Celine Boutier edged out Georgia Hall in an entertaining play-off at the LPGA Drive On Championship in Arizona.
France’s Boutier forced the play-off with Hall after she birdied the 18th hole to finish on a four-under 68 to join level with Hall on 20-under at the Superstition Mountain Golf & Country Club.
Commencing the play-off which took place on the 18th hole, neither golfer managed to find the green on their second shot however, Boutier, managed to pitch to around four feet, giving her the advantage.
Hall could not match Boutier as she shot wayward and failed to convert her birdie effort, opening the door for Boutier to end the contest, which she did with a successful birdie putt, securing her third career LPGA Tour victory.
“I was honestly not looking forward to it,” Boutier said of facing Hall in the play-off.
“It’s a bittersweet feeling because you obviously want to win, but at the same time I really think she’s an amazing player.
“She is a really good friend of mine. So I feel like it’s not always easy, but also I’m a little bit competitive, so I feel like I definitely want to win as well. But it’s not the greatest feeling.”
Following her play-off defeat, Hall said: “Obviously [it was] fantastic to get to the position I was in. I knew I had to shoot low today, and obviously [I’m] gutted about the play-off.”
Japan’s Ayaka Furue completed the top three, finishing on 19-under.
The next event on the LPGA Tour is the LA Open taking place at Palos Verdes Golf Club between March 30 – April 2.