INCHEON (South Korea): Suzann Pettersen of Norway survived a near-disastrous final round to claim the LPGA HanaBank Championship in a playoff in South Korea yesterday.

Pettersen defeated Catriona Matthew of Scotland with a birdie on the third hole of the sudden-death playoff on the par-72 Ocean Course at the Sky72 Golf Club.

The world No. 9 took home US$270,000 for her first LPGA victory in more than a year. The two ended the regulation tied at 11-under, but only after Pettersen blew her five-stroke second-round lead with a 74.

Her round included two double bogeys on two different par-three holes. Matthew, who began the day seven shots behind Pettersen, fired a 67, the lowest round of the day, with six birdies and one bogey.

The two had pars on their first two trips to the par-five 18th. Then on the third try, Matthew hit her third shot from 115 yards long and left of the pin, and her birdie putt rolled wide left.

Pettersen put her second shot into a green side bunker, but struck her approach to about six feet to set up the clinching putt.

She had missed two birdie putts of about the same distance on two previous playoff holes.

Defending champion Tseng Yani of Taiwan finished one stroke out of the playoff in sole possession of third. It was her best finish in stroke play since April. — AFP

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