Webb closes out victory on final hole

Karrie Webb thrives on pressure. And she never gives up.

Trailing by three shots with three holes to play, Webb beat faltering Mi Hyun Kim by one stroke on Sunday when the young Korean bogeyed the final hole at the LPGA Rochester International.

Webb closed with a 4-under-par 68 and a 12-under 276 total and won $180,000 to push her career earnings past $8 million. The 25-year-old Kim, who began the day with a five-shot lead over Webb, had a 2-over 74 and a 277 as she finished second for the second straight week.

``I never thought I didn't have a chance of winning,'' Webb said after her 11th comeback victory in her six years on tour. ``Sometimes you think three shots with three holes to go you might not really have that much of a chance, but historically I've played the last three holes on this course pretty well.''

For sure. Webb birdied the last three holes here in 1999 to beat Cindy McCurdy by a stroke. And she did it again Saturday just when it seemed that Kim would have an insurmountable lead heading into the final round.

That still left Webb far behind, but she hoped for some bad weather. Her prayers were answered when a gusting wind blew over the Locust Hill Country Club course on Sunday.

``I needed a little bit of wind to help me and I got that wish,'' Webb said. ``Once I had that, I knew I had to step up to the plate and I did. If I was going to play reasonably well, I knew the wind would make her think a little bit more and maybe not feel as comfortable as she probably did yesterday.''

At 5-foot-1, Kim uses more woods than most players to gain distance because of her slight build, and it's hard to keep the ball down in the wind with woods.

Kim, who said she also was bothered by a sore heel, was unnerved even before play began.

``Before the round, my feeling was bad, uncomfortable,'' said Kim, who was 10-under par on the previous two rounds. ``I did not have confidence. I don't know why.''

Blame it on cable television.

``I couldn't sleep last night. I got maybe two hours,'' Kim said. ``Maybe I was thinking too much. I worried about the weather. I watched the Weather Channel and they said there was an 80 percent chance of thunderstorms. Today, the wind made it hard. I could not control my shot.''

The victory, which pushed her career earnings past $8 million, was Webb's first of the season and the 27th of her career. And it was dramatic.

After Kim drove into the right rough at the pivotal 16th hole, her second shot landed in the high grass in front of the green and she had to settle for bogey.

Webb, on the green in two, took advantage of the opportunity and calmly rolled in a 12-foot downhill putt for birdie to pull within a shot of the lead as Kim stared skyward in despair.

``I really didn't expect Kimmy to make bogey on 16, but that obviously was a big help,'' Webb said. ``I think she was cruising until then. That just gave me the window of opportunity, and I took advantage of it.''

The wind cost Kim another stroke at the par-5 17th when it caught her second shot. The ball landed in the high rough in front of the green. She hit the stick with her chip but two-putted for par. Webb tied it with a clutch birdie putt after chipping to 10 feet.

At the par-4 18th, Kim's second shot again fell just short of the green because of the wind and she chipped 8 feet past the pin. Webb, on the green about 30 feet to the right of the hole, rolled her putt about 4 feet short.

Then, instead of marking her ball, Webb took the option to putt out and put the pressure on Kim. The strategy worked when Kim's try for par rolled inches past the hole.

``I didn't want to have the 4-footer if she made it, and I think she probably would have made it if I had marked,'' Webb said. ``And then my putt would have looked like it was about 8 feet instead of 4 feet. I would have marked it in any other situation. I wanted to put it in the hole and put the pressure back on her.''

Se Ri Pak had a closing 67 and finished alone in third at 281. Defending champion Laura Davies, who began the day alone in third at 7 under, wilted in the 90-degree heat to a 12-over 84 and dropped to a tie for 29th.

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