It was a tough closing round of five-over 76 for Lee-Anne Pace on Sunday in the KMG Women’s PGA Championship as her five-over-par 76 saw her slip all the way down to a share of 30th at one-over-par at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey.
It wasn’t helpful for her either that there was a break for weather early on in her round, and, in the end, her early double-bogey six on the second came to define her effort after such a good start with her opening three rounds.
She had made amends for that early double-bogey with a birdie on the fourth, but then came the delay. When the players returned, she was not able to get going as well as she might have liked, and, although she put together a string of pars up to the 12th, successive bogeys on 13 and 14, and a painful second double on the 17th put paid to her chances of a better finish.
In the end, a player with whom she was drawn in the final round, Ruoning Yin of China, ran out the winner, with her closing four-under 67 giving her a one-stroke edge over Japan’s Yuka Saso and her first major championship title. Carlota Ciganda of Spain, Anna Nordqvist of Sweden, American Megan Khang, Xiyu Lin of China, and England’s Stephanie Meadow shared third on six-under, two strokes behind the winner.
Ashleigh Buhai also battled in the final round, carding a three-over-par 74 to finish in a share of 39th on three-over for the tournament.
