Ashleigh Buhai edges a back and forth battle at Muirfield – GSS Recap

This weekend marked the final major championship of the Women’s Golf Calendar. Having only been granted access a decade ago, the top female golfers descended on Muirfield to battle it out. With a prize purse of $7 million the AIG Women’s Open was the highlight of the weekend and rightly so as one of the great bunker saves, decided the winner. Elsewhere, the PGA Tour saw its first Gen-Z champion and the DP World Tour rolled into Celtic Manor for a tough weekend of golf.

Buhai claims her first major after drama on the final day

When a leader enters the final day of a major, with a 5 shot lead, you often take it for granted that the victory is assured. This Sunday round was no victory lap, however. The 5 shot lead was erased, with In Gee Chun battling back to a tie for the lead with overnight leader Ashleigh Buhai. The lead was extinguished when the 33-year-old eventual winner, triple bogeyed the 15th hole. And so it passed that after 72 holes, Buhai and Chun, finished at 10-under-par.

Entering the play off the pair could not be separated. 3 holes passed with not a drop of blood spilled. The pair stepped onto the par 4 18th tee and the championship would be decided on the 4th playoff hole. With Chun facing a 20ft par putt after finding the sand off the tee, Buhai knew that up and down from the greenside bunker would put all the pressure on her opponent. What followed will go down as an iconic bunker shot. With plenty of club head speed, the South African put her shot to inches. With Chun’s par putt falling short of the mark, it left a tap in to make Buhai the first South African to win the Women’s Open since 1979.

Buhai pockets a prize purse of £907,000 and said that the win makes her feel “very proud”. “It’s so difficult to put into words right now” said Buhai who joins illustrious company at the top of the women’s game. Noteworthy finishes from the British contingent include Jodi Shadoff and Louise Duncan. Both finished at 1 under for a solid tie for 19th.

Check out the highlights from the AIG Women’s Open here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhchsZSkago

Wyndham Championship sees the 2nd youngest winner since 1932

What were you doing at 20 years old? Well South Korea’s Kim Joo-hyung is busy having claimed his first PGA Tour win at the Wyndham Championship. His nine-under-par Sunday Round catapulted him into the lead, stretching out a 5 shot lead against compatriot Im Sung-jae and John Huh. It was not all sunshine and rainbows for the young winner though. His opening hole of the tournament saw a quadruple bogey land on his card, which makes the fight back even more stunning.

For time, during the Sunday round it looked like a 59 could be on the cards. The opening 9 holes on Sunday saw Kim through in 27 strokes equalling the second lowest nine-hole score in PGA history. His victory marks the arrival of Gen-Z into the winner’s circle. Kim is the first player born in the 2000s to win a PGA Tour title. He also claims his full membership to the PGA having played as a special exemption since mid-July.

Check out the highlights from Wyndham here.

Callum Shinkwin claims victory at Cazoo Wales Open

Callum Shinkwin claimed a 4-shot lead over Connor Syme, to claim his second win on the DP World Tour. The Cazoo Wales Open, supported by Gareth Bale, saw an emotional Shinkwin card 6 birdies and 5 bogeys in his final round. “I’m over the moon” said Shinkwin who was confident going into Sunday as the course was playing extremely difficult.

His win sees him move to 28th in The Race to Dubai. The world number 304 ended a winless drought stretching back to the 2020 Cypress Open and will hope to use this momentum to fuel the rest of 2022.

Check out the highlights from Celtic Manor here.

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