Sei Young Kim shot a final-round 65 to capture her ninth career LPGA title at the Marathon Classic.
Kim finished her final round at Highland Meadows Golf Club with seven birdies, highlighted by five straight gains on Nos. 7-11 en route to a four-day score of 22-under par.
“This feels great,” said Kim. “I really wanted another win, especially this week, because the last two weeks I played really bad.
“I was like, ‘Oh, I really want to win some tournament.’ I did this week, and so happy with that.”
Kim’s -22 score was one stroke shy of the tournament record held by Korean icon Se Ri Pak – a five-time Marathon Classic champion.
“I’m very honored my name alongside Se Ri Pak,” continued Kim. “Since I was young she is one of my idols. She’s a great player. She won five times this tournament. Yeah, I got very big inspiration from that win.”
Alone in second-place was Lexi Thompson, who carded a Sunday round of 66, which included a birdie-eagle finish to reach 20-under par.
“She played some amazing golf today,” said Thompson of Kim. “I’ve played with her a lot just in my career, and she’s an amazing talent.
“Showed today. She went through a stretch on the front nine or going into the back where she stuck every shot. Had under five feet about four times in a row, so it was a very well deserved win by her. I tried to catch her. I kind of made a run. Too late, but it’s okay.”
Taking home the bronze medal was Toledo native Stacy Lewis, who posted a 5-under par 66 to finish at 16-under par, her career-best finish at her hometown event.
Reigning U.S. Women’s Open champion, Jeongeun Lee6 (69), finished solo fourth at 14 under. It was Lee6’s sixth top-10 finish of her rookie campaign.
Final Top 5 Leaders
Pos-Player-To Par (Final Rd)
1. Sei Young Kim -22 (-6)
2. Lexi Thompson -20 (-5)
3. Stacy Lewis -16 (-5)
4. Jeongeun Lee6 -14 (-2)
5. Five Players -11
Quotable
“Yeah, a lot of people like Lexi, Lexi, because Lexi has got booster and then she make like the three in a row — she make the birdie three in a row.
“I got extra pressure from there and I little scary. So, okay, I try to calm down and don’t scare that. Just focus on the, yeah, what I have to do.
“So, yeah, until the end she made the birdie and the eagle last two holes. I knew she got par-5 the last two holes, so I couldn’t count for sure the win until the last hole.”
– Sei Young Kim
