Yoo Hyun-jo wins HJ Shipbuilding & Construction-Dongbu Championship for second title of season

Edges Kim Min-sun, Ahn Ji-hyun by one point

First multi-win season since debut; career total reaches four

Yoo Hyun-jo tees off on the second hole during the final round of the KLPGA Tour HJ Shipbuilding & Construction-Dongbu Championship at A-One Country Club in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, on Sunday. [KLPGA]

Yoo Hyun-jo claimed the KLPGA Tour HJ Shipbuilding & Construction-Dongbu Championship — with a purse of 1 billion won ($747,000) — to secure her second title of the season.

In the final round Sunday at A-One Country Club (par 72) in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, Yoo posted four birdies and two bogeys for six points. Her total of 52 points edged joint runners-up Kim Min-sun and Ahn Ji-hyun, both on 51, by a single point, earning her the winner's check of 180 million won.

Last year's KLPGA Tour Player of the Year, Yoo had previously won the DB Women's Championship in May. The back-to-back victories mark the first time she has won twice in a single season, lifting her career total to four wins.

The tournament used a modified Stableford scoring system, awarding eight points for an albatross, five for an eagle, two for a birdie, zero for a par, minus one for a bogey and minus three for a double bogey or worse.

Yoo had entered the final round as the solo leader by four points. She added five points over the front nine — three birdies and a bogey — but Kim, playing in the same group, closed the gap with three birdies of her own. Yoo responded by sinking a 7.8-meter birdie putt on the par-4 10th to push her lead back out to five points. Kim then birdied the par-5 13th and par-4 14th in succession to pull within one.

Ahn Ji-hyun tees off on the first hole during the final round of the KLPGA Tour HJ Shipbuilding & Construction-Dongbu Championship at A-One Country Club in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, on Sunday. Ahn added 22 points on 11 birdies to mount a late charge before finishing in a tie for second. [KLPGA]

The title was decided on the final hole. Kim's 6.5-meter birdie putt on the par-4 18th slid past the left edge of the cup, and Yoo two-putted for par to seal the victory.

Ahn mounted a fierce late charge of her own. Starting the round in a tie for 15th, 16 points off the lead, she reeled off 11 birdies through the 16th hole to pull within one point of the top. Her tee shot on the 18th, however, found the left penalty area, leading to a bogey that ended her bid for a comeback win.

yjc@heraldcorp.com