Mao Saigo emerges from five woman play off to win Chevron Championship

HOUSTON – Mao Saigo of Japan rolled in a five-foot birdie putt to win a historic and chaotic five-woman play-off at the Chevron Championship, capturing her first Major title on April 27 at The Woodlands, Texas.

Saigo, who began the day tied for the lead with South Korea’s Ryu Hae-ran, carded a two-over 74 at The Club at Carlton Woods, needing birdie at the par-five 18th to advance to the play-off.

Saigo, Yin Ruoning (71) of China, Kim Hyo-joo (70) of South Korea, Ariya Jutanugarn (71) of Thailand and Lindy Duncan (73) also finished at seven-under 281. It marked the largest play-off group at an LPGA Major in history.

Ariya led for most of the day and needed par at the last hole to win outright. However, in a bizarre sequence on her third stroke, she missed nearly her entire ball, which moved very slightly forward. She wound up with a bogey, opening the door for the play-off.

The five players returned to the 18th tee. Yin was the only player to hit the green in two shots, but she badly misread the mid-range eagle putt and also lipped out her birdie try. While Duncan ended up with a bogey, Kim and Ariya also missed their birdies.

That left Saigo, who went over the green on her second shot and pitched it to about five feet for the winning birdie.

“I was so laser focused and nervous and really in the zone,” Saigo said. “All I could think of is the ball in front of me. I couldn’t see anything else. I was shaking from nervousness, but I did my best to calm down and I shot and it went in.”

Saigo, 23, had not won on American soil before April 27. Ranked 37th in the world, her six career