Creamer edges out Jang at Fields Open
BY Bruce Young | LPGA Tour | 2008 Fields Open in Hawaii | Round Three | 24 Feb 2008
For 53 holes of this week’s Fields Open in Hawaii tournament Korean, Jeong Jang, had led the way but when Paula Cramer timed her run to perfection with birdies on four of the last five holes to take the lead, she had won her fifth LPGA Tour event.
Creamer’s brilliant approach at the last to five feet set up the winning putt and Jang could do nothing more than watch as she was forced then to hole a four foot putt to hold onto outright second place.
Jang’s early bogey today was quickly brushed aside and when she made the turn in one under 35, the South Korean remained ahead but the challenges were emerging from a host of players including Annika Sorenstam, Creamer and Australian Lindsey Wright.
Sorenstam threatened to follow up her victory in last week’s SBS Open when she reached the turn in 33 to be at 11 under and just two behind. The rest of the field no doubt breathed a sigh of relief when Sorenstam double bogeyed the 10th to essentially rule herself out of contention.
Jang kept her nose in front with birdies at the 14th and 15th but both Wright and then Creamer stayed in touch. Wright was playing with Sorenstam and after two recent tournaments where she has suffered from a final round demise, the 27-year-old from Albury was clearly feeling more at home in contention. A birdie from 18 feet at the 16th was followed by another from similar range at the 17th and she was at 14 under and just one behind.
Wright needed a birdie at the last and hit the perfect drive but, to a tough flag position, she finished 25 feet from the hole and although she hit a good putt she was one back with both Jang and Creamer in the fairway behind her tied at 15 under. Creamer hit a brilliant second to five feet while Jang came up just short of the green with her approach. She missed and then waited for Creamer to hole to win.
For Wright this is her best finish on the LPGA Tour. In 2007 she finished in 4th position at the LPGA McDonald’s Championship and earned a bigger cheque in doing so but this will give her a lot of heart knowing that after being in contention she has finished off the event as well as she has with several key putts late in her round. Wright earned US$86,500.
Many of those in this week’s field will now fly across the Pacific to Singapore for this week’s HSBC Women’s Champions tournament where a strong field has been assembled in the US$2 million inaugural staging of the event. The event offers the first match up of 2008 between the leading four players in the world Lorena Ochoa, Annika Sorenstam, Suzann Pettersen and Karrie Webb.
