Green said she felt as if she didn’t get the rub of the green today. But her tough day at a wet, windy and occasionally sunny Kingston Heath won’t define her brilliant season and isn’t something to dwell on.
“I had such a good year, I don’t really want to dwell on my last round of the year being here, Aussie Open, and not being in contention or even having a trophy. But yeah, overall, I’m just really happy with how I tried to fight out there,” Green said.
The gap was opened early by eventual winner Jiyai Shin on the opening hole, where she played the shot of the tournament, holing out for an eagle, as Matt Cleary explains here. The door was slammed shut on Green’s chances with a heartbreaking triple bogey at the par-4 7th.
“Honestly, after she (Shin) did make that hole out, it kind of felt like I was chasing for second place between Ash (Buhai, and herself), and obviously, she had a really good round, and that’s where I then started playing even worse.
“But two really nice people to play with and a very deserving winner,” Green added.
Green claimed three wins on the LPGA Tour this season and is currently ranked No.6 in the world which pairs nicely with her Olympic berth where she finished just outside the medals (5th).
Her first win of the year came at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in February, a 27-foot putt on the final hole enough to beat Celine Boutier by one. She backed it up by defending her title at the JM Eagle LA Championship in April. Her final victory came at the BMW Ladies Championship in Korea in October.
She desperately wanted to clinch her national Open, so she was disappointed to fall short this year. Green also doubled down on her concerns around the scheduling, saying it has to change to attract more household LPGA Tour names.
“I’ve been so close many times I wanted to, even more so this year. But the crowds were really good; they really helped me out there, and it was just nice to still see them on 18 cheering for me,” she said, following her round.
“It’s a scheduling thing. It has to be in the right timeframe to get the best players in the world.”
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