Caroline Masson outlasts plethora of big names to earn first win at Manulife LPGA Classic

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By Kevin Casey

GOLFWEEK.COM

Using a theme that has been prevalent all week, Caroline Masson stormed to her first LPGA win.
The German got off to a horrible start Sunday at the Manulife LPGA Classic, double bogeying her first hole to fall to 9 under and five back, but she went on to make nine birdies in her final 17 to close in 5-under 67 and grab the title by a single shot.
The German followed and topped the lead of Chella Choi (first round) and Mi Hyang Lee (third round), both of whom bogeyed the first hole before ending the day with the lead.
Masson, 27, recently competed in the Olympics for Germany and has four top-12s in major championships on her record. So she does have some experience with extremely high pressure.
Still, even if the week at Whistle Bear Golf Club in Cambridge, Ontario, wasn’t that of a major, the players Masson had to hold off certainly possessed enough star power. In the end, the German beat out two-time LPGA winner Minjee Lee (15 under, T-2), World No. 1 Lydia Ko (14 under, T-5) and five-time 2016 LPGA winner Ariya Jutanugarn (14 under, T-5) for the title.
Ko appeared she might come in late for the title after a birdie-birdie-birdie-par-eagle stretch from Nos. 8-12 boosted her to 14 under. But she would make six pars to close and lose her shot at victory.
Masson, meanwhile, had her foot on the gas all day. After the opening double bogey, Masson rattled off three straight birdies from Nos. 2-4 and would eclipse that streak with a roll of four consecutive birdies from Nos. 9-12. After a bogey at 13 dropped her to 15 under, a birdie at 16 gave Masson the late cushion she needed.
Karine Icher (66) and third-round leader Lee (71) were among the runner-up finishers alongside Minjee Lee.
Defending champion Suzann Pettersen closed the week in 66 to finish in a tie for fifth at 14 under.
Charley Hull finished T16 on 277 and earned $19,799
Catriona Matthew got herself into a challenge position after 54 holes but finished with a 74 for T36 on 280 and "only" $9,523 of a payslip.