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As the 2013 European Solheim Cup captain, Liselotte Neumann has had to put her own game on the back burner for the last few years. But the Swedish player turned up the heat in the Arizona desert today, defeating Danielle Ammaccapane in four extra holes to earn her first Legends Tour’s title at the Walgreens Charity Classic.
“It’s the first time I’ve won in a while and it’s the first one on the Legends Tour,” said Neumann, a 13-time LPGA Tour winner who now lives in Rancho Mirage, Calif. “I was pretty nervous in the playoff, but it feels wonderful now.”
Neumann carded rounds of 69-68 to draw even with first-round leader Ammaccapane (66-71) from Los Angeles at 7-under 137. She rolled in a birdie putt on the par-3 17th hole at Grandview Golf Course to trim Ammaccapane’s lead to one shot.
Leading for most of the event’s 36 holes, Ammaccapane was 8-under when her final tee shot at the par-4 18th hole sailed into the deep left rough. The former Phoenix resident punched out of the thick grass, but could not save par from 20 feet. She dropped back to 7 under and into a tie with Neumann.
That sent both players back to the 18th tee for a sudden-death playoff. The two matched pars on the first extra hole and both took bogey on the second trip down 18. Neumann had a birdie chance from six feet to win on the third playoff hole, but her putt slid by the cup and both players carded pars.
On the fourth playoff hole, Ammaccapane’s second shot found a greenside bunker. Her sand shot rolled 15 feet past the cup and her putt for par slid past the hole. Ammaccapane took bogey.
Neumann faced an uphill putt through the fringe from off the green. Her birdie attempt stopped six inches from the cup. The Swede tapped in for par and the win.
“In the playoff, I was really just trying to birdie this hole over and over,” said Neumann, whose last LPGA win was the 2004 Asahi Ryokuken International Championship. “In the end, par was enough.”
Tied for third at 6-under 138 was Wendy Doolan (67) of Australia, Rosie Jones (68) of Atlanta and the 2013 Walgreens Charity Classic champion Michele Redman (69) of Plymouth, Minn.
Christa Johnson of Tucson, Ariz. (68) finished sixth at 5-under 139.
Becky Iverson of Madison, Wis., (69) finished seventh at 4-under 140 and recorded a hole-in-one in today’s final round. The Michigan native used a 9-iron to ace the 125-yard 17th hole. There were a total of four aces recorded in the tournament over two days, with three aces in Saturday’s opening round – a Legends Tour record for most holes-in-one in a single round.
Judy Dickinson of Tequesta, Fla., carded rounds of 75-72 to finish at 3-over 147 to win the tournament’s Super Seniors division for players 64 and over.
For final results, visit: http://www.thelegendstour.com/2014WalgreensResults.pdf
About The Legends Tour
The Legends Tour is the Official Legends Tour of the LPGA. The tour began in 2000 by LPGA professionals to showcase the talents of some of the greatest names in the history of women’s golf. The Legends Tour has more than 120 members, including 12 LPGA and World Golf Hall of Fame members. Legends Tour players have over 675 combined LPGA Tour victories, including 70 major championships. In its 12 seasons, The Legends Tour has awarded more than $10 million in prize money and helped raise more than $13 million for charity. The Legends Tour has hosted events in Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Japan and Australia. For additional information on The Legends Tour, log on to www.thelegendstour.com.
