Kang Min-ji finishes tied 5th at Meijer LPGA Classic; Yamashita Miyu wins in playoff

Kang Min-ji finished tied for fifth at the Meijer LPGA Classic, an LPGA Tour event with a $3.25 million purse.

Kang shot a 6-under-par 66 in the final round Sunday (Korean Standard Time) at Blythefield Country Club (par 72) in Belmont, Michigan, finishing at 14-under 274 to share fifth place with Cassie Porter of Australia. The result marks Kang's best finish of the season, surpassing her previous best of tied ninth at the Riviera Maya Open in April.

After a shaky start with a bogey on the first hole, Kang played flawless golf the rest of the way, carding an eagle and five birdies. She birdied the third hole, then made three consecutive birdies on holes five through seven. On the back nine, she added a birdie on the 12th and an eagle on the par-5 18th.

Lee So-mi shot a 5-under 67 to finish at 11-under 277, tying for 10th alongside Takeda Rio of Japan.

Jeon In-ji, who had been chasing a come-from-behind victory, traded three birdies for three bogeys on the final day to finish even par, ending the tournament at 10-under 278 in a tie for 12th with Lim Jin-hee.

Victory went to Japan's Yamashita Miyu, who stands just 153 centimeters tall. Yamashita fired an 8-under 64 on Sunday to finish at 17-under 271, level with Lottie Woad of England, then won the playoff with a tap-in birdie from 60 centimeters on the par-5 18th hole.

"I was able to put together a solid round and everything flowed pretty naturally throughout the day," Yamashita said. "Lottie also played really well. Honestly, I didn't expect it to come down to a playoff."

Woad holed a bunker shot for birdie on the par-4 17th to take a one-stroke lead into the final hole, but a three-putt bogey forced the playoff. She ultimately settled for runner-up after losing the extra hole.

Yan Jing of the United States, who entered the final round as the leader, made back-to-back bogeys on the 17th and 18th holes to drop to 13-under 275, finishing tied for seventh.