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At high noon Monday at Champions Golf Club, 10 players were within four strokes of the U.S. Women’s Open top spot with leader Amy Olson just having made the turn. An old-fashioned Texas shootout? Sure seemed that way.
A Lim Kim had other ideas. On a raw, gray day during which birdies were at a premium, the 25-year-old South Korean strung together three in a row on her way in to snatch away the newly named Mickey Wright Medal.
Kim closed with 67 – the best on the course and one of just four sub-70 final rounds – to become only the fifth player to win America's national championship in her first appearance.
Before Olson began her final round, the tragic news of her father-in-law’s death compounded the challenge of trying to win a major championship. But bolstered by her family, her friends and especially her faith, Steve Eubanks writes, she persevered and nearly completed a remarkable title run.
Little-known before Monday, Kim jumped from No. 94 to No. 30 in the Rolex Rankings with a victory that was historic on a number of levels.
Also in Houston, Rose Zhang capped off an extraordinary competitive year by joining the field with the best professionals in the world. Sean Fairholm relates that while the world No. 1 amateur had a short week, it cannot take the luster off an otherwise dominant 2020.
Meanwhile, the European Tour concluded its 2020 season in Dubai on Sunday, and while Matthew Fitzpatrick was the tournament winner, Lee Westwood was the bigger story.
For the younger Englishman, it was a second victory since 2016 in one of the circuit’s signature events, the DP World Tour Championship. For the former world No. 1 who claimed his third Harry Vardon Trophy, it was sweet vindication.
As John Hopkins shares, Westwood still benefits from a sound, strong mind and a well-rounded game. Combine that with the maturity and calmness he always has shown, and this latest highlight is perhaps not all that surprising.
The 26-year-old Fitzpatrick claimed his first tour victory in nearly 27 months. Joy Chakravarty explains that Fitzpatrick’s faith in his game helped deliver him the title again.
Also, South Africa’s Christiaan Bezuidenhout capped a strong season with his T14 finish at Jumeirah Golf Estates. Michael Vlismas reports that as respect for his talents grows, so does the realization there is more in store.
There will be more sets of eyeballs on this week’s father/son event in Orlando, Florida, than usual and it might just have to do with the presence of Tiger Woods and his son, Charlie. Ron Green Jr. says this will be one of the coolest moments of Woods’ career.
Love the game? You’ve probably gotten one of those gifts at holiday time. Green Jr. recognizes that golf gifts are fraught with peril, and in this week's edition of the Divot he suggests a tried-and-true remedy.
Sam Dolson
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