Hyo Joo Kim showed her first signs of faltering late in Saturday’s final round of the LPGA Lotte Championship at Hoakalei Country Club.
Then the 26-year-old South Korean did what great golfers do: She hit a big shot when she needed to.
Kim hit a pitch on the 18th hole to within 1 foot and made the tap-in birdie to complete a 1-under-par 71 and claim the Lotte for her fifth career tour title.
“I’m proud of that shot. Maybe I made a lot of people sit on the edge of their chairs, so I felt great about it,” Kim said of the pitch.
Kim finished at 11-under 277 to top runner-up Hanako Shibuno by two strokes.
Kim bogeyed the par-4 17th, which cut her lead over Shibuno to one shot.
On the par-5 18th, Kim sent her drive into the right rough and followed with a shot into the first cut of rough next to the bunker.
Her pitch from 50 feet rolled up to the hole, which drew huge applause from the crowd and even Shibuno.
“Not really nervous on the 18th hole because — I may have if I made a par on the 17th hole, but I did not,” Kim said. “I made a bogey so that made me a little irritated, so I didn’t think about the 18th hole. I was not really nervous.”
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After Shibuno finished out her par, Kim tapped in to claim the $300,000 winner’s check and boost her career earnings to $5,556,833. Both players had large followings.
“Well, I was very happy about all the Japanese fans, but little more fans for Hyo Joo from Korea or like Koreans who live here,” said Shibuno, a 23-year-old from Okayama, Japan.
Shibuno shot a 2-under 70 on Saturday and went bogey-free in her last two rounds.
“I was having a lot of fun playing with her,” Shibuno said of Kim. “My putting was a little, you know, couldn’t go in, so that was the difference with her.”
Shibuno won the 2019 AIG Women’s British Open in her LPGA debut and first event outside of Japan. It is her only tour victory.
Kim got off to a good start by going bogey-free with five birdies in each of the first two rounds.
The only rough stretch Kim encountered prior to Saturday took place in the third round when she bogeyed Nos. 7 and 12, but she recovered with birdies on the 14th and 18th to end the round at even par.
Kim nearly went home with a Honda Odyssey minivan Saturday after her shot on the par-3 12th hole hit the flagstick and rolled past the hole. She carded a par.
Kim burst onto the golf scene back in 2014 as a 19-year-old by winning the Evian Championship, where she set the record for lowest 18-hole score at a major with a 61 in the first round.
“Yes, there were a lot of expectations, but there was a lot of support coming from friends and family and fans as well,” Kim said. “There have been up and downs. I think I am at the up part right now.”
She won three more tournaments entering this week, including the 2021 HSBC Women’s World Championship, which snapped a five-year winless drought.
Kim is one of 10 golfers to compete in all 10 Lotte tournaments, with her best previous finishes being a pair of ties for fourth.
“I have been playing Lotte Championship since the inaugural championship, and I always wanted to win and do well,” she said.
Hye-Jin Choi finished third at 281 and Ashleigh Buhai was fourth, another stroke back.
“I wanted to do well because this tournament was my sponsor’s tournament,” said Choi, a 22-year-old from South Korea. “I’m satisfied that I finished it well. It was windy on the golf course, and it was a little difficult early this week, but I think I adjusted well.”
The shot of the day belonged to Giulia Molinaro, who had a hole-in-one on the 15th. The 31-year-old Italian shot 1 over and finished tied for 56th at 292.
The magic ran out for Brianna Do, a Sunday qualifier who started the round tied for second with Shibuno three strokes behind Kim. Do, a 32-year-old from Long Beach, Calif., shot a 5-over 77 and finished tied for 12th at 286.
She needed a top-10 finish at Hoakalei to qualify for next week’s DIO Implants LA Open.
Punahou graduate Allisen Corpuz carded a 1-over 73 and finished tied for 18th at 287.
“I think that I belong out here,” said the 24-year-old Corpuz. “As long as I’m playing well I can definitely contend and finish well. I think that’ll give me a lot of confidence throughout the season.”
Defending Lotte champion Lydia Ko shot 2 under and finished at 287.
The 24-year-old Korean-born New Zealander, who won last year at Kapolei, was one of four multiple major winners to make the cut.
Ariya Jutanugarn and In Gee Chun both finished tied for 12th at 286 and Anna Nordqvist finished at 288 to tie for 26th.
Hannah Green, the first-round leader, shot 2 over and finished tied for 48th at 291.
Jennifer Kupcho, who won last week’s The Chevron Championship for her first major victory, tied for 18th at 287 after carding a 2 under.
