ANA -- Park vs. Lindberg To Be Continued; Olson Ties for 9th

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- Inbee Park, Pernilla Lindberg and Jennifer Song all made birdies on the 18th hole to conclude their fourth rounds in the ANA Inspiration on Sunday. Those birdies got them into a playoff for the crown in the first major championship on the 2018 LPGA Tour. 

The playoff began -- and continued -- on that same, 531-yard, par-5 18th hole at the Mission Hills Country Club's Dinah Shore Tournament Course. But once the playoff started, birdies were hard to come by, and eventually the overtime session was stopped after four holes because of darkness. By then, Park and Lindberg had both gone par-par-birdie-par on No. 18. Song made three consecutive pars -- and was eliminated when she made the third of those. 

So Park and Lindberg will continue the drama Monday morning at 8 o'clock Pacific Time (10 Central).

The resumes of the last two golfers still standing are in sharp contrast. Park didn't play college golf, turning professional when she was 17 years old instead. She has won 19 times in just over 11 years on the LPGA Tour, including seven majors. (Her first title came when she was 19, and it was in a major, the 2008 U.S. Women's Open at Interlachen Country Club.) She was No. 1 in the Women's World Rankings for more than a year, from mid-April 2013 until June 1, 2014. At the beginning of that reign, she won the 2013 ANA. 

Lindberg was a two-time All-American at Oklahoma State, but the 31-year-old native of Sweden has never won in 250 tournaments as a pro. 

Despite that hole in her biography, she has been impressive since the ANA began. She opened the tournament with a 65, added a 67 and started the final round with a three-stroke lead,. But two bogeys in the first three holes on Sunday created a traffic jam at the top of the scoreboard, and allowed several of her pursuers to pass her. Lindberg righted the ship with a series of pars, then made her first birdie of the day at the 185-yard, par-3 eighth hole. Lindberg reclaimed a share of first place with a birdie at the par-4 10th and clung tenaciously to the top spot, making a series of clutch par putts in the range of 4 to 6 feet, before hitting a wedge to 3 feet for her birdie at the 18th. 

That gave her a 1-under-par 71 and a 72-hole total of 273. 

Park, who had finished regulation play a half-hour earlier, birdied the par-3 17th and then hit a wedge even closer than Lindberg hit hers at the 18th to cap off a 67. Song, playing ahead of Park, hit a wedge that almost went over the green but spun back to 4 feet. The 28-year-old former USC All-American -- she played two years for the Trojans, then turned pro -- converted the birdie putt for a 67 of her own. 

More than a half-dozen players were in contention at various times on the back nine Sunday. Ariya Jutanugarn, another former World No. 1, came to the 18th hole tied for the lead at 14 under. She was one of the few players to reach the 18th green in two on Sunday, and she could have two-putted for a birdie and a 273. Instead, she three-putted for a par and 274. It was a disappointing finish, but she still shot a 65 and was the early leader in the clubhouse.  

Jessica Korda, who holed an approach shot for an eagle 3 at the ninth hole and a bunker shot for a birdie 2 at the 14th, shot 66 and tied Jutanugarn at 274. It looked as if that number might get them into a playoff until until Song posted her 273, about a half-hour after Korda finished.

Amy Olson, the former North Dakota State All-American -- she was Amy Anderson until 2017, when she got married -- had her first taste of contending in a major. She had never finished inside the top 50 in a major before this week, but she was second at the start of Sunday's round.

A birdie at the par-5 second hole got her to minus 12 for the tournament and put her in the chase for the title, temporarily. But she dropped out of contention with three bogeys in the next nine holes. Olson rallied late in the round. She birdied the par-3 14th hole and bounced back from a bogey at the 16th with a birdie at the other par-3 on the back nine, the 17th, and another birdie at the 18th. That gave her a 72 and moved her back into the top 10. The 25-year-old from Oxbow, N.D., ended up tied for ninth.


LPGA TOUR

ANA Inspiration

At Mission Hills Country Club

Dinah Shore Tournament Course

Par 72, 6,763 yards

Rancho Mirage, Calif. 

Fourth-round results

The sudden death playoff between Inbee Park and Pernilla Lindberg will continue Monday morning at 8 o'clock (10 o'clock Central Daylight Time) 

T1. Inbee Park                     70-69-67-67--273  (Playoff   5  5  4  5)

T1. Pernilla Lindberg            65-67-70-71--273 (Playoff   5   5  4  5)

T1. Jennifer Song                69-69-68-67--273  (Playoff   5   5  5 eliminated)

T4. Ariya Jutanugarn           72-69-68-65--274

T4. Jessica Korda                67-68-73-66--274

T6. Moriya Jutanugarn         70-70-66-69--275

T6. Charley Hull                   69-68-69-69--275

8. Ayako Uehara                  66-71-70-69--276

T9. Amy Olson                    69-68-68-72--277

T9. Jodi Ewart Shadoff        70-67-69-71--277

T9. Caroline Masson           72-68-69-68--277

T9. Sung Huyn Park            68-64-74-71--277