Jenny Shin Wins Scottish Women's Open, Secures Second LPGA Title After 10 Years

Golfer Jenny Shin has claimed an emotional victory on the LPGA Tour, her first in 10 years.

Shin shot a 3-over-par 75 with two birdies and five bogeys in the final fourth round of the ISPS HANDA Women's Scottish Open held at Dundonald Links in North Ayrshire, Scotland.

With a final total of 9-under-par 279, Shin captured the title by finishing two strokes ahead of runner-up Kim A-lim.

The winner's prize is 300,000 dollars, which is approximately 430 million won in Korean currency.

Having competed on the LPGA Tour since 2011 and earned her first win in May 2016 at the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout, Shin experienced the joy of her second victory after 10 years and 2 months.

Following Yu Hae-ran's consecutive major victories at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship at the end of last month and the Amundi Evian Championship two weeks ago, Shin's triumph at this tournament extends the winning streak by South Korean players to three consecutive events on the LPGA Tour.

Including Kim Hyo-joo's two wins and Lee Mi-hyang's one win earlier in March, South Korean players have combined for six victories this season.

Expectations are running even higher as the winning momentum continues ahead of the AIG Women's Open, the final major of the season, which opens on the 30th.

Starting the tournament in a tie for the lead after shooting 6-under-par on the first day, Shin moved into sole possession of the lead in the second round, extended her lead to five strokes over the second-place golfer in the third round, and maintained the top spot on the leaderboard through the final day.

Having held a five-stroke lead over Thailand's Pajaree Anannarukarn going into the third round, Shin initially pulled further ahead to as much as eight strokes after parring through the first five holes early in the day.

However, she wavered sharply with three consecutive bogeys starting from the 6th hole, allowing Anannarukarn to close within three strokes.

Struggling with tee shot inconsistencies amid the strong winds typical of links courses, Shin managed to salvage par after reaching the green with her third shot on the par-4 9th hole. On this hole, however, Anannarukarn clinched a birdie, narrowing the gap further to two strokes.

Shin bounced back by sinking her first birdie of the day on the par-4 10th hole, the first hole of the back nine. With Anannarukarn recording a bogey on the same hole, Shin re-established a four-stroke cushion and regained her composure.

Anannarukarn effectively fell out of the title race after even surrendering second place to Kim A-lim, who played in the group ahead. Meanwhile, Shin firmly preserved her four-stroke lead over Kim by placing her second shot close to the pin for a birdie on the par-4 12th hole.

Though her birdie putt on the 15th hole rolled well past the cup and left her with a tricky distance, Shin managed to save par and pumped her fist as if certain of victory.

After dropping a shot with a bogey on the par-4 16th hole due to missing the green with her second shot, Shin faced a difficult finish on the par-4 18th hole when her tee shot landed in the bushes on the right side of the fairway while she held a three-stroke lead.

Extracting herself safely with her second shot, Shin avoided taking unnecessary risks by hitting her fourth shot onto the green and wrapped up the tournament with a two-putt bogey, bringing her long wait to a close.

Kim A-lim recorded her best finish of the season by shaving four strokes off her score, while Anannarukarn dropped two strokes to finish in third place at 5-under-par.

Choi Hye-jin shot a daily-best 5-under-par to tie with Yang Hee-young for 13th place at 1-over-par.

Kim Hyo-joo finished in a tie for 16th place at 2-over-par alongside world number one Nelly Korda, completing the round with a rare scorecard consisting entirely of pars across all 18 holes.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.