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There was never going to be a loser. Both players in the final of the inaugural Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas won their first LPGA Tour events in 2020 after up-and-down careers. Both have great stories, tales of grit and determination, tempered with vibrant, upbeat personalities that make them fan favorites and media darlings. Winner Ally Ewing (above) and runner-up Sophia Popov were the perfect pairing for this finale, a charming, dynamic duo on a course the golf world was eager to see.
Nothing and nobody disappointed. Ewing, who has Type 1 diabetes and has to check her blood sugar every other hole, jumped to a quick 2-up lead through six holes ahead of Popov, who struggled early in her career with undiagnosed Lyme Disease. Both survived a grueling week in the desert with temperatures inching toward triple digits most afternoons. It was so hot on Sunday, in fact, that Shanshan Feng conceded to Ariya Jutanugarn in the semifinal match before hitting a single shot.
This was a test of wills as much as skills. And not just in the final.
In the round-robin portion of the event (patterned after the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play on the PGA Tour), Ewing lost her opener on Wednesday to Leona Maguire, 2 and 1, which put her in jeopardy of not advancing out of pool play. But a come-from-behind 2-and-1 victory against Christina Kim on Thursday was followed by a 1-up victory against Jennifer Kupcho on Friday. Ewing then beat Jenny Coleman in 19 holes on Saturday morning, another match where Ewing trailed much of the round. And in the afternoon, she upset Las Vegas resident and unofficial host Danielle Kang, 1 up, with a birdie on the 18th hole.
Sunday morning, Ewing never trailed in her 1-up win against Jutanugarn.
Popov had the easier go of it earlier in the week. She tied her first match against Hee Young Park, then trounced Su Oh, 5 and 4, and Sung Hyun Park, 6 and 5. The biggest upset was a 20-hole defeat of Inbee Park where it was Popov, not Park, who made a long putt to close things out. Then, Popov continued to ride the upset train with a 3-and-2 win against Patty Tavatanakit and a 1-up victory against Feng in the semifinal match on Sunday morning.
Both finalists brought match-play experience. Ewing was on the victorious U.S. Curtis Cup team in 2014 at St. Louis Country Club. And in 2019, she was a late replacement for the injured Stacy Lewis on Juli Inkster’s U.S. Solheim Cup team, where she could have been the winning point but for a late singles birdie barrage by Bronte Law.
Popov represented Germany in numerous match-play events throughout her amateur career, which had many observers seeing this final as a preview of the Solheim Cup at Inverness Club in September.
Ewing, playing on her first wedding anniversary, took her 2-up lead on Sunday afternoon in which both players appeared to be dragging in the heat. Popov ate into the lead with a par win at 11, and both made great birdies at the difficult par-3 13th. The difference-maker came at 14 when, in perfect match-play fashion, Ewing, who missed the green short, drained a 70-foot putt that broke 6 feet left-to-right. Popov had a 20-footer to halve the hole that missed just low. Ewing regained a 2-up lead that she never relinquished, closing things out with a 4-foot putt to halve the 17th.
“I had good thoughts from my first win on my birthday at Drive On (Championship at Reynolds Lake Oconee last October),” she said, “and I thought, why not cap this one off on our anniversary?”
Steve Eubanks