DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- American teenager Lexi Thompson shot a 5-under 67 to win the Dubai Ladies Masters and become the youngest professional winner on the Ladies European Tour on Saturday.
The 16-year-old Thompson pulled away from Lee-Anne Pace of South Africa to win by four strokes for her second professional victory. In September, she won her first event to became the youngest winner on the LPGA Tour.
"It feels amazing," Thompson said. "I'm just honored they invited me back and I'm just grateful to be here. I've been working on my game really hard and it has paid off."
South Korea's Amy Yang is the youngest winner ever on the LET, following her victory as an amateur at the 2006 ANZ Ladies Masters.
Thompson chipped in for a birdie on No. 9 to take a one-shot lead over Pace and extended her lead with four birdies on the back nine for 15-under 273 total.
Pace (69) started strong with two birdies and an eagle on her first six holes, but shaky putting on the back nine ended her chances.
The 2010 European Tour money winner, Pace said hit her approach shot on No. 12 over the green for her second bogey in five holes.
"Things could have been a little different," Pace said. "I hit a bad club on 12, which cost me a shot, and that is where things changed around."
Sophie Gustafson of Sweden (71) was a shot behind Pace in third place followed by four players another shot back.
Michelle Wie (72) came into the final round five shots behind leader Thompson. She fell out of contention with two bogeys and a double-bogey on the front nine, finishing tied for 12th.
"It was pretty frustrating. I couldn't get my putts going," Wie said. "I just needed to play better on the front nine all week. Nothing really went. Nothing went in. At least, I finished birdie, birdie. I gotta work on a lot of things for next season."
Thompson has momentum heading into the 2012 season.
"I'm just going to continue working hard and just try to improve every tournament," she said.
View the original article here
This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.
No comments:
Post a Comment