KARUIZAWA, Japan (AP) — Minjee Lee shot a 7-under 65 in her last amateur round and Su Oh had a 66 in Australia’s record comeback victory Saturday in the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship.
Seven strokes behind leader Canada entering the day, Australia took the lead through six holes and finished at 29-under 547 for a two-stroke victory. Shelly Shin had a 74 for Australia, with only the top two scores each day counting in the team total.
“They never thought they were out of it, but they were close to possibly being out of it,” Australian captain Matt Cutler said. “It was the fastest start you could ever see coming.”
Lee and Oh were 7 under on the first six holes to give Australia the lead. Lee had an eagle and two birdies during the run, and Oh had three birdies.
“I wanted to make this something to remember,” Lee said. “I wanted this to be a priceless experience for everyone.”
The 18-year-old Lee turned professional Monday and will play the Evian Championship next week in France. She was No. 1 in the world amateur ranking.
Australia’s 72-hole total of 547 was a stroke off South Korea’s 2010 record and the final-round 131 was the second-best in tournament history.
The top teams finished on Karuizawa 72 Golf East’s Iriyama Course. The 18-year-old Lee, No. 1 in the world amateur ranking, shot a 64 on Friday on the Oshitate Course to give Australia a chance to win the Espirito Santo Trophy for the third time.
The seven-shot comeback broke the tournament record of three set by Australia in 2002 in Malaysia. Australia also won the biennial event in 1978.
“We talked last night that if you broke it down as an individual and you were three or four strokes down through 54 holes, you could give yourself a chance,” Cutler said. “We were seven down, so that’s how we approached it.”
Canada was second at 27 under, with 16-year-old Brooke Henderson winning the individual title at 19-under 269. Lee was second, three strokes back.
“Australia had a great round today. I was really impressed,” Henderson said. “They have very skilled players, including two in the top 10 in the world rankings, which is unbelievable. It’s a little disappointing to finish second, but overall we had a really great week and played really well as a team.”
Henderson closed with a 68 to break the individual record of 274 set by Lydia Ko in 2012. Ranked second in the world, Henderson was the low amateur at the U.S. Women’s Open and the U.S. Women’s Amateur runner-up.
Brittany Marchand added a 72 for Canada, and Augusta James had a 75.
South Korea, the 2010 and 2012 winner, was third at 26 under, and Denmark was fourth at 20 under. The United States tied for fifth at 19 under. Allison Lee shot 68, U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Kristen Gillman 71, and Emma Talley 74.
“Alison was hitting the ball as well as she had any other day, maybe even better, but she just couldn’t buy a putt,” U.S. captain Martha Lang said. “Kristen was 3 under before she made three straight bogeys, but she hung in there. And today, unfortunately, Emma never got it going. Overall, we are pleased and disappointed at the same time.”
The 2016 tournament will be play in Cancun, Mexico.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
