Andrea Lee (48) vs. Lilia Vu (51)
Though Andrea Lee and Lilia Vu didn’t make it to the finals at the Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play presented by MGM Rewards, their consolation match was as hard-fought a battle as the championship match. Vu took an early 2-up lead with a birdie on No. 2 and a par on No. 3, but Lee bounced back quickly, winning the fourth hole with a birdie and parring the fifth to square the match. Vu would take three of the next seven holes, making birdie on eight, par on 10 and birdie on 12. Although Lee got a hole back with a par on the 14th, Vu won the next and closed out the match on 16 to win, 3 and 2, and finish third overall.
“(I’m) exhausted,” said Vu after playing 115 holes at Shadow Creek. “That's all I can say. It's tiring. My back is barely hanging in there. Going to have to do something before next week. I had a really good week this week, so I wasn't going to downplay all my victories just because of that loss (in the semifinals). Ayaka played really well and she deserved it. I'm proud of myself this week.”
Vu’s third-place finish is a career-best for the Epson Tour graduate and is her third top-10 of both the 2022 season and her LPGA Tour tenure – she finished T8 at the JTBC Classic presented by Barbasol back in March and T10 at last month’s DIO Implant LA Open. After a solid performance in Sin City, Vu now looks ahead to next week’s U.S. Women’s Open, where she will be carrying positive momentum and confidence to Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club in Southern Pines, North Carolina.
“I'm just excited to continue on and play better golf,” Vu said. “I think that I'm in a good place right now with my mental game and my golf game, and I'm just going to take the same energy over to the U.S. Open. Going to work on my weaknesses but also not neglect my strengths. I think that’s what I've been doing for a while. And just keep having fun. Honestly, I play my best golf when I'm having fun.”
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