
Original Print Headline: Lewis holds on, wins in Singapore
Associated Images:
Former Arkansas star Stacy Lewis won the HSBC Women's Champions with a final-round 71 on Sunday in Singapore. WONG MAYE-E / AP
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