MELBOURNE: Karrie Webb won the Women’s Australian Open for the fifth time yesterday, shooting a 4-under 68 in the final round to beat Chella Choi by one stroke.
Webb birdied the 18th hole to take the outright lead, then watched as Choi, who shot a course-record 62 on Saturday to take a share of the third-round lead, pushed a 10-foot putt wide of the hole at 18 to miss the chance for a playoff.
Webb, who clinched her 40th LPGA title, finished at 12-under 276 overall. She previously won the Australian Open in 2000, 2002, 2007 and 2008.
“I got off to a great start and I just did a great job mentally today,” Webb said in a report posted yesterday.
“I can’t think of another time when I held myself together as well as that.”
The win marked a remarkable change of fortune for the No. 8-ranked Australian, who was disqualified from last week’s Australian Ladies Masters after signing an incorrect scorecard. She had been the defending champion at the event. AGENCIES
