Choi marks maiden win of season, nets W100M

Choi Jin-ho won the 2012 Meritz Solmoro Open for the 28-year-old’s first victory of the season yesterday.

At the Solmoro Country Club in Yeoju, Gyeonggi, Choi shot two-under-par in the final round to finish the tournament at eight-under 276, edging Kang Kyung-nam by two strokes.

It was the third victory of his KPGA career, netting him 100 million won ($84,600). He claimed his second title at the Lake Hills Open in 2010.

“I tried to focus on one shot at a time,” said Choi, who is enjoying his seventh year on the Korean Tour. “I tried to play it safe, and that made the difference.”

Defending champion Kang started the fourth round at the top of the leaderboard and was looking to become first two-time winner. However, he shot one-over-par and had to settle for a six-under 278.

Lee Seung-ho took a share of third place at four-under.

Park Sang-hyun, who started the final round in second place, collapsed yesterday by shooting seven-over-par.

He finished tied for 19th. First round leader Park Jun-won finished tied for sixth.