Shoots 6-under 65 in final round to overcome injury struggles; Nishimura claims first LPGA title with wire-to-wire 21-under

Jeon In-ji tees off on the fifth hole during the final round of the LPGA Tour Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Arkansas, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). [AFP]
Jeon In-ji tees off on the fifth hole during the final round of the LPGA Tour Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Arkansas, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). [AFP]

Jeon In-ji shook off the lingering effects of injury to finish tied for second at the LPGA Tour Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, posting her best result of the season.

Jeon carded seven birdies and one bogey for a 6-under-par 65 in the final round Monday (Korean Standard Time) at Pinnacle Country Club (par 71) in Rogers, Arkansas.

Her three-round total of 16-under 197 left her tied for second alongside Japan's Iwai Aki and Thailand's Chanettee Wannasaen, five strokes behind winner Nishimura Yuna of Japan, who finished at 21-under 192.

Starting the final round in a tie for fifth, Jeon opened with back-to-back birdies on the first and second holes. She dropped her only bogey of the day on the par-3 third but bounced back with birdies on the par-5 seventh and par-4 ninth to finish the front nine 3-under. She added three more birdies on the back nine to climb into a share of second place.

The tied second-place finish is Jeon's best of the season, surpassing the fourth-place result she recorded at the US Women's Open earlier this year. The four-time LPGA Tour winner has not added to her title count since the 2022 KPMG Women's PGA Championship.

"I can't control how the other players perform, so I tried to focus only on my own game," Jeon said after the round. "Nishimura played really well all three days. I'd like to congratulate her on the win."

Nishimura Yuna celebrates with the trophy after winning the LPGA Tour Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Arkansas, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). [AFP]
Nishimura Yuna celebrates with the trophy after winning the LPGA Tour Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Arkansas, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). [AFP]

The title went to Nishimura, who led wire-to-wire across all three rounds. Starting the final round with a five-stroke solo lead, she posted an eagle, five birdies and two bogeys for a 5-under 66, finishing at 21-under 192 to hold off the tied second-place group by five shots.

Nishimura had fired back-to-back 8-under 63s in the first two rounds, then steadied herself after a level-par front nine on the final day by going 5-under on the back nine. An eagle on the par-5 14th hole sealed the victory.

Nishimura, who made her LPGA Tour debut in 2023, claimed her first career title in wire-to-wire fashion. Along with the winner's check of $450,000, she secured a two-year tour card.

Among other South Korean players, Lim Jin-hee finished tied for eighth at 14-under 199. Yang Hee-young and Kim A-rim shared 15th place at 12-under 201, Hwang Yu-min tied for 22nd at 11-under 202, and Lee So-mi finished tied for 34th at 8-under 205.


yjc@heraldcorp.com