Steadfast Stark wins maiden Major title

The Sun

2 days ago

SWEDEN'S Maja Stark played with poise and precision to claim her maiden Major title at the 80th US Women's Open presented by Ally on Sunday, fending off World No. 1 Nelly Korda of the United States at Erin Hills.
Taking a one-shot lead over Spanish qualifier Julia Lopez Ramirez into the final round, Stark signed off with a solid even-par 72 for a seven-under-par 281 (70, 69, 70, 72) total on a typically challenging USGA course set-up. The 25-year-old finished two shots clear of Korda (71) and Takeda (72), while Ramirez fell back into tied 19th position following a closing 79.
Stark went into the record books as the third Swede to win the championship and hoist the Harton S. Semple Trophy, joining legendary compatriots Liselotte Neumann (1988) and Annika Sorenstam (1995, 1996, 2006). Both Neumann and Sorenstam messaged Stark with words of encouragement following the third round.
'They texted me yesterday and just kind of said, bring it home. It was already cool to just get those texts. Just looking at all the names on the trophy, I love the U.S. Opens. I'm so happy that it's mine now,' said Stark.
Taking a page from Sorenstam's 10-Major book, Stark offset three bogeys with three birdies in a composed final round performance. While both Korda and Japan's Mao Saigo got to within one shot of Stark at different stages of the final round, the Swede kept calm and was able to pull away on the final stretch Saigo, winner of The Chevron Championship earlier this year, carded a closing 73 to share fourth place on four-under-par 284 with Korean Hye-Jin Choi (68) and China's Ruoning Yin (70).
'I didn't look at the leaderboard until I was on 17 when I caught a glimpse of it. I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be, because it felt like I have control of my game and I know what's going on. It felt like I could just control anything that was thrown at me today,' noted Stark.
The victory was Stark's second success on the LPGA Tour following the 2022 ISPS HANDA World Invitational presented by AVIA Clinics in Northern Ireland, which she won as a non-LPGA member.
The event was co-sanctioned with the Ladies European Tour, where Stark has won six times todate. Korda's joint runner-up finish was her best in 11 U.S. Women's Open starts, dating back to 2013 when she competed as a 14-year-old amateur. She missed the cut at Lancaster Country Club last year.
'Last year definitely put a dagger into my heart. But that's just golf. You're going to lose more than you win a majority of the time. I feel like I learn a lot about myself and my game, and where I need to improve, playing the US Women's Open, because it does test every part of your game,' said Korda, who counts two Major titles among her 15 LPGA Tour victories.
Malaysia's Kelly Tan missed the halfway cut of one-over-par following rounds of 75 and 78. Now competing on the Epson Tour as she bids to regain her LPGA card, the 31-year-old got into the championship by winning the 36-hole qualifier at Vancouver Golf Club.
Defending champion Yuka Saso of Japan (74, 72) and Thai star Jeeno Thitikul (75, 72) were among the notable players who failed to progress to the weekend.