FINAL LEADERBOARD (US unless stated):
-10 A Stanford -7 M Wie -4 N Yeon Choi (Kor), A Park (Bra)
 Angela Stanford is sprayed with beer by Kristy McPherson |
Angela Stanford won her battle with 19-year-old Michelle Wie to claim her fourth LPGA Tour title at the season-opening SBS Open in Hawaii. Tied for the overnight lead with fellow American Wie, Stanford trailed by three strokes with eight holes remaining. But three straight birdies from the 13th hole gave her a three-shot win at Turtle Bay Resort Golf Club in Kahuku. World number eight Stanford, 31, parred the last three holes for a two-under-par 70 and a 10-under total of 206. Teenager Wie, making her first start as an LPGA member, saw her title chances fade with a double-bogey at the 11th and had to settle for second place after carding a 73. "I didn't think she was going to make a mistake," said Stanford of her rival. "She played really smart for about 10 holes. She does a lot of things right and she's going to be around for a long time." Stanford said she had gained a confidence boost by sinking a 24-foot birdie putt on the 13th green. "I needed to see a ball go in so that was huge because I was starting to wonder if I was going to make another birdie," she added. "Then I started to get back to what I am trying to do with the ball, just hitting the shot in front of me." Stanford, who finished no worse than sixth in her last six events on the 2008 LPGA Tour, edged in front when she got up and down from a greenside bunker to birdie the third. Wie immediately levelled, rolling in a 15-foot birdie putt at the fourth. Stanford made her first bogey of the week at the par-three eighth, missing a three-footer, before Wie sank an 18-foot birdie putt on the ninth green to move two ahead.  | It's not what I wanted but, at the same time, I had a good week |
Stanford trailed by three following a bogey on 10, pulling her drive into an unplayable lie, but Wie's lead was then cut to one after her mishap on 11. Stanford took advantage, knocking in a 24-footer to birdie 13 and then rolling in putts from four and nine feet to pick up further shots at 14 and 15. Wie bogeyed the par-four 17th after finding bunkers off the tee before finishing with a par on 18. "It's disappointing," said Wie, who earned her LPGA Tour card in December by tying for seventh place at the tour's qualifying school. "It's not what I wanted but, at the same time, I had a good week. I will take a lot of positive thoughts from this."
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