Linnea Strom won the ShopRite Classic in epic fashion, shooting a memorable 11-under 60 to finish at 14-under and clip and Ayaka Furue by a stroke. She began her final round on the Bay Course at Seaview at 3-under-par and tied for 52nd place. Strom, who hails from Sweden, did not think she could win the golf tournament, but she had a goal: to get to 8-under overall.
The Swede more than eclipsed that mark, thanks to a stellar front side capped by a chip-in eagle on the par-5 9th. She went out with a 6-under 31 and sat at 9-under overall when she stood on the 10th tee. Another birdie at 10 followed, and suddenly, Strom found herself towards the top of the leaderboard while other contenders still had plenty of holes left.
But that did not matter. Strom kept the pedal to the metal, especially down the stretch, as she closed with four more birdies over her final five holes. “I knew I had a good score going, but I didn’t think I was that close to 59,” Strom said afterward.
“But it is what it is, and I still did my best and I’m happy that I was able to make a birdie at the end.” Not only did she get her first LPGA win, but she set LPGA history in the process. According to golf statistician Justin Ray, to shoot a final round 60 and win on the LPGA.
Remarkably, she had the third tee time of the day and made the 36-hole cut on the number. “Every golfer knows that it’s not always like this,” Strom added. “So I think really have to enjoy the days when everything goes .