LPGA: Jiyai Shin Defeats Paula Creamer in a 9-Hole Playoff

The longest playoff in LPGA history ended after nine holes. Jiyai Shin made par on 16 to beat Paula Creamer and secure her ninth title on the tour at the Kingsmill LPGA.

The battle for the trophy started yesterday with both players going back and forth. The Pink Panther seemed to have the winning putt on 18, a five-foot par opportunity, but she missed it.

The champion would have to be decided in a playoff. Both golfers went to the 18th tee hoping to end it soon. But that was not the case.

After playing the last hole of the River Course eight times, the playoff was suspended due to darkness. By that time, Jiyai and Paula had missed the charter that would have taken them to Washington.

The officials and the golfers decided to resume play on Monday at 9 a.m ET, but after the constant bashing from media and fans about repeating the 18 endlessly, it was determined that they would play the stretch from 16 to 18.

For good or bad, only one more hole was needed to end the game. Creamer and Shin laid on the fairway after the tee shot.

The balls were safely on the green after the approach shots, but Jiyai's was closer to the pin, and she had about 12 feet to the hole.

Paula went first, hitting a long 30-footer that went by the hole and stopped five feet from it. This put her the same distance from where she missed her par putt in the last hole of regulation.

For a moment it seemed like the story would repeat, but the Pink Panther three-putted for bogey, taking pressure off of Shin, who made par on the 16th.

The Korean had to wait 22 months, almost two full LPGA seasons, to get back into the winner's circle. Meanwhile, the American continues a 26-month winless drought that seems endless.

Shin won't have much time to savor the victory, and Creamer must regroup quickly. Both of them are set to play the last major of the schedule, the Women's British Open.