Shiho Kuwaki Wins Women's Open After Dramatic Playoff Incident

It was no surprise that an extraordinary Sunday at the Women’s Open ended in such circumstances. Has the ankle of a marshal ever before played a crucial role in the outcome of a major championship? A competition that looked for so long as if no one wanted to win rumbled on at Royal Lytham & St Annes until fate played its hand.

Glory for Shiho Kuwaki, pain for Esther Henseleit. That barely explains the half of it. Henseleit had forced a playoff with a stunning birdie from 45ft on the final hole of regulation play. On the first visit back to the 18th, Kuwaki played a glorious approach to secure her four and the extension of the tournament.

What happened next was beyond anyone’s comprehension. Kuwaki found the fairway with a perfect drive. Henseleit cut her tee shot to the right, where it looked in enough bother before hitting the lower leg of a volunteer. The ball ricocheted to the bottom of a gorse bush. Henseleit did exceptionally well to advance the ball up the fairway but the clear advantage was with Kuwaki. Her four secured the trophy. Henseleit has legitimate cause to bemoan horrible fortune.

Earlier, this was a tournament where the nerves associated with the pursuit of a major championship were writ large across the faces of those looking to win the Women’s Open’s 50th edition.

Kuwaki’s is the most unlikely of triumphs. Perhaps her lack of experience in this domain actually helped the 23-year-old as those around her wilted. Kuwaki had played in only one Women’s Open before, missing the cut at Royal Porthcawl last year. Lytham provided such a contrasting storyline and Japan now has back-to-back Women’s Open victories.

Henseleit needed a birdie three at the last to halt Kuwaki. She sat 45ft from the hole in two, with the odds firmly stacked against her. The ball was 5ft from the hole when Henseleit knew its destination. Kuwaki surely feared the worst but she need not have worried.

Henseleit earlier offered a snapshot of what played out on this major Sunday. The German tied Kuwaki’s minus five with a tap-in birdie at the 15th. From the very next tee, Henseleit hooked a three wood into long grass. A bogey ensued. It was as if anyone who earned a proper view of the Women’s Open trophy was immediately blinded by the light.

Yealimi Noh held a three-shot lead after 54 holes. She even increased that advantage by one before wobbles started at the 4th. Noh posted a 74 before admitting it “stung” to fall short in this manner. She was one shy of the playoff mark of five under.

On the final hole, in the final group, Henseleit and Noh had the opportunity to force Kuwaki into extra time. Both missed the fairway, with approaches leaving only the remote chances of birdies. Noh left her attempt short, moments after her playing partner had stunned the crowd.

Ryu Hae-ran, seeking a third major win in as many starts, carded a three over par 74. Jeeno Thitikul? 73. Nelly Korda closed in the manner of a world No 1 with a 68 – the lowest round among the top 13 names on the leaderboard – catapulting her into a share of fourth.

Charley Hull and Lottie Woad never seriously looked like delivering a British winner for the third time in a row at Lytham. Hull’s 72 left her at minus one. Woad’s putter was colder than a winter’s morning in Siberia during her 73, which meant the same aggregate. Neither undertook media duties, which given their standing here was less than impressive. Tied sixth is hardly the stuff of disaster.

Anna Nordqvist signed off with a 68 before admitting the stresses and strains associated with her European Solheim Cup captaincy. Nordqvist will name her four captain’s selections on Monday for the clash against the United States, which takes place in the Netherlands in September. Intrigue surrounds whether Ireland’s Leona Maguire will keep her place in team Europe despite indifferent form. Nordqvist made some calls to players during Women’s Open week, which she conceded affected her own performance at Lytham.

“I think it’s hard to put it in words how hard it has been,” Nordqvist said. “I felt like as soon as I came off the course, it was just so much stuff about Solheim Cup, which has been hard because I really wanted to go and enjoy this week.

“I felt really off the first day but managed to battle through. I played really well the second day and then yesterday, I didn’t really play that badly, but mentally I was just exhausted. I think it [the size of the job] has been a lot more than I expected. There has been a lot more practical stuff to deal with. Maybe looking back, it was going to be a tough task to do both [play and be a captain], but I’m very proud of myself for how I’ve done it.”