Lang Wins 2016 U.S. Women’s Open after 

Nordqvist penalised in play-off

DUKE UNIVERSITY NEWS RELEASE
DURHAM, North Carolina –  Duke University women’s golf two-time All-American team selection  Brittany Lang has become the first Blue Devil to win a major championship - the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open in a play-off at CordeValle in San Martin, California.
Lang, who had finished runner-up in 2005 as an amateur, won a three-hole aggregate play-off against Sweden's Anna Nordqvist to win the championship. She earned $810,000 to Anna's $486,000.
Both Lang and Nordqvist netted pars on the first play-off hole, which was No. 16.  On the par four 17th, each golfer registered a par, but after looking at Fox Sports television video, the United States Golf Association (USGA) ruled that Nordqvist grounded her club in the fairway bunker and was assessed a two-stroke penalty
The two golfers were notified of the penalty on the fairway of the 18th hole.  Lang, who hails from McKinney, Texas, went on to par the final play-off hole to win the title
For the week, Lang turned in rounds of 68, 75, 68 and 71 for a four-day ledger of 282.  She trailed Lydia Ko by three strokes heading into the final day, but Lang turned in a one-under-par score and Ko had a 75.  Nordqvist shot a five-under, 67, on the final day of action to finish in a tie with Lang at 282.
Lang was a two-time All-America at Duke in 2004 and 2005.  She was also the National Freshman of the Year in 2004, while leading the Blue Devils to back-to-back ACC Championships along with the 2005 NCAA Championship as a sophomore before turning professional.
It was Lang’s 12th appearance in the U.S. Open.  The victory marked the second of Lang’s career. She also won the 2012 Manulife Financial LPGA Classic.
Nordqvist, who won the 2009 McDonald's LPGA Championship and five other events, including the ShopRite LPGA Classic this year, charged to the forefront of the final-round plot by shooting the best score of the day, a 5-under 67. She was classy in defeat, accepting the ruling but wishing that she had been told sooner about the violation.
"I was just focusing on hitting my shots and apparently I touched the sand," Nordqvist said. "It wasn't on purpose, and just one of those things. I have to deal with the consequences.
"Unfortunately, it happened but it's not the end of the world. I wish the USGA would have told me a little bit earlier. I don't know if it would have changed the outcome, but it certainly would have changed my aggressiveness into the 18th pin.
 “Brittany played well all week,” Nordqvist said. “Hey, I still finished second in the U.S. Open. I don't think anyone should feel sorry for me. It's just golf. It happens. Hopefully, we can all learn from it, and, hopefully, we can all get better.”
Lydia Ko's bid to become the youngest winner of the U.S. Women’s Open was probably lost with her golf ball in the hazard at the ninth hole in the final round.
A race to stay off the clock for slow play after that didn’t help her, either.
After pulling her tee shot left in the heavy rough at the ninth hole, Ko was left with a second shot over a hazard. She had just 116 yards to clear the hazard, and with a 25-degree hybrid in hand, she took a hard swipe but couldn’t muscle it out far enough.
Ko was holding on to a one-shot lead before making double bogey there. She walked away one shot off the lead.
“I should have judged the lie a little better and maybe played a little smarter and laid up short of the hazard,” Ko said.

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Ko held the 54-hole lead, but she closed with a 5-over-par 75 and finished in a four-way tie for third place.
Ko, Sung Hyun Park and Eun Hee Ji were put on the clock for slow play after that, and Park was given a slow-play warning leaving the 11th hole.
University's rising third-year student  Leona Maguire from Ireland  also competed in the U.S. Open and missed the cut by one stroke with rounds of 74 and 75 for a 149.  It was the first time Maguire has competed in the U.S. Open.
Jodi Ewart Shadoff from Yorkshire made the top 10 with a T8 finish on 286. She earned $115,705.
Catriona Matthew had a disappointing last round of 74 and tied for 26th position on 290. The Scot earned $33,962.

