“I feel like I’m going to withdraw this week because my knee hurt so bad last week”, Jutanugarn told The Associated Press.
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Remarkably, it was Jutanugarn’s fifth win of the season, a campaign she began without a single win on the LPGA Tour. “My irons getting a lot better in the last week or so”.
“I’ve had such an fantastic experience here in Calgary and I think just being a little bit closer to home, I think the crowds will be outstanding”. “I wanted to see how I’m feeling”.
“After I won my first tournament, I feel like I reached my goal”, Ariya said after she won the US$2.25 million (S$3 million) Canadian Open and collected a cheque for US$337,500 on Sunday.
Ariya, of Bangkok, also kept her ideal 54-hole record intact as she has won each time she has led this year heading into the fourth round.
South Korea’s Chella Choi Woon-Jung had started the day in sole possession of the lead, completing her weather-disrupted first round to finish with a seven-under-par 65.
There was little hope of anyone catching Jutanugarn as she shot a six-under-par 66 to finish on 23-under, four shots clear of South Korean Sei Young Kim.
Jo Ann Washam (1979 Women’s Kemper Open), Jenny Lidback (1997 Chrysler-Plymouth Tournament of Champions) and Laura Diaz (2014 Kia Classic) are the other three women to have achieved the feat.
“I’ve been in the hunt the last couple months, playing really well, and it’s like, ‘OK, now it’s not a shock this is where I am right now, ‘” said Sharp, who represented Canada in Rio. “I feel confident because I can hit my irons in the fairway”, she said, noting that the narrow layout at Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club outside Calgary limited her use of the driver.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – AUGUST 20: Lydia Ko of New Zealand plays her shot from the fifth tee during the Women’s Golf Final on Day 15 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Golf Course on August 20, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
“You know, I think rather than me wanting to win it again, I think there is a bit more added pressure because you are the defending champion”, said Ko. “I think it was a great week, and I really appreciate all the support from the crowds here”.
Kim and Northern Ireland’s Stephanie Meadow are five behind, while the group at 11-under – a half-dozen shots back – is headlined by Canada’s own Alena Sharp. “It’s definitely a lot of fun to play in front of, and I’ve been really enjoying it”.
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The player of the year award is not all that is up for grabs; Ko is likely hearing footsteps from her closest challenger to her top ranking.