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LOTTE CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday
At Hoakalei Country Club
Purse: $2 million Yardage: 6,603; Par: 72
Final Round
Hyo Joo Kim (0), $300,000……………………67-67-72-71—277 -11
Hinako Shibuno (0), $182,956 ……………..71-70-68-70—279 -9
Hye Jin Choi (0), $132,721…………………….70-70-72-69—281 -7
Ashleigh Buhai (0), $102,670………………..71-71-70-70—282 -6
Somi Lee (0), $82,638 …………………………..71-70-69-73—283 -5
Na Rin An (0), $54,591………………………….71-68-73-72—284 -4
Gerina Mendoza-Piller (0), $54,591……..74-72-69-69—284 -4
Ryann O’Toole (0), $54,591…………………..72-69-72-71—284 -4
Atthaya Thitikul (0), $54,591………………….71-74-72-67—284 -4
Brittany Altomare (0), $39,065………………70-77-72-66—285 -3
Celine Boutier (0), $39,065…………………..71-74-70-70—285 -3
In Gee Chun (0), $30,217……………………..72-70-71-73—286 -2
Brianna Do (0), $30,217………………………..72-70-67-77—286 -2
Ariya Jutanugarn (0), $30,217……………….70-68-73-75—286 -2
Andrea Lee (0), $30,217………………………..71-70-73-72—286 -2
Sophia Schubert (0), $30,217 ………………75-71-69-71—286 -2
Charlotte Thomas (0), $30,217……………..72-75-70-69—286 -2
Allisen Corpuz (0), $21,874 ……………..70-72-72-73—287 -1
Jodi Ewart Shadoff (0), $21,874……………67-77-76-67—287 -1
Lydia Ko (0), $21,874……………………………..69-75-73-70—287 -1
Jennifer Kupcho (0), $21,874…………………74-72-71-70—287 -1
Ruixin Liu (0), $21,874……………………………71-74-67-75—287 -1
Stephanie Meadow (0), $21,874…………..71-70-69-77—287 -1
Emily Pedersen (0), $21,874………………….74-69-71-73—287 -1
Lauren Stephenson (0), $21,874…………..75-72-70-70—287 -1
Chella Choi (0), $15,793………………………..70-73-71-74—288 E
Perrine Delacour (0), $15,793……………….71-72-73-72—288 E
Gemma Dryburgh (0), $15,793……………..67-73-74-74—288 E
Esther Henseleit (0), $15,793………………..75-70-72-71—288 E
Sarah Kemp (0), $15,793……………………….68-69-78-73—288 E
Stephanie Kyriacou (0), $15,793 …………..71-71-73-73—288 E
Gaby Lopez (0), $15,793……………………….68-77-72-71—288 E
Anna Nordqvist (0), $15,793………………….70-77-69-72—288 E
Emma Talley (0), $15,793……………………….75-71-71-71—288 E
Georgia Hall (0), $11,586 ……………………..70-75-76-68—289 +1
Megan Khang (0), $11,586……………………72-72-67-78—289 +1
Cheyenne Knight (0), $11,586………………70-71-77-71—289 +1
Min Lee (0), $11,586 ……………………………..69-73-75-72—289 +1
Wichanee Meechai (0), $11,586…………..74-72-71-72—289 +1
Kelly Tan (0), $11,586…………………………….71-72-72-74—289 +1
Aditi Ashok (0), $8,901…………………………..67-73-76-74—290 +2
Janie Jackson (0), $8,901………………………68-72-77-73—290 +2
Haeji Kang (0), $8,901 …………………………..68-70-78-74—290 +2
Yu Liu (0), $8,901……………………………………74-72-74-70—290 +2
Amy Olson (0), $8,901…………………………..76-71-74-69—290 +2
Annie Park (0), $8,901……………………………73-73-69-75—290 +2
Lindsey Weaver-Wright (0), $8,901 ……..71-74-72-73—290 +2
Ana Belac (0), $6,749…………………………….75-71-73-72—291 +3
Hannah Green (0), $6,749……………………..66-76-75-74—291 +3
A Lim Kim (0), $6,749……………………………..72-67-76-76—291 +3
Alison Lee (0), $6,749…………………………….67-76-75-73—291 +3
Jeong Eun Lee (0), $6,749……………………..71-71-77-72—291 +3
Leona Maguire (0), $6,749……………………..71-75-76-69—291 +3
Haru Nomura (0), $6,749……………………….74-73-75-69—291 +3
Su-Hyun Oh (0), $6,749…………………………74-73-77-67—291 +3
Matilda Castren (0), $5,184…………………..74-72-75-71—292 +4
Maria Fassi (0), $5,184…………………………..70-76-72-74—292 +4
Pernilla Lindberg (0), $5,184…………………71-72-71-78—292 +4
Giulia Molinaro (0), $5,184…………………….74-73-72-73—292 +4
Yealimi Noh (0), $5,184………………………….77-70-74-71—292 +4
Yuka Saso (0), $5,184……………………………73-74-73-72—292 +4
Albane Valenzuela (0), $5,184……………….70-75-72-75—292 +4
Dewi Weber (0), $5,184………………………..70-74-69-79—292 +4
Dottie Ardina (0), $4,508……………………….72-75-71-75—293 +5
Linnea Johansson (0), $4,508……………….70-77-73-73—293 +5
Paula Reto (0), $4,508…………………………..71-73-83-66—293 +5
Dana Finkelstein (0), $4,117………………….72-71-75-76—294 +6
Ayaka Furue (0), $4,117…………………………71-73-78-72—294 +6
Isi Gabsa (0), $4,117……………………………..71-72-77-74—294 +6
Bianca Pagdanganan (0), $4,117 …………70-77-78-69—294 +6
Lilia Vu (0), $4,117………………………………….73-73-75-73—294 +6
Frida Kinhult (0), $3,906 ………………………..74-72-75-75—296 +8
Jenny Coleman (0), $3,856……………………72-75-75-75—297 +9
Ssu-Chia Cheng (0), $3,783………………….71-75-76-76—298 +10
Yu-Sang Hou (0), $3,783……………………….71-76-78-73—298 +10
Anne Van Dam (0), $3,713 …………………….71-76-75-77—299 +11
Mi Hyang Lee (0), $3,666………………………72-73-76-81—302 +14
