David Cannon
Pernilla Linberg associated with Sweden won the ANA Motivation on Monday, defeating Inbee Recreation area on the eighth playoff hole. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif — This was a sixteen seed defeating an one seed, the Y. E. Yang felling Padraig harrington, the improbable — the extremely hard? — dream that contributes to the particular mystique of sports. On a Sunday, as it goes, or in this instance on any given Monday.
On this Monday, a cozy, sunny morning in the California wilderness, a Swedish upstart, Pernilla Lindberg, winless as a professional, ranked 95th in the world, did what was unimaginable, beating one of the best in the game, potentially in history, Inbee Park, on the eighth playoff opening to win the ANA Motivation.
“ I recall writing some goals probably correct when I got to high school, ” Lindberg said, “ writing about the wish scenario, and it would be to obviously earn a major championship and leave the mark in history. But at the same time this felt like too big of a dream to become a reality, but it has. ”
Lindberg, 31, turned this into reality with a sustained exhibit of putting prowess as good as any kind of in the history of the this competition, notably on Sunday. She holed seven straight par putts, not one of them tap-ins.
“ Today she’ s the best 4 to five-foot putter I’ ve ever seen, ” Judy Rankin said on Golf Channel upon Sunday evening.
On the sixth playoff hole, the particular par-3 17th on the Dinah Shoreline Tournament Course, she holed a good eight-foot par putt to stay living.
Then the hen house de grace, on the 10th eco-friendly, the eighth hole of a playoff that began on Sunday plus was suspended by darkness right after four holes. Lindberg’ s 30-foot birdie putt hit the back from the hole and dropped, eliciting the fist pump. Moments later, Recreation area, one of the best putters on the LPGA, skipped her 20-foot birdie attempt to extend the playoff.
“ The putt Pernilla produced on the last was a champions putt, ” Park said. “ You actually can’ t beat that. ”
Park provides first-hand knowledge of that. A winner associated with 19 LPGA tournaments, seven main championships and an Olympic precious metal medal, Park was an overwhelming preferred to dispatch Lindberg early, yet she was unable to shake the girl.
“ I simply know I’m a grinder, ” Lindberg said. “ I mentioned yesterday, I just felt this is my own. I’m going to do this. I just knew I really could, and I just kept fighting aside. I couldn’t believe when that will last putt went in.
“ But the very first thing I said when I holed that will last putt was I know Inbee’s going to hole hers too, therefore i started thinking about the 17th hole [the next on the playoff-hole rota] again, but the lady didn’t. It was mine. ”
Journeymen aren’ to supposed to topple legends, aren’ to supposed to win majors, much less direct them. Yet Lindberg either brought or shared the lead right after each of the four rounds.
“ I just looked at each day as the same thing again, ” the girl said. “ And today, even though it was obviously a playoff, I just felt like I sought out, did my same routine, every night I’ve just been carrying out my routine. I just felt therefore calm. I felt like this could be my own. ”
Constantly optimistic, she discarded the fact that the girl had played 250 professional occasions on the Symetra Tour, the Ladies Euro Tour and the LPGA and never understood victory.
The lady does now, memorably and significantly introducing herself to it here upon Monday morning.
