The gallery at Harding Park on a crisp, sunny Sunday sensed the moment. Danielle Kang stuffed her approach shot inside eight feet on the 16th hole (normally No. 7), and several spectators responded with spirited chants of “USA! USA!”
San Francisco is a diverse and cosmopolitan city, perfectly suited for this LPGA International Crown team event, but most fans at Harding naturally rooted for the Americans. They ultimately left disappointed.
Nelly Korda followed Kang’s shot by rolling home the birdie putt, pulling her and Kang into a tie with Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn and Ariya Jutanugarn. But the Jutanugarn sisters won the next hole, halved No. 18 and took their alternate-shot match 1-up to propel Thailand into the championship match against Australia.
The U.S., meantime, absorbed an unexpected loss. The Americans were seeded No. 1 in the eight-team event and featured three of the top seven players in this week’s world ranking (Korda at No. 1, Lilia Vu at No. 4 and Lexi Thompson at No. 7), plus four of the top 16 (adding Kang at No. 16).
Still, golf can be fickle, not always playing out according to the numbers. Sixth-seeded Thailand swept all of its matches Thursday, Friday and Saturday, then stayed hot in dispatching the U.S. in Sunday morning’s semifinals.
So even if the Americans had the star power, that wasn’t enough.
“Obviously, it’s a little disappointing not being in the final, but I think we played well,” Korda said. “Danielle and I shot 3-under in the alternate shot. That’s tough to do.”
Thailand prevailed when Moriya Jutanugarn hit a terrific tee shot on No. 17 (No. 8 for the public), a long par-3. Her sister then sank the 10-foot birdie putt to reclaim a 1-up lead for Thailand.
The alternate-shot match decided the outcome because Atthaya Thitikul, ranked No. 5 in the world, beat Thompson 3-and-2 in their singles match. Vu countered with a 1-up win over Patty Tavatanakit.
Australia steamed past Sweden in the other semifinal.
One interesting wrinkle to emerge in the aftermath of the U.S. loss to Thailand: Kang said Harding’s length proved a daunting task for her. The course measured 6,368 yards Sunday, not especially long, but the ball doesn’t carry well in the cool coastal air of Northern California.
That became an issue for Kang as she tried to hit her second shot to the green on the par-5 18th (normally No. 9), with the U.S. needing to win the hole. Kang’s shot came to rest on the front edge, leaving Korda with a long eagle putt.
Kang is a relatively short hitter, at No. 141 on the LPGA Tour in driving distance. The U.S. also had two of the tour’s longer hitters in Thompson and Korda, so power really wasn’t a problem.
Just as notable as Sunday’s results was the stage on which they unfolded. Harding Park has hosted many marquee men’s tournaments in its 98-year history – most recently, Collin Morikawa won the PGA Championship in 2020 – but this was Harding’s first LPGA event.
The women’s game has taken notable strides in recent years, by taking tournaments to venues more familiar to casual fans. The Olympic Club hosted the U.S. Women’s Open two years ago, for instance, and this year’s Open will be played at Pebble Beach for the first time.
Harding Park, given its storied past – the course regularly hosted a PGA Tour event in the 1960s – also counted as a chance for the best women’s players to stretch into new frontiers.
“I think it shows the women’s game is moving in the right direction,” Thompson said. “We’re getting to play some spectacular golf courses like this one. We’re getting more fans every day, which we wanted to see, and the course is in great shape for us.”
Reach Ron Kroichick: [email protected]; Twitter: @ronkroichick
