Rookie Yoo Hae-ran Drops from 2nd to 7th... "Regretful, Wanted to Win Debut Match"

DriveOn Championship Final Day 1 Under Par
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Rookie Yoo Hae-ran narrowly missed out on winning her debut tournament.

On the 26th (local time), Yoo Hae-ran finished tied for 7th place (16-under 272) after shooting 1-under 71 in the final round of the LPGA Tour Drive On Championship (total prize money $1.75 million) held at Superstition Mountain Golf & Country Club (par 72, 6,526 yards) in Gold Canyon, Arizona, USA.

Yoo Hae-ran is teeing off at the 8th hole of the Drive On Championship Round 4. [Gold Canyon (USA) = AFP·Yonhap News]

Starting the final round tied for 2nd place, one stroke behind the leader, Yoo recorded two birdies and one bogey. After her first birdie on the 2nd hole (par 5), she played par for the next 11 holes, struggling to lower her score. She made her second birdie on the 14th hole but immediately bogeyed the 15th hole (both par 4s). Her iron shots faltered, preventing her from creating birdie opportunities. Her greens in regulation rate was 61.11%. Yoo was satisfied with finishing in the 'top 10' in her official LPGA Tour debut.

Yoo Hae-ran is the player who caused a surprise victory as an invited player at the 2019 KLPGA Tour Jeju Samdasoo Masters. She quickly earned her full tour card and won once in 2020, claiming the Rookie of the Year title. She accumulated a total of five wins, including two in 2021 and one in 2022. Last winter, she topped the LPGA Tour Qualifying (Q) Series and made her name known in this tournament.

C?line Boutier (France) shot 4-under 68 to tie with Georgia Hall (England) at 20-under 268, then secured the winning birdie on the first playoff hole following the 18th hole (par 5). This marked her third career win, her first in 1 year and 5 months since the 2019 ISPS Handa Vic Open and the October 2021 ShopRite LPGA Classic. The winner's prize money was $262,500 (approximately 340 million KRW).

Ayaka Furue (Japan) surged by 7 strokes to finish 3rd (19-under 269). Stacy Lewis and Lilia Vu (both USA), Hinako Shibuno (Japan), Charley Hull (England), and Moriya Jutanugarn (Thailand) joined the group tied for 7th place. World No. 2 Nelly Korda (USA) struggled, finishing tied for 57th (9-under 279).

From Korea, Anna Lin recorded a 5-under 67 to jump to 4th place (18-under 270). World No. 3 Ko Jin-young, aiming for back-to-back wins in two consecutive tournaments, shot 4-under to finish tied for 5th (17-under 271). Yang Hee-young finished tied for 16th (14-under 274), Kim Sei-young, Shin Ji-eun, and Choi Woon-jung tied for 23rd (13-under 275), and Ji Eun-hee tied for 39th (11-under 277).