POSITIVE VIBE FROM SUNG HYUN PARK DESPITE RUNNER-UP FINISH

Sung Hyun Park ultimately came up empty in her bid to claim a third LPGA Tour victory of the year at the LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship on Sunday, and with it the prospect of becoming the Rolex Rankings World No. 1 for the first time.

However, the slim Korean preferred to dwell on all the positives she had achieved during a week of mainly impressive golf at SKY72 Golf & Resort where she finished alone in second place after closing with a four-under 68.

“I think I did a great job,” Park said after briefly overhauling the overnight leader, Jin Young Ko, during the final round before her title challenge effectively unravelled with bogeys at the 14th and 16th. “Obviously Jin Young was doing outstanding today. Overall I’m pretty satisfied with my round.”

The par-four 14th hole was a pivotal one as Park three-putted for bogey there while Ko, playing alongside her and In Gee Chun in a high-profile final group, did well to save par with a difficult two-putt from long range.

“I actually putted quite well at the beginning,” said Park, who birdied four of the first 11 holes. “I read the lie on 14 accurately but the ball descended someplace I didn’t intend it to. That was a very disappointing hole obviously.

“It seems that after last year, again this year victory is just outside my reach. I did a really good first round, but I’ll be thinking about the second, third, and fourth rounds for a while.”

Park tied for 13th in last year’s LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship after fading with a 74 in the final round. As for that elusive top spot in the Rolex Rankings, she took a long-term approach.

“There are still many events left this season, and I think that’s the type of goal you continue to work hard to reach,” said Park. “There are events left, so I’ll just give it my best shot.”

KO LEARNS VALUABLE LESSONS DURING HER TRIUMPHANT DISPLAY

Playing in the final group with her former rivals on the KLPGA, Sung Hyun Park and In Gee Chun, and ultimately emerging triumphant on Sunday was both meaningful and educational for Jin Young Ko.

While the other two players have gone on to win major championships and have become dominant figures on the LPGA Tour, Ko remained in her homeland and plied her trade on the Korean LPGA Tour.

“It’s really meaningful for me, especially since a few years back when I was playing with In Gee and Sung Hyun, unwillingly and unintentionally we were kind of caught up in the media’s eyes in a rivalry,” Ko said after clinching her first LPGA Tour victory by two shots at the LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship.

“This was a bit stressful. I think that during this event, and especially today, I really learned a lot from them. Through them, I have been able to be given the opportunity to think about how I want to play my golf going forward.

“Today, although I was in contention, I wasn’t really focused on winning that much. I was playing against exceptional players that rank much higher than me on the global ranking. But rather today I was able to observe a lot. I actually learned a lot today as well.”

Chun and Park have the biggest fan bases in Korea and their supporters were instrumental in the fact that record galleries of 31,726 swarming across the Ocean Course on Sunday.

“In the final grouping, I was able to really realize just how many fans In Gee and Sung Hyun have,” smiled Ko. “When we were walking from hole to hole, the gallery would be cheering for them and I couldn’t really hear my name. That was a bit disappointing slightly, but at the same time I knew God was on my side. It was a first for me to play in front of such a large crowd. I think that that is also going to be an experience that can help me grow further as a player.”

CIGANDA UPBEAT ABOUT HER TITLE DEFENSE DESPITE LATE FADE

Carlota Ciganda was delighted with her title defense at the LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship, even though she dropped back into a tie for eighth on Sunday after surging into contention with a burst of four successive birdies to close her outward nine.

“I’ve been playing good, and I think I have to take the positives,” said Ciganda, who went on to run up a double-bogey at the 12th and bogeys on 16 and 18 before carding a level-par 72. “I just hit a bad shot on 12. I don’t have to worry too much because I’ve been playing great.

Started pretty good on the front nine, and then 16 was a tough pin ... I just tried to hit it to the green; I missed it. I tried my best. I like the course. I wanted to play good. I love playing here. I think the greens were harder today. The course was playing tough.”

Record total galleries of 61,996 turned out during the week SKY72 Golf & Resort, and Ciganda relished their support for all the players in the elite field of 78.

“They know their golf,” said Ciganda, who won last year’s LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship after edging out Alison Lee with a birdie on the first extra hole. “There were lots of fans yesterday and today, especially having the Korean players out there in the leading groups. I think it’s really good for all of us, the players and the Korean crowd.”

SUNG HYUN PARK MOVES UP IN THE FINAL STRETCH IN THE RACE TO THE CME GLOBE

This week’s LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship is the 28th event in the season-long Race to the CME Globe. Thanks to her runner-up finish on Sunday, World No. 2 Sung Hyun Park earns 300 more points and climbs to second in the standings with 2,919 points. World No. 3 Lexi Thompson leads in the Race with 3,266 points, with World No. 1 So Yeon Ryu (2,776 points) in third and Brooke Henderson (2,631 points) fourth.

CME GROUP CARES WEEKENDS EAGLES UPDATE AFTER THE LPGA KEB HANA BANK CHAMPIONSHIP

CME Group Cares Weekend is a season-long charitable giving program that turns eagles into donations. For each eagle recorded during weekend play (Saturday and Sunday) throughout the 2017 LPGA Tour season, CME Group donates $1,000 to the program’s total donation count. The money raised will go towards a charitable pool and be split evenly between Wounded Warrior Project® and Bright Pink®.

Players scored 10 eagles over the weekend at the 2017 LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship, raising another $10,000 for charity. This brings the total to 261 eagles on the year, which translates to $261,000 raised.

2017 LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship Final Round Notes and Interviews

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