Evian Championship 2017: Anna Nordqvist Defeats Brittany Altomare in Playoff

Anna Nordqvist emerged as victor from a playoff against Brittany Altomare to win the 2017 Evian Championship on Sunday.

Nordqvist ended the three-day event level on nine-under par alongside Altomare but held her nerve in the playoff to win her eighth LPGA Tour title, per the Evian Championship's official Twitter account:

Lydia Ko and Moriya Jutanugarn fell just short of making it a four-woman playoff after each dropped shots on the 18th. Nordqvist's win netted her a $547,500 prize purse, per TheGolfNewsNet.com.

Altomare and Nordqvist had to perform well in the third round if they were to have any sight at the crown, and both players obliged with cards of 66, a score only South Korean Mi Hyang Lee came close to with her 67.

In comparison, Jutanugarn and Ko could only manage third-round scores of one-over and two-under, respectively, and were unable to withstand the pressure as they just missed out on playoff berths.

Wet conditions meant the playoff ended after just one hole, and Nordqvist's bogey on their replay of the 18th was enough to edge Altomare's double-bogey, per the Ladies European Tour:

The playoff was left to be battled out between Europe and America, and few could argue it wasn't the two most deserving candidates going head-to-head based on their Sunday displays.

Nordqvist's achievement was all the more impressive considering she was battling against glandular fever earlier this year, as told by Golfweek's Beth Ann Nichols:

Her playoff victory against Altomare was even sweeter when taking into account it was Nordqvist's bogey on the 18th that meant a playoff was needed, while her opponent had managed to par it minutes prior to the do-over.

The Swede saved eight shots in total on Sunday—two eagles and four birdies—and was the most impressive in terms of chasing the lead, particularly given the conditions didn't always allow for risky manoeuvres.

Jutanugarn entered the third round with a one-shot lead and boasted a playoff-worthy score of nine-under but posted her only positive 18 of the weekend at an unfortunate time to end her candidacy for the title.

Three birdies and three bogeys over the first 13 holes meant it was all on the line for the Thai talent heading to the last hole, as told by the Golf Channel, and an untimely miscue at the climax saw her fall by the wayside:

Moriya, the older sister of fellow LPGA competitor Ariya Jutanugarn, failed to record a birdie over her back nine and was let down by two bogeys over that stretch, the only top-nine finisher to post a positive Day 3 score.

Nordqvist leaves Evian-Les-Bains in France with her first major championship in eight years, and the Arizona State University graduate will end 2017 with high spirits for what next year could bring.