Tseng wins women’s major by 10 shots

Yani Tseng stamped herself as the dominant force in women’s golf when she stormed to a runaway 10 stroke victory in the LPGA Championship.

The win made the 22-year-old world No.1 from Taiwan the youngest player to capture four women’s major golf titles.

And Tseng did it in style, firing a final-round six-under-par 66 to complete a wire-to-wire victory at 19-under 269 at Locust Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York.

The overwhelming victory was reminiscent of this month’s eight stroke US Open win by fellow 22-year-old Rory McIlroy who trained with Tseng as a teenager.

Not content with just securing the win, Tseng set her sights on making a little more history once she made the turn with a 10-stroke lead.

“I was like, `what’s a new goal for me’?” Tseng said. “And that’s why I told myself I wanted to set a record, to make 20 under.”

She missed by one stroke but matched the LPGA record low at a major, most recently by Cristie Kerr a year ago when she shot the same score to win the tournament by 12 strokes.

Dottie Pepper (1999 Kraft Nabisco) and Karen Stupples (2004 Women’s British Open) have also finished majors at 19 under.

Asked if she has ever played better, Tseng said, “I don’t think so, especially because this is a major.” Tseng won from American Morgan Pressel (71) while Norway’s Suzann Pettersen (67) and Americans Cristie Kerr (69) and Paula Creamer (69) tied third.

Seven-time major champion Karrie Webb was the leading Australian but well off the pace as a closing 72 left her 17 shots behind Tseng.

Tseng added the LPGA Championship title to her crowns at last year’s Kraft Nabisco and Women’s British Open as well as the 2008 LPGA Championship.

She easily bettered the age record of South Korea’s Se Ri Pak, who was 24 when she won her fourth major.

“It’s very special,” Tseng said. “Now I’m thinking about a (career) grand slam.”

Tseng won her first four events of the year, the first in Taiwan, the next two in Australia and the LPGA season opener in Thailand.

She will have the chance to complete a career grand slam in two weeks at the US Women’s Open in Colorado on the same Broadmoor course where her friend and role model, retired legend Annika Sorenstam, won her first major.

“I’m just going to talk to Annika, get some tips, go to the swimming pool and then head for the mountains,” Tseng said. “I think I have a chance the way I’m playing now. That sounds really good.”

Sorenstam, a 10-time major champion from Sweden, lives only a long chip shot from Tseng in Florida after Tseng bought Sorenstam’s former home.





Sorenstam warned current players that Tseng’s best might very well be yet to come.

“She’s playing some amazing golf. The way she is playing a major is really, really impressive,” Sorenstam said. “She is the new face of the LPGA. She’s great for the game.

“She still has some things to improve. Once she does, she is going to be hard to stop.”