VANCOUVER - American Megan Khang captured her first LPGA title after 190 starts, defeating former world number one Ko Jin-young in a playoff to win the CPKC Women's Canadian Open.
Khang's long-sought breakthrough victory came with a par on the first extra hole, the 25-year-old from suburban Boston saying the eight-year wait made the triumph all the sweeter.
"It's tough to win out here," she said. "Eight years is a long time. It's great to get the first."
Ko fired a three-under par 69 Sunday while Khang needed a tense four-foot birdie putt at the 18th to shoot 74 and finish deadlocked after 72 holes on nine-under 279 at Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club.
The playoff began at the par-4 18th as fourth-ranked Ko hooked her tee shot left into a bush beyond a cart path while Khang found the fairway and the fringe of the green.
Ko took a penalty stroke and blasted from the concrete into a greenside bunker, then punched onto the green and two-putted for double bogey, leaving Khang three putts from victory.
Khang's first stopped inches from the hole and she tapped in the next for the title just before friends raced onto the green to spray her with champagne.
There were times, Khang said, she wondered if it would ever happen.
"I think it crosses a lot of people's minds," she said. "I know my game is trendy and it has matured over the past few years so I was more like, 'It's going to happen. It's just a matter of time.'
"It just happened to be the CPKC Open. This course suits my game very well and I'm just pumped to finally get the first one."