Hannah Green said she probably owes Celin Bouitier an apology after finishing a shot clear of the French start to claim a dramatic victory at the BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea.
Green had to fend off a sensational finishing burst from Boutier. She birdied five of the final seven holes at the picturesque Seown Hills course in Paju to complete a six under par 66 in the final round, and set the clubhouse target at 18 under.
Green was on the same mark with two holes to play, and the result was hanging in the balance.
The Australian ace needed to find some inspiration after two birdies and two bogeys meant she had failed to improve the score that had earned her a two shot lead after 54 holes.
Hannah Green hits another glorious tee shot on her way to the BMW Ladies Championship title.
And she rose to the occasion by hitting a superb approach at the par four 17th, and rolled in the five footer for what proved to be the winning birdie.
It was still far from plain sailing even after Green hit her approach to twenty feet at the last - she knocked her first putt three and a half feet past the flag, and had to hole a knee-knocker to clinch victory.
But she was up to the task, and a closing 71 earned the world No 8 her third LPGA Tour win of the season, and a cheque for $330,000.
The first of those wins was also achieved in the far east, when Green captured the HSBC Women’s World Championship title in Singapore March.
Boutier also finished runner-up in that event, and she finished just one off the lead on that occasion as well.
Celine Boutier of France splits the fairway with another perfect drive during her sensational birdie spree at the BMW Ladies Championship.
But she had nothing to reproach herself for, after starting the final round six shots back and throwing everything at her rival over the closing stretch. She earned $207,516 for second place.
Green commented: “Celine must be wondering what more she could have done. We have had a couple of great battles this year, and I almost feel like I should apologise to her.
“But she is a great player, and her time will come again soon. She won the Aramco title in Shenzhen earlier this month, and she is having a great year as well.
“I am just relieved to win again, because my results have not been what I was looking for since I got my second win this year at the JM Eagle LA Championship in April, and then finished runner-up to Nelly (Korda) at the Mizuho Americas Open a couple of weeks later.
“I feel like this is reward for all the hard work I’ve put in this year. And hopefully I will put myself in position to win again before the season is over."
Hannah Green of Australia plants a kiss on the trophy after her thrilling win at the BMW Ladies Championship.
Green’s victory moved her up three places in the world rankings to fifth, while Boutier also climbed three spots to seventh.
Before Boutier produced her flying finish, it looked like Chanettee Wannasaen of Thailand might be the player to deny Green a wire-to-wire success.
Wannaaesn was on fire on the front nine, covering that stretch in just 30 shots - just as she did when she claimed her maiden LPGA Tour victory at the Portland Classic last year.
Her six under par score for the opening stretch included an eagle on the par four fifth, where she holed an eight iron from 142 yards.
But this time her effort stalled on the back nine. Bogeys at ten and 17 meant she had to settle for a closing 68, and third place on 17 under.
Korean duo Hye-Jin Choi and Yu Jin Sung shared fourth a further shot back. A third Korean golfer, Haeran Ryu, finished in joint sixth place with Ashleigh Buhai of South Africa.
It was a brilliant tournament, slightly soured by the fact it took the last few groups a painful six and a quarter hours to finish their final rounds. Playing in three-balls, that is nothing short of shocking.
About author
David Facey has been working in the golf industry for more than thirty years, as a golf reporter for the Daily Mail and Sun newspapers in the UK, and more recently as a regular contributor to Golf Monthly.
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