Pro completes epic comeback win, then makes shocking admission

Lennea Strom began Sunday on the ShopRite LPGA Classic seven pictures behind with an 8:20 a.m. tee time, the third of the day and practically 4 hours earlier than the chief.

She ended it by tying an LPGA file, a four-hour-plus wait and at last holding the trophy.

After birdieing the ultimate gap at Seaview’s Bay course Saturday to make the reduce on the quantity on the ShopRite, Strom put collectively a masterful final-round 60, the bottom on the LPGA Tour all season, to win the match by one stroke over Ayaka Furue and Meghan Khang.

“Honestly, really did not expect this waking up today,” Strom mentioned after lastly being declared the winner. “This is proof that you should never give up. Just go out there and give it your all.”

It’s the primary LPGA victory for the 27-year-old Swede, who didn’t precisely come into the week in prime kind. The One hundred and sixty fifth-ranked participant within the Rolex Rankings had missed six of 11 cuts this yr on the LPGA, together with her final two occasions. Strom has simply two finishes higher than 57th this season.

Despite posting simply the seventh spherical of 60 or higher in LPGA historical past — and tying the bottom remaining spherical on the LPGA — she admitted her sport wasn’t at 100%.

“If I’m being honest I’m working on my swing a lot at the moment, so it might not look like it, but there are still some things I’m struggling with swing-wise,” she mentioned. “So I didn’t hit every shot perfect today, but I think I managed it well. I missed in the right places. So I mean, that’s just golf. Some days it’s all going to work.”

And boy did she play some golf at Seaview Sunday. Strom scorched the entrance 9 of the 1914 Donald Ross and Hugh Wilson design, making 4 birdies and shutting it with a chip-in eagle on the par-5 ninth.

She birdied the tenth to tie the lead of in a single day chief Jenny Shin, who was nonetheless greater than two hours from teeing off for the ultimate spherical of the 54-hole occasion. Strom then closed with a flurry on the end, 4 birdies within the final 5 holes to open up a four-shot lead, simply as the ultimate group have been starting their rounds.

She wanted simply 20 putts to place collectively the sixth spherical of 60 in LPGA historical past.

Then, she waited.

“I had a longer lunch and then I did some stretching and some warmup again,” Strom mentioned.

And only one participant caught her.

There have been loads of low scores on the Jersey Shore Sunday, however Shin faltered to a one-over 72. Furue made a cost, attending to six-under for the day by means of 13 holes to climb one shot again, however stalled there, parring her final 5 holes.

Khang, who began the day two again at eight beneath, lastly caught Strom at 14 beneath together with her sixth birdie of the day on the par-3 fifteenth. But her lone bogey of the day got here on the subsequent gap and was a pricey one. When she missed the inexperienced and didn’t birdie the par-5 18th, the victory was Strom’s.

“18, [I] told myself give myself a good chance,” Khang mentioned. “Did a pretty good job. It wasn’t terrible being at the back of the green, but just didn’t execute my chip the way I wanted to. Funny enough, the birdie chip, gave it a pretty good run itself.”

Strom began the day in a tie for 52nd, which makes her win the most important final-round comeback by place on the LPGA during the last 40 years, according to Justin Ray.

“Even after nine holes I was like, I knew the leaders weren’t close to teeing off yet, so, I mean, I think I just tried to do as good as I could and I honestly didn’t think I was playing for winning,” Strom mentioned. “I mean, obviously always want to win in the back of your head, but I just tried to put a good score out there today and I’m very proud of how I handled myself all around today.”

Amazingly, Strom’s is the second miraculous comeback of the day by a Swedish girl after Linn Grant accomplished an 11-shot comeback to win the DP World Tour’s Scandinavian Mixed.

Jack Hirsh

Golf.com Editor

Jack Hirsh is an assistant editor at GOLF. A Pennsylvania native, Jack is a 2020 graduate of Penn State University, incomes levels in broadcast journalism and political science. He was captain of his highschool golf staff and just lately returned to this system to function head coach. Jack additionally nonetheless *tries* to stay aggressive in native amateurs. Before becoming a member of GOLF, Jack spent two years working at a TV station in Bend, Oregon, primarily as a Multimedia Journalist/reporter, but additionally producing, anchoring and even presenting the climate. He might be reached at jack.hirsh@golf.com.