NORTH BERWICK, Scotland – The saturated clouds had a silver lining for Mi Jung Hur at the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open.
On a miserable day at The Renaissance, which was so wet it probably led to the Bass Rock having to undergo some damp-proofing work, the 29-year-old from Korea conjured a great, squelching surge to ease to a four shot victory and claim her third LPGA Tour title and a first since 2014.
Hur covered her final 10 holes in six-under-par en route to a charging 66 for a 20-under 264.
That left her comfortably clear of joint runners-up Mariya Jutanugarn of Thailand and the reigning US Women’s Open champion Jeongeun Lee6 with Scotland’s Carly Booth earning a share of ninth on 10-under.
As the rain came down and everything was as grey and as sodden as a torpedoed battleship, Hur illuminated affairs with a terrific display of craft and composure while her bright green luminous waterproofs just about seared the retinas of those peering on.
With the leaderboard tightly bunched – there were four sharing the lead at one point around the turn – Hur’s decisive thrust propelled her away from the pack.
LADIES SCOTTISH OPEN: Scores
Two years ago, she harnessed appalling conditions at Dundonald to finish in a share of second in the Scottish Open.
Here in the east of the country, and with a little help from local caddie Gary Marshall, she plotted a path to a fine conquest and the first prize of almost £187,000. Marshall’s calming words, pearls of wisdom and general nous was a key weapon in Hur’s armoury.
“During Thursday’s first round I started with a birdie on the first hole but then made two bogeys and I was mad,” she recalled. “He told me on the fourth tee box, ‘come on, MJ, you can win this tournament’. And then today, I had made a bogey on the third and again on the fourth tee he helped me to calm down again.”
It certainly had the desired effect. After a stream of pars, Hur birdied the ninth which provided the catalyst for a profitable push of four birdies in a row.
Her back nine of 31 didn’t earn a guard of honour but it did get a guard of squeegees as the hardworking greenkeepers battled manfully to keep the water at bay.
A pivotal moment for Hur came on the par-5 12th when she left herself 30-feet away from the pin with her third shot but managed to hole the raking putt. “After that, I felt I could win the tournament and I just played with confidence after that,” she admitted.
As Hur celebrated, there were reasons to be cheerful for Anne van Dam, whose share of sixth secured automatic qualification for Europe’s Solheim Cup team. Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist also rubber-stamped her qualification for Catriona Matthew’s side.
Booth, meanwhile, hadn’t dropped a shot for 50 holes but she made bogeys on the 16th and the 18th in a closing 71.
