Pettersen then started to struggle a bit more, and dropped off the chase. But Waugh hung in there. Se Ri made a birdie on 16 to move to 15 under, but Waugh kept pace with a long bomb of her own. This was an impressive birdie for Se Ri, a shot at a tough pin placement that she put within 8 feet of the flag, but Waugh's 30+ foot putt meant she squared the hole. On 17, Waugh made another lengthy putt, and suddenly they were tied. Then came the exciting par 5 18th hole, where both women reached the fringe in two. Shani went first, but her eagle chip stopped just short of the hole. Almost certainly a birdie, so the pressure was on Se Ri. But her chip was pretty bad, and though she reached the surface she left herself with a good 15 feet for birdie. A must make, or all the work she had done to that point would be for naught. She took her time lining it up, then stroked it. The putt drifted closer, slowly, then dropped, to the wild cheers of the crowd. Se Ri gave an exultant fist pump to the sky; the superstar had stepped up to the plate and made the tough play that had to be made. Waugh cleaned up her two footer, and the playoff was on.

Se Ri makes the birdie on 18. Playoff time!
AP Photo/John Bazemore

Se Ri has not been in a playoff since 1999, at the Pagenet Tour Championship. There, she was matched against no less a group than Laura Davies and Karrie Webb. Se Ri won that one after a superlative 8 iron around a tree to four feet. Se Ri's other two playoff both resulted in wins as well, and were both notable. One was against five other players at the 1999 Jamie Farr Kroger Classic. It was the largest playoff in LPGA history, and Se Ri had won it with a birdie on the first playoff hole. The other was, of course, the epic twenty hole marathon against Jenny Chuasiriporn at the 1998 U.S. Women's Open, the tournament, more than any other, that put Se Ri Pak on the map.

So Se Ri was undefeated in playoffs, but that didn't mean anything now. Nor did the 64 she shot to get into the playoff. No, she still needed to produce, even if her opponent was untested in this situation. After all, Waugh had managed her own 65, with no less than ten birdies, to get here. They teed off again on 18, but this time Se Ri's tee shot found a fairway bunker. Not her best shot, but she was lucky not to have found the water. Waugh hit a perfect drive, and her approach found the fringe behind the green. Se Ri need to get there to make sure she'd be OK. And she did, landing her own shot behind the green, albeit twice as far from the hole as Waugh. But her delicate chip was great, and it left her with a two footer she easily negotiated for birdie. So now everything stood in Waugh's hands; if she made the eagle putt from the fringe, the trophy was hers. But nerves got to her, and she left the shot well short. Now she needed the birdie putt just to stay in the playoff, but to her credit, she came up with the goods. On to playoff hole 2.

They next went to play the tenth hole, where earlier in the day Se Ri had hit her tee shot into the water. This time her drive was perfect. Waugh hit her approach practically on top of the flag, but it spun back to the fringe, while Se Ri put herself only ten feet right of the flag. Advantage Pak. Waugh went first, but her putt went well past the hole, and now Se Ri really had a good chance to put it away. She stroked a beautiful putt, and was halfway into her victory fistpump when the ball lipped out. Still, she made the par, and Waugh now was faced with a six footer to continue. Once again, Waugh made the clutch putt, and she and Se Ri returned to the 18th hole for the third time this day.

This time they both hit good drives, and Waugh once again hit a great approach. Se Ri had a beautiful opportunity, as she sat in the middle of the fairway, but pulled her drive to the right. For a minute it looked like it would be a disaster, but it ended up landing behind the scoring tent. She got a free drop from there, which at least gave her a look at the flag. But she was also in deep rough, and had to carry a bunker, and pretty much had to get it up and down to continue.

So close! Fist pumpus interruptus for Se Ri on
the second playoff hole
Reuters/Tami Chappell

Finally Waugh, whose swing had been gradually shortening as time went on, made a fatal error. She hit her drive slightly left, but that was enough to roll it into the water. Se Ri hit a perfect drive. Now Waugh needed to produce a miracle to survive. She sized up her approach and struck it, but it landed in the greenside bunker. All Se Ri needed to do was green her approach, and two putt, and in all likelihood she had the trophy.