Katherine Kirk shot a final-round 2-under 70 and held on to capture her third career LPGA victory at the inaugural Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic.
Kirk, the 54-hole leader, drained a clutch birdie putt on the final hole to finish at 22-under par, one stroke ahead of playing partner Ashleigh Buhai (67), who also birdied 18 to get to 21-under.
Sei Young Kim posted a 9-under 63 and finished just two back at 20-under. Pornanong Phatlum fired the round of the day, a 10-under 62 and rocketed 19 spots up the leaderboard to finish alone in fourth at 19-under.
American Cristie Kerr rode a 6-under 66 to finish at 18-under-par, while securing her fifth top 5 of the 2017 season.
With the win, the Aussie Kirk earns $300,000 and 500 Race to CME Globe points. The former Pepperdine star becomes the 17th different winner on Tour this season.
The Winning Putt
RT to congratulate @Katherine_Kirk1 on her first win on the @LPGA Tour since 2010 pic.twitter.com/EJgA2QNOEU
— Golf Australia (@GolfAust) July 9, 2017
Top 10
1 Katherine Kirk -22
2 Ashleigh Buhai -21
3 Sei Young Kim -20
4 Pornanong Phatlum -19
5 Cristie Kerr -18
6 Tiffany Joh -17
6 Ayako Uehara -17
8 Georgia Hall -16
8 Mariah Stackhouse -16
8 Megan Khang -16
The Traditional Selfie
#LPGAWinnerSelfie with @Katherine_Kirk1 @thornberrylpga pic.twitter.com/CaMxyY6mPK
— LPGA (@LPGA) July 9, 2017
Quotable
“Amazing, especially considering the (indiscernible) and obviously they’re passionate about bringing LPGA events to Green Bay. I’m very proud and very honored to be the first champ.”
Katherine Kirk, 2017 Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic Champion
Final Scores
Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
Thornberry Creek Golf Club | Oneida, WI | July 9, 2017
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