Ji Han-sol wins Jeju Samdasoo Masters with big comeback

Ji Han-sol won the Jeju Samdasoo Masters on Sunday after a big comeback against 54-hole-leader Choi Ye-rim who was looking for her first-ever KLPGA title.

Ji han-sol celebrates winning the Jeju Samdasoo Masters on Sunday at Elysian Jeju on Jeju Island. [KLPGA]

Ji Han-sol won the Jeju Samdasoo Masters on Sunday after a big comeback against 54-hole-leader Choi Ye-rim who was looking for her first-ever KLPGA title.

Ji carded an overall 14-under-par on Sunday, clinching the silverware one stroke over runner-up Choi who narrowly missed out on the wire-to-wire victory, having led the first three rounds.

Choi Ye-rim tees off on the fifth hole during the final round of the Jeju Samdasoo Masters on Sunday at Elysian Jeju on Jeju Island. [KLPGA]

Park Hyun-kyung tees off on the fifth hole during the final round of the Jeju Samdasoo Masters on Sunday at Elysian Jeju on Jeju Island. [KLPGA]

On Thursday, Choi smashed through the first round with nine birdies and two bogies. Then on Friday, Choi added five birdies but slipped in the par-4 11th, carding her first double bogey.

However, Choi was still able to keep a two-stroke lead over four players who were tied for second place heading into moving day.

Choi kept that lead, carding five birdies and three bogies on Saturday, and went into the final round on top of the leaderboard, two strokes ahead of Park Hyun-kyung who was in second place at the time and three strokes ahead of Ji in third place.

Ji opened her final round with a birdie, trying to catch up with Choi. But Choi was also in good form, adding a birdie in the par-5 fourth. Then Ji added one of her own in the next par-4 fifth.

In the par-3 seventh, Ji pulled off a stunt that fell just short of an eagle as her tee shot hit the flag and dropped right next to the hole, setting her up for a tap-in birdie.

Choi did not back down, birdying the eighth while Ji bogied the same hole.

In the par-3 12th, Ji's form wavered as her tee shot landed past the green, leading to her second bogey of the round — but also her last.

"The mistake [in the par-3 12th] was something that had already been made, and I thought that I had many more chances to recover," said Ji at a post-tournament interview on Sunday. "I kept thinking to myself that I could make up for that in the next hole, and so after expressing frustration at that moment, I just forgot about it right away."

Ji started her big comeback from the par-5 15th, carding four back-to-back birdies.

In the par-5 15th, Ji's shot landed in a bunker, but a great recovery led to a birdie, which seemed to give Ji the confidence that she needed.

In the par-3 16th, Ji slotted in a 4.9-yard-long birdie putt. Then in the second to last hole, Ji pulled off the stunt of the day, slotting in a 10.7-yard-long putt to birdie the hole.

"At the time, I felt that the tide had turned in my favor," said Ji. "I was confident with my putter and even though that putt in the par-3 16th was long, I could see the lie on the green clearly, and I putted with confidence."

Ji's last iron on the par-4 18th virtually concreted her win as the ball hit the pole and dropped right next to the hole, setting her up for a tap-in birdie, while Choi's shot landed far from the hole.

"Regarding my iron shot in the last hole, the distance left to reach the green was about 125 meters," said Ji. "That's my favorite distance to play using my nine iron."

While Ji smashed through the four holes, Choi failed to add any birdies in the back nine and was only able to par the last four holes, falling one stroke behind and missing out on what would have been her first-ever title on the 114th KLPGA tournament of her career. This is Choi's second-ever runner up finish.

For Ji, this is her third KLPGA title and first title of the season. Ji won her first title in November of 2017 at the ADT CAPS Championship and her second title last May at the 9th E1 Charity Open.

"I am so grateful for my fans who came all the way here to Jeju to cheer for me, and I am glad that I could win for my fans today," said Ji.

"I don't want to be too greedy in setting my goals this season, but I want to keep in the top 10 and keep my form."

BY YUN SO-HYANG [yun.sohyang@joongang.co.kr]