Yoo So-yeon's Strong Finish 'Tied 3rd'... Rookie Kastren's 'First Victory'

On the Final Day of the Mediheal Championship, 5 Under Par Secures Second Top 3 of the Season, Lim Min 2nd, Shin Ji-eun Tied 5th, Kim A-rim Tied 13th

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] It is the strong finish of Yoo So-yeon (31, Mediheal, photo).

On the 14th (Korean time), at the Lake Merced Golf Club in Daly City, California, USA (par 72, 6,551 yards), during the third day of the LPGA Tour Mediheal Championship (total prize money $1.5 million), Yoo So-yeon surged with a 5-under-par round to share 3rd place (8-under-par 280) with Hannah Green (Australia). This is her second top-3 finish of the season and fourth top-10 finish overall, following a tie for 3rd at last month's Honda LPGA Thailand.

Starting from a tie for 17th place, 6 strokes behind the leader, Yoo So-yeon delivered flawless play with 5 birdies and no bogeys. She reduced 2 strokes in the front nine with consecutive birdies on holes 4 and 5, and added 3 more birdies on holes 12 (par 3), 15, and the final 18th hole (both par 5) in the back nine. She relied on her long drives averaging 270 yards and a pinpoint iron shot accuracy with an 83% greens in regulation rate. Since her sixth career win at the 2018 Meijer Classic, she has gone three years without a victory.

Matilda Castren is teeing off on the 3rd hole on the final day of the Mediheal Championship. Daly City, USA = Getty Images / Multibits

Matilda Castren (Finland) completed a thrilling come-from-behind victory (14-under-par 274) with an eagle and five birdies. This is her first win in just her 15th LPGA Tour event since debuting last year, earning $225,000 (about 250 million KRW). Her previous best finish was a tie for 8th at last October’s Drive On Championship. The previous day’s leader, Lee Min (Taiwan), settled for 2nd place, 2 strokes behind (12-under-par 276). Danielle Kang (USA) is tied for 5th (7-under-par 281).

Among Koreans, Shin Ji-eun (29, Hanwha Q CELLS) added 2-under-par to rise to a tie for 5th, while Kim A-lim (26, SBI Savings Bank) lost one stroke to fall to a tie for 13th (5-under-par 283). “Golf Queen” Park In-bee (33, KB Financial Group) is tied for 29th (2-under-par 286), defending champion Kim Se-young (28, Mediheal) tied for 34th (1-under-par 287), Kim Hyo-joo (26, Lotte) tied for 57th (3-over-par 291), and KLPGA member Lee Da-yeon (24, Mediheal) tied for 68th (7-over-par 295).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.