Oh’s 9-under round secures Bowra & O’Dea Championship
It takes something special to overcome a deficit to Minjee Lee on the final day of a golf tournament, and Su-Hyun Oh’s 9-under round of 65, a Lake Karrinyup course record, was just enough to secure a one stroke victory over the World’s Number 1 ranked amateur golfer.
Oh, ranked fifth in the world, had eight birdies and an eagle in her round, trading the lead with Minjee Lee throughout the day as both players scores sunk lower and lower below par.
Oh found herself two strokes back of Lee after the 10th hole, as Lee birdied and Oh made her only bogey of the day. However, a five-under-par run over the final eight holes would send Oh into a two stroke lead after the 17th.
Down the stretch on the final hole, Minjee Lee was able to make things interesting, leaving her approach withing 6 feet while Oh remained off the green for two. Oh was calm under pressure, leaving her chip within 2 feet of the hole. While Lee was able to keep the pressure on by sinking her birdie putt, Oh would finish with a par and secure her first Bowra & O’Dea championship.
Both Oh and Lee will head to America next week, where they will play in their first Major tournament at the Kraft Nabisco Championships at Mission Hills in California.
SU-HYUN OH INTERVIEW
9-under-par. Does this happen very often for you?
Um, I don’t know! Last year’s Victorian Amateur, Minjee and I played in the final. It was crazy, I think I shot 17-under over 36 holes, and I only won by 3&2. Everytime we play I think we bring out the best in each other.
Is that a camaraderie thing or do you think the pressure brings out your best?
Yeah the pressure. I think I’m a person that plays better when I know what to do. She obviously always hits it close so then I think ‘Ok, I have to hit this close’. I think the focus level is a bit different. It wasn’t so much of a head to head between us, we just try and play the best we can. I really enjoyed playing with Minjee today as always because it’s good competition.
What do you take out of this week into you first major in America next week?
A lot of confidence. Over the summer Minjee played really well and I didn’t play as well as I wanted to, but I think my head is a little clearer now and because I’ve been making a few changes in my swing. So a lot of confidence and looking forward to next week to see what it’s like.
You commented about Karrie Webb’s name being on the trophy. What does it meant o you winning an event like the Bowra & O’Dea?
It feels like ‘Wow, Karries won this! I could become like Karrie!’. Well, maybe. [Laughs].
She’s a great ambassador for women’s golf, not only in Australia but everywhere. She’s just had another win recently, I think number 41. She was saying that if I wanted to do a practice round (next week at the Kraft Nabisco) than I’d be happy to do one, and I said ‘Yes! Please!’ so I look forward to next week and learning from her.”
Lee’s lead narrows ahead of final round
The Bowra & O’Dea WA Strokeplay Championships is set for a big final day, with Australia’s three best amateur golfers filling the top spots on the leaderboard after the completion of round three this afternoon.
Minjee Lee’s overnight lead of three strokes has narrowed to just one over World Number 5 amateur Su-Hyun Oh of Victroia. Oh had a steady round of 71 that featured four birdies and just the one bogey, as she made up ground on her rival Minjee Lee who faltered on the back-nine to come in with a 73 after making the turn at 3-under par.
Defending champion Hannah Green is within striking distance in third place, two strokes back of Lee at 12-under par. Green has been extremely consistent this tournament, going bogey free up until the 17th hole today. Facing her second bogey free round for the tournament, Green’s bogey on the 18th sent her back into third place and two back off the pace.
In the 54 hole event, Carmen Palframan holds a commanding lead on her home course, 18 strokes ahead of her nearest rival at 3-over par.
Lee, Green, Bettencourt and Oh set Karrinyup’s course record
An incredible day of golf over the opening two rounds of the Bowra & O’Dea WA Strokeplay saw four of Australia’s elite amateurs set the course record at the prestigious Lake Karrinyup Country Club.
Royal Fremantle’s Minjee Lee, Mount Lawley’s Hannah Green, Mandurah’s Hayley Bettencourt and Victoria’s Su-Hyun Oh bested the previous course record of 70 held by Jayde Panos, Jessica Speechley and Stacey Keating.
The record of 67 applies to the new course layout after Lake Karrinyup was lengthened in 2008. The previous mark was a 66 set in 2000 by Rebecca Stevenson.
Lee, Green and Oh all secured their 7-under rounds in the morning, starting their afternoon rounds with a five shot buffer over the rest of the field. There were 20 birdies shared amongst them throughout the morning, with nine of them belonging to Minjee Lee, while Green and Oh scored an eagle each.
Lee would have the best of the afternoon from the leading group, firing a 6-under 68 to sit at 13-under for the tournament after the opening day. Oh’s 71 leaves her three back of the pace in second place at 10-under.
Hayley Bettencourt backed up her 2-udner round of 72 in the morning with the best score in the afternoon, firing a 67 that included seven birdies including a run of four straight birdies to open the afternoon. Bettencourt sits in a tie for third place at 9-under alongside Hannah Green who was 2-under in her afternoon round.
The 2014 Bowra & O’Dea WA Strokeplay Championships is set to be the biggest in its history.
Played at Lake Karrunyup from the 24th to 26th of March, Australia’s best amateur golfers will battle over 72 holes for the state strokeplay title.
The Bowra O’Dea has an illustrious history, boasting one of Australia’s greatest golfers, Karrie Webb, as a previous champion. Webb is currently first on the ALPG order of merit, with another previous champion, WA’s Jessica Speechley, sitting fourth.
This year will feature the heavily hyped pair of Minjee Lee of Royal Frematle and Victoria’s Su-Hyn Oh. Lee, the world’s number 1 amateur, and Oh, the world’s number 5 amateur, have made headlines from their outstanding performances as amateurs in various professional tournaments over the past two years. Both Lee and Oh have finished runner-up at the Australian Ladies Masters, while Lee went one step further to win the Victorian Open in February.
Despite the multitude of achievements next to their names, neither Lee or Oh have won the Bowra & O’Dea, something that defending champion Hannah Green of Mount Lawley, Australia’s third ranked golfer, will be hoping will continue.
Green has also been outstanding in the past year, adding the Srixon Junior and WA Junior Amateur Championship titles to her win at the Bowra & O’Dea, while mixing it with the professionals at the Victorian Open where she made the cut.
Green was rewarded for her efforts last week, where she was announced to join Lee and Oh in the Australian Team picked to defend its Queen Sirikit title. Taking place just three weeks after the Bowra & O’Dea, it will be the perfect opportunity for Lee, Green and Oh to test each other before becoming Australian teammates in Malaysia.
With Lee stating publicly that she intends to play at the LPGA Qualifying School and become professional later this year, the Bowra & O’Dea is likely to be the final chance to see Lee play in Perth. It won’t take much of a stretch of an imagination to see Lee and Oh battling it out in the final rounds of LPGA and Major Tournaments in the near future, and the Bowra & O’Dea provides a tremendous opportunity for the Perth public to see what had been a great rivalry on the amateur stage before it’s launched on the world stage in the imminent future.
