Hong, Tsubasa to meet in Aussie Women's Amateur final

MELBOURNE, Aus. (Jan. 19, 2019) – An international final awaits at the Australian Women’s Amateur after one Aussie entered the semifinals but didn’t come out.

Stephanie Bunque held the last hopes for Australia but fell to South Korea’s Yae Eun Hong on the final hole on Saturday at the Woodlands Golf Club.

Hong had nearly thrown away the match with a four-putt on the par-3 17th, but the 16-year-old Korean redeemed herself --and her putting -- on the 18th to seal a 1-up win.

“Today was tough, I was so nervous,” she said. “I never thought I would get here. The courses are wonderful - but very different to Korea. I have been practicing around the greens a lot, the grass is very firm and tough.”

The other finalist, Japan’s Tsubasa Kajitani, has been a dominant force at Woodlands all week. The No. 16 seed earned her spot in the final after defeating compatriot Riri Sadoyama in a grueling semifinal.

The women’s 36-hole final is scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday.

Information from Golf Australia used in this report