Jennifer Kupcho and Lizette Salas dominated the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, the only pairs race on the LPGA Tour. On the Midland Country Club course (par 70), in Midland, Michigan, they finished with 254 (68 61 64 61, -26 ) hits, five ahead of the Malaysian Kelly Tan and the Finnish Matilda Castren, second with 259 (-21), and six over Stacy Lewis and the Mexican Maria Fassi, third with 260 (-20).
Jennifer Kupcho and Lizette Salas, results
The two winners chose to play together after their experience at the Solheim Cup 2021, in which they played three races in the doubles, winning two and drawing one without, however, being able to avoid the success of Team Europe (15-13).
Jennifer Kupcho, 25, from Littleton (Colorado), has led to three titles (including a major) in season and career, and Lizette Salas, 32, from Azusa (California), has achieved the second success after first in 2014 ( Kingsmill Championship) and on five occasions defended the US colors in the Solheim Cup.
In fourth place with 261 (-19) Cheyenne Knight / Elizabeth Szokol and the Korean Haeji Kang and Tiffany Chan from Hong Kong, in sixth with 262 (-18) the Koreans Narin An and Hye-Jin Choi and the French Pauline Roussin (who in the second round he made a “hole in one”) and Dutchman Dewi Weber.
Sisters Nelly, world number three, and Jessica Korda are only eighth with 263 (-17). The tournament, which was played in the first and third rounds with a foursome formula and in the second and fourth with a fourball formula, was attended by two icons of women’s golf, the Swedish Annika Sorenstam, dominator of the world scene from the late nineties to 2008, when she left competitive sport, and the Australian Karrie Webb, the only one able to fight her and beat her on more than one occasion in that long period.
The latter fared better, which paired with Marina Alex, finished 15th with 265 (-15), while Sorenstam, together with compatriot Madelene Sagstrom, was ranked 28th with 269 (-11). Giulia Molinaro and the Spanish Luna Sobron Galmes, 51.e with 138 (73 65, -2) did not pass the cut. Same fate for the Thai sisters Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn, 45 and with 137 (-3), who defended the title.
