Shin Ji-yai ties for second as Lydia Ko wins Women's British Open; Kim In-kyung announces retirement

Shin Ji-yai tied for second at the Women's British Open on Sunday, falling two behind Lydia Ko at five-under alongside Lilia Vu, Nelly Korda and Ruoning Yin on The Old Course at St Andrews.

Shin Ji-yai plays from the third tee on day four of the Women's British Open on the Old Course at St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland on Sunday. [AFP/YONHAP]

Shin Ji-yai tied for second at the Women's British Open on Sunday, falling two behind Lydia Ko at five-under alongside Lilia Vu, Nelly Korda and Ruoning Yin on The Old Course at St Andrews.

Ko, who had trailed in third place on Saturday, surged up the leaderboard with a three-under, 69, despite facing very challenging Scottish weather conditions on Sunday, leapfrogging Shin and Vu to take first place.

Shin, who had been leading after the first round, hit a plus-two, 74, on Sunday to drop to second. Vu held at second with a 73, while Korda managed par to rise from third to second and Yin climbed up four spots with a two-under, 70.

The win snapped a lengthy major drought for Ko that has lasted since the spring of 2016, an anomaly in a career that most recently includes an Olympic gold medal and a place in the LPGA Hall of Fame.

New Zeland's Lydia Ko poses with the trophy after winning the Women's British Open on the Old Course at St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland Sunday. [AFP/YONHAP]

That win came after holding off one of the most competitive final packs possible in a tournament of this size — reigning champion Vu, world No. 1 Korda and one of only two two-time winners in the history of the tournament, Shin.

“I don’t think there’s a word in the dictionary that can explain what just happened,” Ko said after the tournament.

The win earns Ko $1.425 million, with Vu, Korda, Shin and Yin each taking $594,759.

Shin was joined in the top 10 by compatriot Im Jin-hee, who finished T10 with one-under on the tournament.

Kim In-kyung, another Korean golfer and former Women’s British Open winner, announced her retirement after the tournament Sunday, hanging up her clubs after an 18-year professional career with seven LPGA and four Ladies European Tour wins to her name.

In this file photo, Kim In-kyung kisses the trophy after winning the 2017 Women's British Open at Kingsbarns Golf Links near St. Andrews in Scotland, on Aug. 6, 2017. [AFP/YONHAP]

Kim, who finished 81st on Sunday, is perhaps best known for a painful short putt miss that lost her the ANA Inspiration in 2012, but her career was also defined by her commitment to charity, famously giving her entire winner’s check from the 2010 Lorena Ochoa Invitational to charity and donating huge amounts of money to the Special Olympics.

“I’m most proud of the hard work that I’ve put into,” said Kim. “I wasn’t the most talented or the most gifted, but I loved the game. I was willing to travel anywhere to play golf and learn the game, and I wanted to thank all the girls here. I’ve learned so much from them.” “I just want to say thank you to everyone. My career has been a lot of up and down, but you guys made it all beautiful.”

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]