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Golf - 02. March 2014.

CREAMER SINKS KILLER PUTT TO WIN PLAY-OFF IN HSBC WOMEN’S CHAMPIONS

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Paula Creamer sank the putt of her life to claim victory in the HSBC Women’s Champions following a two-hole play-off with Spaniard Azahara Munoz at the Sentosa Golf Club this afternoon.

 

 

Once again the tournament, dubbed Asia’s Major, went down to the wire, with the 27 year old American picking up a vital birdie on the 15th hole to secure her place in the play-off, ending the day with a 3-under par 69, taking her to 10-under par for the tournament.

 

Munoz birdied the 17th, taking her to 10-under par and a share of a three-way lead with Karrie Webb, only for the Australian to bogey the 18th. It was a bitter blow for the Hall of Famer who had shown such consistent form all week.

 

The play-off saw both golfers par the 18th in the first re-run before heading back down the fairway to tee off for a third time in the same afternoon. But this time Creamer made the green in two, before watching a 75 foot putt drop into the hole for an eagle, sending her and the thousands of supporters assembled around the green into a frenzy of excitement.

 

Always a favourite with the fans in Singapore, Creamer is a popular and highly deserving champion. Speaking after the trophy presentation, Creamer, who receives a winner’s cheque of US$ 210,000, said, “I'm shaking. Oh, my gosh, this has been such a long time coming and I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Colin, my caddie, my best friend, he's been there through it all.

 

“We've had such a good last seven months working on what we've been doing and obviously a bit of luck going in on that one. Aza hit a great shot in there and she's such a great competitor, as well. When that happens, there's nothing you can do.”

 

Speaking about the final putt, she added, “It reminded me of a putt at Solheim Cup that I had. Just get it in the right spot it would fall down ‑ but I could stand there all day long and putt that. I finally hit the fairway in the play-off; I was in a play-off a couple years ago and I refused to go to eight, nine more holes so I was going to try to end it.”

 

Azahara Munoz, gracious in defeat, commented, “Today I started bogey, bogey so that got me really behind and then I made a couple really nice birdies and gave myself a lot of chances. Didn't quite make enough putts today but made some really nice ones on the back nine for par and that kept me going and at the end made a couple [of] really nice birdies.

 

“It was exciting. For starters I didn't think I was going to give myself the chance to be in the playoff, so just being there, I was really happy to be in contention again, and you know, it's always fun. But that putt, it's pretty much impossible to putt it and to hold it, so nothing you can do about it, just congratulate her,” added Munoz.

 

Meanwhile leader for the first three rounds, veteran Karrie Webb suffered a disappointing day on The Serapong. Scoring a bogey on par-four 3rd, and only two birdies on the front nine, it was on the back nine that the World No. 7 relinquished her chances for the title.

After hitting a bogey on hole 13, Webb went into the water at 15, a similar fate to that suffered by Stacy Lewis on her way to the title in 2013. Unlike Lewis, Webb was unable to recover, and a trip into the fairway bunker on the 18th saw her finish in third place on 9-under par.

 

A disconsolate Webb said, “Two weeks ago I handled the pressure well and made very good decisions coming down the stretch and I made all the putts I needed to make. It sometimes just doesn’t go your way. Doesn't feel great at the moment. There's lessons to be learned from the decisions made.

 

“With the wind into us on 18, I just should never have hit driver off that tee. I had said to Mickey, if I can't reach a 5‑wood, there's no point in going, and I don't think I could have hit it far enough down there in that situation.  I should have just laid up off the tee and given myself a wedge in, but I didn't do that and so not a lot of good decisions,” added the Queenslander.

 

The Serapong has proved to be a true test of golf for many of the top ranked players this week, not least defending champion and World No. 3 Stacy Lewis. Lewis, who finished tied in 40th place with an aggregate score of 5-over par commented, “I played terrible. I didn’t hit the ball good and didn’t make any putts. It wasn’t just one part of the game. I didn’t give myself enough chances for birdies, and then when I did get myself into that situation, I didn’t make them.”

 

Singapore’s representative and the only amateur on the course, 15-year-old Amanda Tan completed with rounds of 79, 81, 75 and 80 to finish just four strokes behind nearest competitor and LPGA professional, Giulia Sergas. Said Tan: “It's a really great experience for me, especially with the pressure. It's a different pressure from what I've been experiencing, so hopefully when I go for future tournaments, I'll be able to cope better.”

 

Giles Morgan, Global Head of Sponsorship and Events at HSBC said, “HSBC Women’s Champions is one of the toughest tournaments in world golf and in this, its 7th edition in Singapore, it’s once again lived up to its billing as ‘Asia’s major’. Thousands have enjoyed our flagship women’s event and the superb performances of one of the strongest fields ever assembled in Asia. Our congratulations go to Paula Creamer on winning in such fantastic style. The Serapong is a true test of golf and she is very deserving of the title ‘Champion of Champions’ after battling against the best players in the world all week.

 

“At HSBC we continue to open up the world of golf and invest in the game at every level around the world. It’s wonderful to see the HSBC Women’s Champions firmly establish itself as Singapore’s premiere golf event, the best women’s event in Asia and one of the leading events in world golf.”

 

Guy Harvey-Samuel, Group General Manager & Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Singapore added, “For HSBC, the players and the local community it’s been a memorable week as we continue to showcase the best of women’s golf in Singapore. This championship is an important event that lets us connect with our customers and fans through a very special experience that only golf can offer. Testament to its ongoing success, is the number of fans who have turned out – I hope they have enjoyed it as much as we have in hosting.

 

 “I would like to extend my sincere thanks to everybody that has made the seventh edition of the tournament our best yet, including HSBC’s business partners who have joined us over the course of the week, the players and officials from the LPGA Tour, event organisers IMG and of course all the fans that have made their way to Sentosa over the last four days. Our congratulations go to Paula and we look forward to returning in 2015,” added Harvey-Samuel.

 

Low Teo Ping, President of Sentosa Golf Club, added, “We are delighted to have hosted the HSBC Women’s Champions for the second year at Sentosa Golf Club and are very happy with the way that the tournament has settled in to its new home. The Serapong has been in first rate tournament condition all week and has certainly provided the players with a true test of their abilities in some challenging conditions at times. We offer our congratulations to Paula Creamer and look forward to welcoming her and the LPGA Tour back to Sentosa in 2015.”

 

Guy Kinnings, Global Head of Golf, IMG said, "We've enjoyed an excellent week here at Sentosa watching some of the biggest names in world golf competing for a title the players consider to be Asia's Major. Once again the HSBC Women's Champions has enjoyed a thrilling finish and the spectators have enjoyed a fantastic week of golf.

 

Congratulations to our long-time IMG client Paula Creamer on her fantastic victory. Her astonishing 75-foot putt to win made for one of the most exciting finishes to a global event and it is a shot that will be seen around the world.”

 

I'd also like to extend our sincere thanks to our partners HSBC, as well as our other sponsors, without whom the tournament would not be possible. Our thanks also go to the team at Sentosa Golf Club, the Sentosa Development Corporation, our friends at the LPGA Tour and of course all the spectators who have supported the players on course throughout the week. We look forward to returning in 2015.”

 

As the curtain falls on yet another showpiece tournament, the HSBC Women’s Champions has a new champion and another compelling chapter in its history.

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