The Korea Herald

Henley wins playoff at Honda Classic

Mar 3, 2014

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (AP) ― Russell Henley made good on his second chance at the 18th hole Sunday and won the Honda Classic after a wild day that began with Tiger Woods walking off the course with a back injury and ended with a four-man playoff.The closing hour at PGA National was a series of blunders by the contenders ― and even the winner.Henley was in a three-way tie for the lead, 40 yards left of the flag on the par-5 18th in regulation, when he chunked a chip so badly that it only go
Korea to host LPGA qualifying tournament

Mar 3, 2014

South Korea will stage its first-ever qualifying tournament for the U.S. Women’s Open, one of five majors in women’s golf, officials announced Monday.The Korea Golf Association said it has reached an agreement with the United States Golf Association to hold the 36-hole qualifying event on May 19 at Woo Jeong Hills Country Club in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, about 90 kilometers south of Seoul. (Yonhap)
McIlroy ups lead going into last round

Mar 2, 2014

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (AP) ― Rory McIlroy is 18 holes away from his first PGA Tour victory in 18 months, a chance to show the world he is back on his game.That’s not the way McIlroy views the final round at the Honda Classic.McIlroy started strong, avoided a big number with a brilliant bogey in the middle and took on the wind and water on the 16th hole for one final birdie Saturday that gave him a 1-under 69 in the toughest conditions and a two-shot lead over Russell Henley at PGA National
Upward momentum

Feb 28, 2014

McIlroy takes the lead at Honda Classic
Park admits world No. 1 up for grabs

Feb 26, 2014

SINGAPORE (AFP) ― Park In-bee admitted she was resigned to the prospect of losing the world’s top ranking with Suzann Pettersen breathing down her neck at this week’s HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore.The South Korean starlet swept three major titles in 2013 and she made a fast start to her season last week in Thailand, carding six-under 66 on Sunday to finish second.But Park, 25, said she expected a shift in the rankings with Norway’s Pettersen capable of catching her this week, and defending
Golfer Park In-bee retains world's top spot for 46th week

Feb 25, 2014

South Korea's Park In-bee has held the top post in the women's world golf rankings for the 46th consecutive week.In the latest Rolex Rankings announced Tuesday, the 26-year-old solidified her top spot after getting an average of 10.3 ranking points.Suzann Pettersen of Norway, who competed for the money title against Park in the Honda LPGA Thailand of 2014 on Sunday, ranked second with 9.54 points, followed by Stacy Lewis of the United States with 8.70.Anna Nordqvist, who had claimed the latest L
Els reaches semifinals

Feb 23, 2014

MARANA, Arizona (AP) ― The love-hate relationship Ernie Els has with the Match Play Championship is taking a major turn for the better.Els made a birdie from the desert on the par-5 eighth hole to take the lead for good Saturday against 20-year-old Jordan Spieth, reaching the semifinals in this fickle tournament for the first time in 13 years.It was the first time all week that Els made more birdies than bogeys, yet he somehow has survived.“At times I haven’t played my best, as you guys have wel
Lee Min-jee wins Women’s Victorian Open

Feb 23, 2014

MELBOURNE (AP) ― Seventeen-year-old amateur Lee Min-jee shot a final-round 68 Sunday to win the Women’s Victorian Open by six shots, claiming her first victory in a professional event.Lee, who started the day three shots clear of fellow Australian Sarah-Jane Smith, had eight birdies to finish at 16-under 279 at the Thirteenth Beach links course. Scotland’s Vicky Laing shot a 66 to finish second at 10-under 285 and Smith was third at 8-under 287.Lee, the reigning Australian amateur champion, has
McDowell makes another escape in Match Play

Feb 21, 2014

MARANA, Arizona (AP) ― Getting to the round of 16 in the Match Play Championship was all that mattered Thursday. Jordan Spieth made it look like child‘s play. Graeme McDowell aged another 10 years with another stunning escape. And it proved too difficult for Henrik Stenson, Justin Rose and Rory McIlroy, who lost in extra holes on another wild day at Dove Mountain. “I thought I was dead and buried both days,” McDowell said. One day after he rallied from 3 down with three holes to play to win in o
Park faces battle to stay world No. 1

Feb 19, 2014

PATTAYA, Thailand (AFP) ― World No. 1 Park In-bee is under severe threat of losing the top ranking as she makes a delayed start to the season with her LPGA Thailand title defense from Thursday.The South Korean has held the top spot for 45 weeks, but her formerly healthy lead has been whittled away by Norway’s Suzann Pettersen and could disappear altogether in Pattaya.Pettersen missed a great opportunity to overhaul Park last week when, needing a strong finish at the Women’s Australian Open, she
Bubba Watson ends 2-year winless drought at Riviera

Feb 17, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Bubba Watson wasn’t about to let another chance get away.Two weeks after Watson made a pair of late bogeys in the Phoenix Open, he delivered the best closing round at Riviera in some three decades. Watson played the final 39 holes without a bogey and shot a 7-under 64 on Sunday to win the Northern Trust Open.It was his first victory in 22 months and 41 tournaments worldwide dating to the 2012 Masters.Watson wound up with a two-shot victory over Dustin Johnson, who closed with
Karrie Webb wins Australian Open

Feb 16, 2014

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Karrie Webb won the Women’s Australian Open for the fifth time Sunday, shooting a 4-under 68 in the final round to beat Chella Choi by one stroke.Webb birdied the 18th hole to take the outright lead, then watched as Choi, who shot a course-record 62 on Saturday to take a share of the third-round lead, pushed a 10-foot putt wide of the hole at 18 to miss the chance for a playoff.Webb, who clinched her 40th LPGA title, finished at 12-under 276 overall. She previously w
Veteran Couples still relevant at Riviera

Feb 13, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Fred Couples doesn’t talk in circles, but that’s generally the path of his conversation.He can talk about Justin Bieber and Blake Griffin one minute, switch over to the redo of the fifth green at Riviera the next minute, and then wonder why the Champions Tour gets to play Pebble Beach during the prime part of the season.The 54-year-old Couples went silent when talking about his 32nd appearance at the Northern Trust Open, where he will play the opening two rounds with Webb Simp
Watson focused on games, not names in Ryder Cup

Feb 12, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― This is what Tom Watson knows about the American with a big lead in the Ryder Cup standings.Jimmy Walker is 35.He already has three PGA Tour wins this year. And his hobby is creating photographs of the galaxy.“The first book I read was, ‘All About Astronomy,’” Watson said. “If he makes the Ryder Cup team, maybe we’ll have some common things to talk about.”Watson was at Riviera on Tuesday, even though he is playing this week on the other side of the country in a Champions Tour
Walker hangs on to win at Pebble

Feb 10, 2014

PEBBLE BEACH, California (AP) ― The finish wasn’t what Jimmy Walker wanted. The result is what he’s come to expect.Walker led by as many as six shots Sunday in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, only for it to be decided by his final putt. He ran his birdie attempt 5 feet by the hole, and had to make that for par to close with a 2-over 74 and a one-shot win over Dustin Johnson and Jim Renner.“It’s drama, man,” Walker said on the 18th green. “It was too much for me.”But it was a familiar outc