Salas dominant in winning LPGA event
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — Lizette Salas didn’t have to wait long to be tested in her latest attempt at a breakthrough victory on the LPGA Tour.
The challenge came on the first hole Sunday in the Kingsmill Championship, after she was overly cautious with her first putt, leaving it nearly 10 feet short of the cup with a sliding, downhill test to save par.
She made it, the start of a day when she did little wrong on her way to a four-shot victory.
“Yeah, that was a big putt just to start off the day,” Salas said. “Downhill slider to the right. I mean, I even threw in a fist pump because I knew how important that was.”
The 24-year-old Salas made it look easy the rest of the way, even while shooting just an even-par 71 on the River Course.
Salas started the day with a three-shot lead, doubled it with birdies on the par-5 third and par-3 fifth. A bogey on the eighth was her only hiccup — and only her third bogey in four rounds — until she three-putted the par-3 17th.
She finished at 13-under 271 and earned $195,000.
Yani Tseng, Kraft Nabisco winner Lexi Thompson and Sarah Jane Smith tied for second.
Salas was never really challenged in the final round on the River Course, and when her final putt fell on the 18th hole, she cupped her head in her hands and covered her face in celebration. Her winning moment was quickly interrupted, however, when four players arrived and doused her with champagne, water and wine.
