CASARES, Spain (AP) — Carlota Ciganda starred on Spanish soil on Sunday with two of the best shots of her life, finishing with two birdies for a clutch win over Nelly Korda that assured Europe of retaining the Solheim Cup with the first tie in history.
The matches at Finca Cortesin finished at 14-all. Europe retains the cup as the defending champion. The Americans last won the Solheim Cup in 2017.
The Americans appeared to be in control of the Sunday singles session until Caroline Hedwall of Sweden won five of the last six holes to flip her match against Ally Ewing. That set the stage for Ciganda. She was all square with Korda until hitting it tight on the 16th for birdie, and then hitting a tee shot on the par-3 17th to 2 feet for birdie and a 2-and-1 victory.
That assured Europe the 14 points it needed to retain the cup. Ciganda, the only Spanish player on the European team, went 4-0 for the week.
EUROPEAN TOUR
SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France (AP) — Ryo Hisatsune of Japan posted a 5-under 66 to win the French Open by two shots Sunday over Jeff Winther of Denmark and Jordan Smith of England, his first victory on the European tour.
The 21-year-old Hisatsune started the final round four shots behind Smith and Ewen Ferguson at Le Golf National, and both fell back. Smith had a 73, while Ferguson opened with consecutive double bogeys. He made only one birdie in his round of 76.
Winther closed with a 65.
Rasmus Hojgaard, the runner-up a year ago, closed with a 68 and tied for fourth, three shots back.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Thongchai Jaidee won his second PGA Tour Champions title, beating Justin Leonard on the fourth playoff hole in the Pure Insurance Championship on Sunday when Leonard hooked his tee shot into a penalty area abutting the Pacific Ocean on the par-5 18th at Pebble Beach.
Jaidee, a 53-year-old from Thailand, finished with a two-putt par while Leonard had to play his third shot from the tee box and made a double-bogey 7.
Jaidee closed with a 5-under 67 and Leonard shot 68 to finish at 14-under 202. They each parred the 18th on their first try in the playoff and traded birdies when they played it again. Jaidee got up-and-down from a greenside bunker on the par-3 17th to extend the playoff.
Arjun Atwal (69) was third, three shots back, and Paul Stankowski (70) was fourth at 10 under.
LIV GOLF
SUGAR GROVE, Ill. (AP) — Bryson DeChambeau shot 6-under 28 on the back nine, closed with one last birdie on his penultimate hole and won LIV Golf-Chicago on Sunday by one shot over Marc Leishman and Anirban Lahiri.
DeChambeau finished with an 8-under 63 at Rich Harvest Farms and a 54-hole total of 13-under 200. He began on the fourth hole under LIV’s shotgun start format, made his only bogey on the par-4 ninth and then reeled off four birdies in five holes.
It was the second win of the season on the Saudi-funded tour for DeChambeau, whose Crushers — including Lahiri — won the team competition by three shots. That means DeChambeau takes home $5.25 million — $4 million for the individual trophy.
Leishman shot 66. Lahiri, who started on the first hole in the final pairing with second-round leader Sebastian Munoz, bogeyed the par-4 18th to fall out of a tie with DeChambeau. Munoz closed with a 73.
Brooks Koepka, playing his final tournament before the Ryder Cup in Italy, shot 71 to finish at 5 under.
KORN FERRY TOUR
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Norman Xiong secured his PGA Tour card for next year, closing with a a 4-under 67 on Sunday for a four-shot victory in the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, the second-to-last event of the season on the Korn Ferry Tour.
It was the second career Korn Ferry Tour win for Xiong, a 24-year-old who played in college at Oregon and battled a serious slump after turning pro in 2018. He finished at 10-under 274 on the Scarlet Course at Ohio State University.
Former U.S. Amateur champion Curtis Luck (66), Joe Highsmith (69) and Chris Petefish (70) tied for second.
Jake Knapp closed with a 68 to finish fifth and lock up his PGA Tour card for next season. Chandler Phillips, who began the day tied with Xiong, shot 74 to fall into a tie for seventh at 3 under, but the finish was good enough for him to secure his card. Nicholas Lindheim earned a card by finishing in a tie for 37th.
OTHER TOURS
Natasha Andrea Oon closed with a 3-under 69 for a three-stroke victory in the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout on the Epson Tour. … Adam Blomme closed with a 6-under 66 and beat Jesper Svensson in a playoff to win the Swiss Challenge on the Challenge Tour. … Tomoharu Otsuki played bogey-free and closed with a 6-under 66 to win the Pansonic Open by three shots, this third career victory on the Japan Golf Tour. … Poom Saksansin closed with a 6-under 66 for a three-shot victory over Travis Smyth (67) in the Yeangder TPC on the Asian Tour. … Rupert Kaminksi shot 6-under 66 and held off Matthew Spacey to win the PGA Championship at St. Francis Links on the Sunshine Tour. … Akie Iwai shot a 3-under 69 for a two-shot victory over Mao Saigo in the Miyagi TV Cup Dunlop Ladies Open on the Japan LPGA.
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