FINAL TOTALS AND PRIZEMONEY
 Par 288 (4x72)
*Lang won play-off against Nordqvist

1	x-Brittany Lang	68	75	68	71	.			282	$810,000
2	Anna Nordqvist	68	74	73	67				282	$486,000
T3	Eun-Hee Ji	69	71	70	74				284	$213,638
T3	Lydia Ko	73	66	70	75				284	$213,638
T3	Sung Hyun Park	70	66	74	74				284	$213,638
T3	Amy Yang	67	71	73	73				284	$213,638
7	Stacy Lewis	71	74	69	71				285	$140,590
T8	Jodi Ewart Shadoff	70	71	75	70				286	$115,705
T8	Cristie Kerr	67	75	72	72				286	$115,705
T8	Gerina Piller	70	72	74	70				286	$115,705
T11	Mirim Lee	64	74	76	73				287	$81,696
T11	Gaby Lopez	71	72	71	73				287	$81,696
T11	Sydnee Michaels	69	72	75	71				287	$81,696
T11	Haru Nomura	70	69	75	73				287	$81,696
T11	So Yeon Ryu	71	76	71	69				287	$81,696
T11	Angela Stanford	71	70	71	75				287	$81,696
T17	Ariya Jutanugarn	70	75	69	74				288	$59,248
T17	Danielle Kang	71	69	73	75				288	$59,248
T17	Jessica Korda	70	70	75	73				288	$59,248
T17	Lee Lopez	73	72	71	72				288	$59,248
T21	Ha Na Jang	73	71	74	71				289	$45,178
T21	Mo Martin	71	70	77	71				289	$45,178
T21	Suzann Pettersen	72	74	72	71				289	$45,178
T21	Alena Sharp	70	72	75	72				289	$45,178
T21	Kris Tamulis	71	72	71	75				289	$45,178
T26	Christina Kim	70	75	73	72				290	$33,362
T26	Sei Young Kim	75	68	72	75				290	$33,362
T26	Maude-Aimee Leblanc	72	69	76	73				290	$33,362
T26	Xi Yu Lin	73	73	73	71				290	$33,362
T26	Catriona Matthew	73	72	71	74				290	$33,362
T26	Lizette Salas	70	78	71	71				290	$33,362
T32	Chella Choi	75	69	71	76				291	$25,894
T32	Kim Kaufman	75	70	73	73				291	$25,894
T32	Mi Hyang Lee	72	74	71	74				291	$25,894
T32	Pornanong Phatlum	70	78	72	71				291	$25,894
T32	Kelly Tan	68	72	78	73				291	$25,894
T32	Lexi Thompson	74	73	71	73				291	$25,894
T38	Nicole Broch Larsen	74	73	71	74				292	$19,804
T38	Hye Jin Choi	72	71	75	74				292	-
T38	Shanshan Feng	74	74	74	70				292	$19,804
T38	Hyo Joo Kim	73	73	69	77				292	$19,804
T38	Brittany Lincicome	75	72	73	72				292	$19,804
T38	Gwladys Nocera	72	73	73	74				292	$19,804
T38	Ayaka Watanabe	74	71	71	76				292	$19,804
T38	Sakura Yokomine	71	75	73	73				292	$19,804
T46	Sun Ju Ahn	74	73	75	71				293	$14,365
T46	Minjee Lee	67	75	75	76				293	$14,365
T46	Pernilla Lindberg	70	73	74	76				293	$14,365
T46	Madelene Sagstrom	78	69	71	75				293	$14,365
T46	Jenny Shin	71	77	75	70				293	$14,365
T46	Karrie Webb	73	73	73	74				293	$14,365
T52	Amy Anderson	71	77	74	72				294	$12,284
T52	Kelly Shon	73	73	76	72				294	$12,284
54	Caroline Masson	73	73	71	78				295	$11,904
T55	Moriya Jutanugarn	69	77	76	75				297	$11,433
T55	Ryann O'Toole	71	73	76	77				297	$11,433
T55	Beatriz Recari	78	70	77	72				297	$11,433
T55	Jennifer Song	75	73	71	78				297	$11,433
T59	Q Baek	74	73	77	74				298	$10,806
T59	Paula Creamer	74	74	74	76				298	$10,806
T59	Nelly Korda	72	76	75	75				298	$10,806
T59	Teresa Lu	74	74	75	75				298	$10,806
T59	Yani Tseng	72	75	79	72				298	$10,806
64	Brooke Mackenzie Henderson	76	71	76	76				299	$10,410
T65	Sue Kim	76	71	76	77				300	$10,212
T65	Hee Young Park	70	75	78	77				300	$10,212
T67	Christine Song	74	72	77	80				303	$10,015
T67	Albane Valenzuela (am)	72	75	76	80				303	-
T69	Erina Hara	71	77	76	81				305	$9,883
T69	Hannah O'Sullivan (am)	72	75	82	76				305	-
71	Morgan Pressel	73	75	79	81				308	$9,751
72	Sophia Popov	71	77	77	86				311	$9,614