Hana Jang wins BMW Ladies Championship after thrilling play-off

Home victory for Hana Jang: the South Korean golfer wins the only LPGA Tour tournament to take place in her home country on the third extra hole.

The victor is rewarded with 300,000 US dollars, out of a total prize fund of two million US dollars .

70,394 spectators attend the premium event at the LPGA International Busan.

Kristen Gillman (USA) hits a hole-in-one to win a BMW 7 Series.

A birdie at the third extra hole saw South Korea’s Hana Jang start the celebrations by claiming a home win in the BMW Ladies Championship at the LPGA International Busan. The 27-year-old had 269 strokes (-19) on her scorecard after four rounds, which put her level with Danielle Kang (USA). Jang took home a total of 300,000 US dollars in prize money for her fifth title on the LPGA Tour. Kristen Gillman produced the shot of the tournament. 

The American golfer hit a hole-in-one on the second round to win one of three BMW Hole-in-One Awards, a BMW 7Series Sedan.

“Congratulations on Hana Jang’s winning at the only one LPGA tournament in Korea,” said Dr. Wolfgang Hacker, Head of Brand Management of BMW Group Korea. “I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to the galleries for their big support and applause for coming to the BMW Ladies Championship. BMW will continue to invest and contribute to the development of the Korean golf sports industry.”

Jang (-7) and Kang (-8) produced by far the best performances on the final day and both deserved to reach the play-off. They both recorded par twice on the 18th before heading the third extra hole, the 10th. Kang scored par once again, while her South Korean opponent went one better, securing the greatest success of her career to date with a birdie.

Kristen Gillman provoked wild celebrations during the second round. The 13th hole (par 3) certainly proved to be a lucky one for the US golfer, who is playing her first season on the LPGA Tour. The 22-year-old chalked up a hole-in-one from 164 metres with a 4-hybrid to win a BMW 7er Series Sedan.

“It was nice to finally have my first hole-in-one because it’s kind of been a running joke between me and my friends that I’ve holed out a lot of shots on par 4s and par 5s but never on a par 3,” Gillman said. “I didn’t even look at the BMW 7 Series because I didn’t even know I made a hole-in-one. When I asked my caddie, he said: ‘It’s the nicest one. That’s the one you want.’”

However, no-one else claimed the two other BMW Hole-in-One-Awards, a BMW 8 series (hole 6) and the new BMW X7 (hole 16).

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