Photo: DR

Kerr made 20 birdies and four bogeys over the last three laps at TPC Kuala Lumpur for her second victory of 2017. She finished with a total of (-15) over the four days of the competition, a total score of 269 and at one step ahead of Jacqui Concolino, Danielle Kang and Shanshan Feng.

" It had to happen "said Kerr on putt 18. “What a way to win. I always told myself that I wanted to get a win for my 40th birthday and I got it pretty quickly. "

(source: lpga.com)

There was a delay due to bad weather due to a thunderstorm that occurred during the round of the leading group. The horns blew at 12:38 p.m. local time. The players returned to the course once conditions improved at 13:46 p.m.

It was a key victory for Kerr. She becomes the 27th player in LPGA history to record 20 career wins. She is also the first 40-year-old to win the Tour since 2011 when Catriona Matthew won the Lorena Ochoa Invitational at 42. Elsewhere, Kerr earns his 22nd point towards induction in the LPGA Hall of Fame Tour and is just five points away from qualifying.

"Doing what I do for a living is incredible"said Kerr. “This tournament is a beacon for women's health and breast cancer awareness is close to my heart. I am so proud to be the champion of this tournament. "

Kerr birdied early on the second hole to widen his lead to two strokes over Shanshan Feng. This victory was not a quiet cruise. Things tightened considerably at the seventh hole (par-3) when Kerr hit his tee off bounds. She had to walk back to the tee to hit again and do a double bogey. Meanwhile, Feng put in a critical 3-yard putt, putting the two tied for the lead at 14 under par.

Nelly Korda birdied five on her first 11 holes to end up at (-12) and all of a sudden other players joined Kerr and Feng in the lead. Jacqui Concolino and In Gee Chun were also down (-12) before Kerr and Feng found themselves on the back 9.

Another decisive moment came on the 9th hole. Kerr hit a magnificent 7 iron from 3 yards. Seconds later, Feng missed his left approach and his ball ended up out of bounds near the water. Under these circumstances, Feng hit a very nice chip from 3,6 meters. The twists and turns continued when Kerr dropped his birdie in the middle of the cup to end at (-15). Feng then missed his putt from the left and Kerr took a two-stroke lead. It was the first bogey of the tournament (first 62 holes without a bogey) for Feng.

With a lead of two strokes and four remaining, Kerr hit his tee on 15 (par 3) in the bunker. She hit a nice bunker shot from 3 meters, but missed the putt to fall to (-14).

Concolino then made a move 4,5 meters on the 17th to meet at (-14) and share the lead.

Less than a minute later, Kerr made a remarkable birdie on the 16 (par 5). She hit a shaky drive into the bunker 169 yards from the hole with her 3 iron and hit a 4,5 yard wood before making a perfect putt and birdie to end up at (-15).

Kerr missed his tee on the 17th and put 3 putts for Bogey and come back down to (-14). Seconds later, Concolino birdied the 18 to be tied for the lead at (-14).

Feng went on to birdies on 16 and 17 to tie Kerr, Concolino and Kang, who had a huge 9 back with an eagle on 12 and birdies on 13, 16 and 18.

The match between Kerr and Feng was so close arriving on the 18th that a playoff was becoming more and more likely. Kerr was the first to play and birdied 9 yards on the 18 to finish at (-15). As the ball neared the hole, she threw her right fist into the air over its last few inches before the ball rolled into the hole.

"Oh my god, I can't believe I'm doing this," Kerr said as she walked over to the scoring tent. “It was a very difficult victory, but a great victory. "

To see the scoreboard: www.lpga.com/tournaments/sime-darby-lpga-malaysia/results