Ashleigh Buhai waited until he was 33 to win his first major, so four more holes were wasted. She hit 75 in the final round of the inaugural Women’s Open at Muirfield to take a five-shot lead before Buhaying in her Zi Chun as she took over an hour to reach the playoffs. It held up. Women’s major championship season.
Buhai is a Wikipedia page-only Cinderella story. The South African native entered the week with few major top 10 finishes (the only time she made it was the 2019 Women’s Open in Woburn), but her world ranking is She was ranked 84th and had ranked in the top 25 at the last two women’s majors. She has won the Women’s Professional Golf Championship and the Evian Championship.
She rolled off her first three days at Muirfield. After a 70 in round 1, rounds of 65 and 64 followed, with 13 birdies, 1 eagle and just 2 bogeys, not only did she clear Chung by 5 points, but playing partner Hinako Shibuno took the lead on Sunday. entered the finale and kicked off a historic week. at Muirfield.
After playing the first 14 holes of the final round with a good one over, Muirfield wreaked havoc on the par-4 15th hole. Buhay hit his tee shot into a bunker and it got worse from there. His second on the side happened before his third was duffed. She made a triple-bogey 7 to tie for second with Chong a hole ahead. They both parred the last three holes to advance to the playoffs.
For someone like Buhay, who was playing in his 43rd major tournament, this can often be devastating. The world started spinning, Schott started racing, and what felt totally in control 10 minutes ago now feels like his 18-wheeler heading downhill on ice. increase.
But she put her hands on the steering wheel and took the championship. That’s the sign of a mature player. Buhay has been on and off the LPGA Tour since 2008 and once was the youngest winner of the Ladies European Tour in her tour history. But it’s also a sign that Buhay has become a champion.
There were wobbly moments in the playoffs as well. Both players slipped through cooler temperatures, poor second shots and spine-chilling putts to extend his one of the biggest tournaments in the world. Buhai and Chun played his first three holes of the playoffs (his 18th at Muirfield) in his 13th at-bat. par bogie par. Then they went to that tee to his fourth tee. And with the sun fading and the lack of light, it was the last hour of the evening, regardless of the outcome.
Chun hit the ball into the bunker and opened the door, but Buhai blocked her approach to the bunker shouting “5”. Buhay poured in the short to give her a championship that could have slipped through her fingers many times over the past few hours.
Buhay joined fellow South Africans Gary Player (1959) and Ernie Els (2002) as champions at Muirfield.
“It’s so hard to put into words right now. Maybe in a few days I’ll have an idea,” she said with tears afterwards. “Of course I’m very proud. Being a small country, being able to produce quite a few major champions is a big deal.For me to be a South African woman and a major winner is a word.Life changes.”
It was an emotional win for her, for very obvious reasons, but it was also an emotionally compelling win to focus on the less obvious.
All major victories are life-changing, both on the male and female side, but not all equally life change. And for Buhay, a career grinder who hasn’t won much at the world’s highest level, this was a revelation: She grabbed the front of her hat and pulled it over her eyes.A long summer. And beautiful results for an even longer career.
Kyle Porter and Mark Immleman discuss Ashleigh Buhai’s victory at the AIG Women’s Open. Follow and listen to The First Cut Apple podcasts When Spotify.
It’s a wonderful curiosity to see golfers trying to make sense of or contextualize what they’ve just achieved seconds after it happens. This happens all the time in the golf world, but rarely at this level does it involve so much risk. Buhay–for her week and long (but not glorious) career, and for Muirfield and how she resurrected herself after what could have been a nightmare at No. 15-2022 In more than any other major season of the year, both the past and the future were written on her face…all at the same time, all in the present. What a wonderful thing to see!
