The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

LPGA rookie Sei Young Kim, playing in her first major for the year, will probably remember her trip to the Bahamas for quite a while.

The South Korean native took advantage of her experience playing in four previous playoffs to break a three-way tie at the end of the 2015 Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic to win a sudden death playoff with compatriot Sun Young Yoo and Ariya Jutanugarn from Thailand.

Kim sunk a four-putt on the 18th hole at the Ocean Club, Paradise Island, yesterday to seal the victory to earn $195,000 and her performance will end up pushing her up from No. 40 to around 26 in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings.

“My goal was to finish in the top 10,” said Kim, who was tied for ninth at the 2014 LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament to earn Priority List Category 12 status for the 2015 season.

After finishing tied at 14-under 278 with Jutanugarn and Yoo for the lead at the end of the gruelling four days of competition, Kim said she knew that she had an excellent chance to win it. She did it on the first hole of the playoffs.

“It’s really windy in Korea, so I had a lot of experience,” said Kim, who didn’t seem to be affected at all by the torrential rain. “I was just happy that I won it.”

Kim, who missed the cut in her pro debut at the season opening Coates Golf Championship in Ocala, Florida just five days after she celebrated her 22nd birthday, said she doesn’t have any idea of what she will do to enjoy the victory.

“This means a lot to me because I joined the LPGA Tour to make the Korean Olympic team and this is one step towards that,” said Kim, who hopes to be a part of the historic appearance for the spot at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Kim now joins Jessica Korda, last year’s winner and Ihlee Lee, the initial winner in 2013, in the history books. Kim and Jutanugarn, however, continue where they left off last year when they played in the final round of Q-School.

Jutanugarn, who was joined by her older sister Moriya, said she had a lot of confidence in the tournament and her caddie, Jeremy, helped her out a whole lot.

“Actually I only had two bogeys and before the final round, I thought I was going to win or at least get a chance to play in the playoffs,” she said. “It was really exciting, but after I hit the shot, I felt like it was a pretty good chance to have played in the playoffs.”

With her sister and mom looking on, Jutanugarn said at least she won the bet she had with Moriya, who turned pro in 2013 and had her best showing when she was tied for fourth at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open that same year.

Moriya, who turns 21 on July 28, will have to buy Ariya, who will be 20 on November 23, dinner that night.

For 28-year-old Yoo, who was coming off her season best performance last year when she was tied for eighth at the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia, said she did the best that she could.

“I didn’t make the putt when I hit it off the bunker,” said Yoo, whose approach shot was 189 yards to the pin. “I played it exactly the way I played it in my fourth round.”

Although she missed out on a golden opportunity to win, Yoo said she still had a solid tournament and she was very happy with her performance. She indicated that it will only give her the inspiration that she needs to play the rest of the year.

The tournament was also a coming out party for Jutanugarn, who joined her older sister Moriya for their first appearance together in a major event.

Both Yoo and Jutanugarn earned $120,962 each for their performances.

Bahamian Racquel Riley, 33, played in the first round of the main draw but had to withdraw with a stomach virus. She had to come back on Friday with half of the draw to complete their first round after Thursday’s late session was rained out.

The junior junkanoo group from Oakes Field Primary performed during the closing ceremony that was attended by Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe and Sports Director Greg Rolle. Also in attendance was Stafford G Sterner, president of Pure Silk.