World No 1 Inbee Park completed the dream that seemed like a nightmare for the last two years ago as she overhauled her young protg Jin-Young Ko to win the Ricoh Women’s British Open at Turnberry yesterday.
Park (27) went into the British at St Andrews in 2013 going for a calendar Grand Slam of women’s majors but wilted under the attention and pressure, and then last year lost a commanding lead in the final round at Royal Birkdale. But in the wind and showers over the Ailsa Course yesterday she swept to victory with a final round fitting for history, a 65 for a 12-under-par total of 276.
Her young Korean compatriot Jin-Young Ko, who had a three shot lead with seven to play, eventually finished three back after a final round 71, but it was Park who overhauled her with brilliant golf rather than the youngster faltering.
“Greatest day of my life yet, for sure,” she said. “It was a great day of golf and the golfing god was on my side for sure.”
There’s a contentious question of whether Inbee has completed the women’s Grand Slam, or indeed which one. Since making a fifth major of the Evian Masters two years ago, the LPGA seem to have decided they have two types of Grand Slam.
The first is the Career Grand Slam of the four established events, which is what they’re saying Inbee won by taking the British title yesterday. The other is the “Super Career Grand Slam”, which includes the Evian.
Inbee of course won the Evian in its last year of “ordinary” status in 2012, but for general peace of mind it’s probably best not to get into these pedantic machinations and just agree that the 27-year-old is clearly one of the greatest players in the history of the women’s game.
She has seven major titles in seven years, six in just the last three, and the glorious way she won at Turnberry yesterday brooks no argument over who is the pre-eminent player of this era.
“This was my only goal for this year, and is definitely the title I wanted most, because this is the birthplace of golf and this is the toughest to win.
“I’ve had a few cracks at it in the past, but there’s so much to deal with, the weather, the tee-times, the luck of the draw, it’s always the hardest one to win. I feel I was very lucky this week but am so glad to win this at last.
“My name is now on the five major trophies, so in my mind I have won the major championships. I’ll try to win the Evian now again but I feel I’m always treated like a champion there.”
For most of the afternoon, it seemed like the 20-year-old Ko, in her first major, was sailing towards a notable victory. Far from being intimidated by being chased down by Inbee, Suzann Pettersen and Lydia Ko, she plotted a serene path across the Ailsa Course.
Protecting herself from the elements between shots with a bright red padded parka jacket complete with furry collar – looking for all the world like she was going to pop out to the shops – she saw Pettersen draw alongside her after six holes with Park and Ko close by.
With her local caddie Geoff Brighton guiding her and holding her coat when necessary, Jin-Young’s response was an eagle three at the long seventh, and further birdies at the eighth and tenth took her to 12-under, leaving the field floundering.
At the same time, Pettersen had back-to-back bogeys at 10 and 11, unlucky to see her bunker escape hit the flag at the short hole and bounce away to two-putt length. The Norwegian was never really a threat after that.
Almost simultaneously Lydia Ko took two in a bunker at the 12th, taking double bogey and dropping too far back. The 18-year-old rallied with an eagle at 14 and a birdie at 17, but that would only be good enough for a share of third.
Inbee, however, having had a slight wobble with two bogeys on the front nine, made a telling up and down from the back of the 13th to stay at nine-under, three behind. Just one hole later, she was level.
Her 25-foot eagle putt at the 14th rattled home while her young protg made her first error of the day, choosing to putt having missed the 13th green and badly misjudging it, taking two more to get down for bogey.
The door now slightly ajar, Park in her undemonstrative way, of course simply kicked it open, by birdieing from 15 feet at 16, playing as easily the toughest hole on the back nine. That was her seventh birdie of the day, with one eagle for a spectacular 65 play worthy of any World No 1 or whatever Grand Slam you want to give her.
“I putted as well as I’ve done for the last two years, just about everything I looked at went in,” she said. “Jin-Young is a great player and she has done so well in Korea. We had dinner earlier this week and I’m sure this going to be a springboard to great things for her.”
Jin-Young’s hopes of staying with her countrywoman finally evaporated at the 16th, when he was short with her approach and it slipped back into the burn. A double bogey there left her holding on for second from Lydia Ko and So Yeon Ryu.
Pettersen eventually finished fifth on seven-under with Mel Reid and Amy Boulden the best placed Britons at four-under in a share of ninth.