Playoff birdie hands Ma Da-som third Tour win at S-Oil Championship in Jeju

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Playoff birdie hands Ma Da-som third Tour win at S-Oil Championship in Jeju

Published: 03 Nov. 2024, 17:44 Updated: 03 Nov. 2024, 18:25

PAIK JI-HWAN
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Ma Da-som hits a shot during the KLPGA's S-Oil Championship at Elysian Jeju Country Club in Jeju on Sunday. [NEWS1]

Ma Da-som won the KLPGA’s S-Oil Championship at Elysian Jeju Country Club in Jeju on Sunday after beating Kim Su-ji in the second playoff, bagging her third victory on the Tour and prize money of 162 million won ($117,000).

Lim Hee-jeong started the final round at the top of the standings, but slipped down from the position with three bogeys on the first seven holes.

Kim and Ma, meanwhile, did not card a single bogey on the first seven holes and were tied at the top through the ninth hole. Hong Hyun-ji also joined the two at the top after carding a birdie on the 14th hole.

Kim then took the sole top spot after a birdie on the 10th hole, after which she continued her smooth run with another birdie and five pars.

Kim Su-ji celebrates during the KLPGA's S-Oil Championship at Elysian Jeju Country Club in Jeju on Sunday. [NEWS1]

Ma kept the race competitive, however, by taking the joint frontrunner spot with a birdie on the 16th hole and staying at the top with Kim through the par-5 18th hole.

But both carded a par on the final hole and completed the last round bogey-free for a final score of 15-under-par, 201, forcing a playoff on the 18th hole. The tournament became a reduced 54-hole stroke play event due to the cancellation of the second round due to rain.

The two still tied again in the playoff after carding pars, forcing yet another playoff on the same hole.

Kim carded a par, while Ma made a birdie in the second playoff to claim victory, sealing her third win on the Tour.

“I remember that I withdrew from this tournament last year, so I didn’t think I would win, but I competed diligently on every hole, which led to victory,” Ma said. “I am happy about it. I was not as nervous as I thought I would be in the playoffs, so I was able to finish well. I think playing through the second playoff worked in my favor.

“I want to compliment myself for ending the tournament bogey-free.”

Sunday’s win not only marks her second this season, but also her fifth top-10 finish. The win comes just over a month after she secured the Hana Financial Group Championship where she beat a field packed with top golfers from the KLPGA and LPGA.

For Kim, this marks her third runner-up finish on the Tour, another impressive finish this season during which she has clinched 10 top-10 finishes, including a victory at the Hite Jinro Championship — one of the five KLPGA majors — in October.

Park Ji-young, who won the tournament in 2016 and 2021, tied for ninth, losing a chance to become the first golfer to win the title three times.

Lee Ye-won, meanwhile, failed to make another top-10 finish, tying for 31st.

Lee has been one of the most successful golfers on the Tour this season, having won three titles so far. Her most recent victory comes from the Suhyup Bank MBN Ladies Open in June.

The Tour now heads to Chuncheon, Gangwon, for the SK Shieldus-SK Telecom Championship teeing off on Nov. 8.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [[email protected]]