Leona Maguire finished two ahead of Ariya Jutanugarn, with China's Xiyu Lin in a share of third with overnight leader Amy Yang; Maguire birdied her last three holes to claim a second LPGA Tour title; Watch the KPMG Women's PGA Championship live from Thursday on Sky Sports Golf
Monday 19 June 2023 07:18, UK
Leona Maguire ended a run of near-misses at the Meijer LPGA Classic by producing a spectacular finish to register a two-shot victory and second LPGA Tour title.
Maguire, who finished runner-up in the 2021 contest before losing in a play-off to Jennifer Kucpho last year, carded an eagle and six birdies during a remarkable bogey-free 64 at Blythefield Country Club to claim a two-stroke victory.
The 28-year-old opened with four straight pars before birdieing both par-threes on the front nine, the fifth and seventh, then started an incredible closing stretch by picking up a shot at the par-three 13th.
Yang matched the Irishwoman's eagle at the par-five 14th but then double-bogeyed the 16th, where Maguire fired the first of three consecutive birdies to end the week on 21 under and secure a second LPGA Tour win in as many seasons.
"I felt like I played some really good golf last year," Maguire said. "Missed out on a play-off here, second at CME. You have to play really good golf to win out here. It's tough. It's a really nice feeling to get this one, especially heading into the majors we have coming up."
Jutanugarn made back-to-back 66s over the weekend to finish on 19 under, while Lin was in a share of second until she signed for a four-under 68 and slipped back three behind after a penultimate-hole bogey.
Hyo Joo Kim claimed fifth place ahead of Thailand's Jasmine Suwannapura and American Kupcho, who briefly led after a hole-in-one at the par-three fifth, while Spain's Carlota Ciganda birdied her final two holes to end the week inside the top-10.
"I kind of went into today thinking if I shot seven-under that would leave me at 19, give me a pretty good shot at possibly a play-off," Kupcho said. "So didn't really matter how I got there. That's really all I was focusing on."
The Meijer LPGA Classic was the last tournament before the next major on the women's golf schedule, with the KPMG Women's PGA Championship getting under way from Thursday at Baltusrol and live on Sky Sports Golf.
Live coverage begins on Thursday and Friday from 5pm on Sky Sports Golf, with a second session then live from 10pm each day on Sky Sports Mix, with seven hours of live coverage for each of the final two rounds.
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