Xiyu Lin clinched her third Ladies European Tour (LET) title after securing a playoff victory at the Aramco Team Series presented by PIF – Hong Kong.
The final round of the event in Hong Kong had to be cancelled due to Typhoon Koinu with the government issuing a T8 alert.
At the end of the second round on Saturday, there were two players tied at the top of the leaderboard on 11-under-par with Korea’s Jin Young Ko and China’s Lin.
With the tournament being shortened to 36 holes, both Ko and Lin headed back to Hong Kong Golf Club on Sunday morning for a playoff that started at 9.30 am (local time).
On the first playoff hole, world number three Ko found the water with her second shot but landed her fourth shot just a few feet from the pin.
Lin had the chance to make a par putt to win, but it missed on the right side, so she tapped in for a five, before Ko rolled in her putt to also make a five and send them both back to the tee.
With the wind blowing and the rain coming down, Lin landed her second shot on the edge of the green while Ko was off the green on the right-hand side.
The Chinese star then rolled in her monster birdie putt to put pressure on the two-time Major champion, who needed to hole her chip shot.
Despite a good effort, Ko was unable to make a birdie leaving Lin and her caddie to celebrate on the edge of the green as she clinched her third LET title.
“It means a lot, it’s something you don’t do lots of times and I’m just happy I got it done in front of everybody watching,” said Lin.
“Especially after the first playoff hole where I missed that shorter winning putt, I was a little bit nervous. After I missed that putt, I quickly regrouped myself. On the second hole I think I played a lot smoother. I didn’t think I could make a birdie in these conditions on the 18th hole so that’s a big bonus for me, I’m just happy I got it done.
“Whenever you can capture a win in front of the world number one and world number three, it’s a pretty good feeling and also this week I got so much support from the local fans. I feel really grateful. This means a lot to me and will always hold a very special place in my heart.”
It is the third playoff that Lin has contended in over the past two seasons, having lost two on the LPGA Tour at the 2022 Honda LPGA Thailand and 2023 JM Eagle LA Championship.
However, the world number 12 has been staying patient and waiting for her time to come and she was pleased that it happened in Hong Kong.
She explained: “That was one of my best putts, I have been in playoffs a lot of times in the past two seasons and I haven’t won one but I kept telling myself that I haven’t done anything wrong and my time is going to come.
“I am playing against Jin Young, it’s not easy, she’s one of the best players in the world but in these conditions, everyone is the same. Whoever stays the most patient wins this playoff. I handled this really well, I’m proud of myself and I’m glad. I know this putt is a bonus, but because I stayed so patient this is my bonus and my time.”
Dutch star Anne Van Dam finished the week in third place on 10-under-par with Australia’s Stephanie Kyriacou and Spain’s Nuria Iturrioz one shot further back in a share of fourth place.
Sweden’s Lisa Pettersson and Thailand’s Trichat Cheenglab were in a tie for sixth place on seven-under-par with Lilia Vu, Leonie Harm and Tiffany Chan rounding out the top 10 on four-under-par.
In the 2023 Race to Costa del Sol, France’s Celine Boutier still leads the way with 1,792.88 points with Sweden’s Johanna Gustavsson in second (1,551.07) and Spain’s Ana Peláez Triviño in third (1,487.20).
India’s Diksha Dagar is in fourth place having accumulated 1,484.61 points with Thailand’s Cheenglab close behind in fifth and she now has 1,448.22 points.
India’s Aditi Ashok is sixth, Sweden’s Linn Grant is seventh and Czechia’s Klara Davidson Spilkova is eighth with Dutch star Van Dam moving from 21st to ninth place (1,142.80) in the standings.
Just behind Van Dam in tenth spot is Spain’s Iturrioz with 1,131.51 points while Pettersson have moved into 11th place.
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