BEIJING, Oct. 21-- Morgan Pressel birdied the final hole on Sunday in the inaugural Kapalua LPGA Classic for her first victory of the season.
Pressel closed with a 3-under 69 to edge Norway's Suzann Pettersen (69) by a stroke. Pressel finished at 8-under 280 and earned 225,000 U.S. dollars for her second career win.
The 20-year-old Pressel birdied two of her final four holes and made a clutch 15-foot putt from the fringe near the front of the green to secure the victory. She won the Kraft Nabisco Championship last year to become the youngest player in tour history to win a major. Pettersen tied for second in that event in California after faltering down the stretch.
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This file photo shows Morgan Pressel of Boca Raton, Florida, hits off the first tee during the final round of the LPGA Sybase Classic golf tournament at the Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton, New Jersey, May 18, 2008. |
Pressel shook her fist after draining a 7-foot birdie putt on the par-4 16th to catch Pettersen, who had birdied 18 and was already in the clubhouse and waiting for a possible playoff.
Pressel also got up-and-down from the bunker to save par on the par-3 17th. She had a long eagle attempt on the 454-yard, par-5 15th, but three-putted for par.
Laura Diaz (70) finished third at 6 under. Angela Stanford (70), Sun Young-yoo (72) tied for fourth at 4 under, a stroke ahead of Stacy Lewis, who closed with a course-record 66, and Karin Koch (74).