Yi defeats Pressel in playoff to win Jamie Farr Classic

Sylvania, Ohio — Two years ago, Morgan Pressel’s hole-in-one wasn’t enough to beat Se Ri Pak in the final round of the Jamie Farr Classic. On Sunday, Pressel’s 70-yard hole-out for eagle from the 17th fairway wasn’t good enough to beat Eunjung Yi. The 21-year-old South Korean staved off Pressel’s late charge and claimed her first LPGA victory with a 10-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole at Highland Meadows Golf Club. “Against Se Ri, she played great,” Pressel said. “I made the hole-in-one; it kind of woke her up and she ended up making a lot of birdies on me, and I still hung in there until the last hole . … “But this time, I had to fight back, come from behind coming down the stretch a little bit more. And, you know, she won the tournament. She made a birdie on the playoff hole. I had my opportunity. I had 3½ good shots.” Pressel’s birdie on the 16th and eagle on the 17th helped her shoot four-under-par 67 and finish regulation tied at 18-under 266 with Yi, who shot 71. On the playoff at No. 18, Pressel’s half-good shot was her approach, which was 20 feet short. She settled for par when the birdie putt slid past. “That last putt, I actually thought it was in,” said Pressel, who trailed Yi by six shots after seven holes and by four after 15. “It broke the other way. I’m surprised.” Yi kept the blinders on. She bogeyed the 16th and didn’t know Pressel had caught her until she heard the roar for Pressel’s eagle on the 17th tee box. “I just focus on my golf,” said Yi, who earned $210,000. “I didn’t see today the scoreboard at all. … I just focusing every shot, so that’s why I win this week.” Open and Closed: Michelle Wie birdied seven of her last 10 holes, including a chip-in on the 14th hole, for a career-best 64. She finished at 16-under 268 and tied for third — her best finish since she was second in her season debut in February. But she won’t play in next week’s U.S. Women’s Open for the first time since 2002 — when she was 11. “It still hasn’t hit me yet,” she said. “It’s weird. It almost feels like the U.S. Open isn’t happening.” Fouch’s GR-EAT Round: Allison Fouch, a former Michigan State player from Grand Rapids, birdied five of her last seven holes and capped her season-best 65 with a 40-foot birdie putt on the last hole. Her tie for 12th at 13-under 271 also is her best of the season. Fouch had a strong 2008 season, with three top-10s, and earned $375,345. That led to some complacency and Fouch entered the Farr having missed four cuts in five events. “I think I got a little comfortable with where I finished last year,” Fouch said, “and the ability that I had and kind of got a little — I don’t want to say lazy — but didn’t pay attention to some of the things that got me to where I was — mental stuff.” Fouch has worked the past two weeks with a mental coach and this week worked intensively with her swing coach, Buddy Whitten, a longtime pro at Blythefield Country Club in Belmont. All Atwitter: Shaq has nothing on Pressel when it comes to Twitter. Before the final round, Pressel started tweeting around 6 a.m. and sent 10 missives before her tee time. She watched the Wimbledon men’s final and tweeted often about the close match, with messages such as: “I’d love to see (at)andyroddick win, but I’d also love to see fed win for 15 slams. … i’m torn! love them both! hope it’s great tennis :)” Lopez Eyes Comeback: Hall of Famer Nancy Lopez was in town all week supporting the Farr at various events. At 52, she has not played on the LPGA Tour in a year but she hopes return after her youngest daughter, Torri, graduates from high school. “I’m going to try to do that and try to lose weight, get back in shape, and try and go out and play a little bit — 2011 even more than next year,” Lopez said.