KLPGA Update

Ji Yai Shin would not be dormant for long. The next event on tour was the MC Square Women's Open, contested April 25 - 27th, and Einstein himself would have been proud of the way Shin bounced back from another weak start to claim the title here. (Get it? E = MC Square(d)? Anyway…). Shin did pretty much what she had done in the first event of the year when she shot a lackluster 4 over par 76 in round one at this event. This left her tied for 32nd, and it looked like another long struggle to even make a top ten, let alone contend. After two rounds, the leader was the obscure pro Joo Eun Lee, who was at 2 under par. The top players were nicely positioned for the most part. Sun Ju Ahn shot a weak 76 in round one, but bounced back with a 72 in round two and was at 4 over, six shots back. Hee Young Park was also at 4 over. Honey Moon was in fifth place all by herself at one over. Shin, however, was at 5 over par in a tie for 14th. She was in place to get yet another top ten, but could she contend?

Well, having untested players at the top of the leaderboard can often make for interesting final rounds, and when you have a motivated superstar like Ji Yai Shin in the field, just close enough to taste the trophy, it gets all the more interesting. Then, add onto that extremely tough conditions that tested even the best players, and it couldn't get much better. Shin responded to the tough challenge by going ballistic, launching one of her patented mega-runs at the top. She shot a blistering 5 under par 67, far and away the best round of the day (the next best was a 70), and a new tournament record. By the time the dust had settled, she sat at even par, in a tie with Lee for first place. Hyun Hee Moon had come close to joining them in the playoff, but she had to settle for a one over par total and a solo third place finish. Making it even more painful for the thirty year old Lee, she had had a ten foot birdie putt on the final hole to win the event outright, but missed, and now had to deal with a white hot Ji Yai Shin in a playoff. Needless to say, Shin capitalized. On the second playoff hole, the par 5 18th, she reached the green in two, two putted for birdie, and the trophy was hers. It was her fifth win on tour, and her 12th consecutive top ten. 2007 was starting pretty much as 2006 had ended: with Shin on top.

Scores:
1 Ji-Yai Shin 76(32) 73(12) 67(1) Even
2 Joo Eun Lee 71(1) 71(1) 74(18) Even
3 Hyun Hee Moon 74(13) 71(1) 72(8) +1
4 Ha Neul Kim 74(13) 74(17) 70(2) +2
5 Eun Hee Ji 78(52) 71(1) 71(4) +4
5 Ji Hae Chang 75(24) 74(17) 71(4) +4
5 Hee Young Park 73(9) 75(29) 72(8) +4
5 Sun Joo Ahn 76(32) 72(8) 72(8) +4

Notables:
9 Ran Hong 74(13) 74(17) 73(16) +5
9 Ji Na Lim 73(9) 71(1) 77(36) +5
13 Da Ye Na 78(52) 73(12) 71(4) +6
14 Woo Ri Choi 73(9) 80(85) 70(2) +7
18 Hae Jung Kim 74(13) 72(8) 78(45) +8
32 Na Yeon Choi 75(24) 74(17) 78(45) +11
64 Ga Na Lee 80(76) 76(37) 80(61) +20