Michelle Wie clawed back a four-shot deficit in Saturday afternoon’s quarterfinals at the Lorena Ochoa Matchplay Championship to earn her place in the semi-finals.
Michelle Wie went 4 down through seven holes to 2017 LPGA rookie Angel Yin in Saturday afternoon’s quarterfinals at the Lorena Ochoa Matchplay, but stormed back on the inward nine to take the match to extra holes.
She then emerged victorious thanks to a birdie-4 at the par-5 second, the 20th hole of the match.
Wie’s surge included winning Nos. 12-16 to pull the match all square heading to 17. Yin won the 17th, but found trouble on the 18th behind a tree. Wie’s par on the final hole of regulation brought the match to all square.
The duo then traded pars on the 19th hole before heading to No. 2. Both players bombed drives and had the opportunity to reach the green in two, yet both missed the mark. Yin was faced with a difficult bunker shot that flew the green and opened the door for Wie, who calmly converted her up-and-down for birdie for the win.
“I think it was the definition of survival out there,” said Wie. “(Angel) played so good, she eagled 2 and 6, I think she was 5 under in 7 holes, she played great. I’m really proud of my caddie for motivating me and keeping me in my head. And we fought so hard out there.”
Earlier on Saturday, Wie dispatched her great friend Marina Alex by a score of 5 and 4.
Wie is looking for the fifth victory of her career and first since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open. She squares off Sunday morning against World No. 3 Ariya Jutanugarn, the highest remaining seed in the tournament.
Ariya On Course For Sixth Victory
Ariya Jutanugarn overcame a late fightback by Cristie Kerr and a crisis of confidence with short putts to clinch a hard-fought 19-hole quarterfinal victory on Saturday afternoon. The long-hitting Thai sealed the win at the par-4 first hole, where she lipped out with a birdie attempt from 15 feet only to watch as Kerr, long regarded as one of the best putters on the LPGA Tour, missed her par putt from just 4 feet.
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