1998 U.S. Women's Open Winner and Scores
The 1998 U.S. Women's Open was the 53rd edition of this major championship. Se Ri Pak was the winner but only after an epic showdown with a college amateur that ended with 20 playoff holes.
Winner: Se Ri Pak, 290 (beat Jenny Chuasiriporn in playoff)
Where it was played: Blackwolf Run in Kohler, Wisconsin
Tournament dates: July 2-6, 1998
Leaders after first round: Laura Davies, Kim Williams, 68
Leader after second round: Se Ri Pak, 139
Leader after third round: Se Ri Pak, 214
What Happened In the 1998 U.S. Women's Open
Se Ri Pak was not the first Korean winner on the LPGA Tour (that was Ok-Hee Ku). But when Pak, at just 20 years old, won the 1998 U.S. Women's Open in a dramatic playoff, she inspired a whole generation of young Korean girls to take up the game. It was a transformative victory, as the wave of Korean winners on the LPGA Tour over following decades proved.Pak was in the lead at the halfway mark after opening 69-70. Following the third round, Park led the two golfers in second place, Mhairi McKay and 1988 U.S. Women's Open champ Liselotte Neumann, by one stroke.
McKay was never a factor in the final round, scoring 78 and falling to seventh. Neumann, on the other hand, was in it the whole way. She had a share of the lead midway through the final round. But she made bogeys on Nos. 11 and 12 and could only par in from there. Neumann finished one stroke out of the playoff. (This was her last Top 10 finish in the USWO.)
It was another golfer, though, who became Pak's main challenger and is now tied together with Pak in history. Duke University golfer Jenny Chuasiriporn began the final round tied for fourth place, four strokes behind Pak. But Pak shot 76 and Chuasiriporn 72 in the fourth round. And Chuasiriporn tied Pak on her final hole, forcing a playoff with a 40-foot birdie putt:
The playoff, scheduled for 18 holes, was still tied after both carded 73s. Pak and Chuasiriporn matched pars on the first extra hole (19th overall). Then, on the 20th overall playoff hole, Pak rolled in an 18-foot birdie to win the title.
Pak went on to a Hall of Fame career, recording 25 LPGA victories including five total major championship wins. At the time of this win, she was the youngest-ever U.S. Women's Open champion. Chuasiriporn went back to college where she was a 4-time All-American selection, but she never made it on the LPGA Tour.
1998 U.S. Women's Open Final Scores
| Se Ri Pak | 69-70-75-76—290 (73-5-4) |
| a-Jenny Chuasiriporn | 72-71-75-72—290 (73-5-x) |
| Liselotte Neumann | 70-70-75-76—291 |
| Danielle Ammaccapane | 76-71-74-71—292 |
| Pat Hurst | 69-75-75-73—292 |
| Christa Johnson | 72-70-76-74—292 |
| Stefania Croce | 74-71-76-72—293 |
| Tammie Green | 73-71-76-73—293 |
| Mhairi McKay | 72-70-73-78—293 |
| Trish Johnson | 73-71-77-73—294 |
| Laura Davies | 68-75-78-74—295 |
| Dottie Pepper | 71-71-78-75—295 |
| Helen Alfredsson | 75-75-73-73—296 |
| Carin Hjalmarsson | 72-74-77-73—296 |
| Hollis Stacy | 76-68-82-71—297 |
| Anna Acker-Macosko | 74-74-76-73—297 |
| Brandie Burton | 74-72-77-74—297 |
| Dina Ammaccapane | 75-70-78-74—297 |
| Lorie Kane | 74-72-82-70—298 |
| Jenny Lidback | 71-73-79-75—298 |
| Rosie Jones | 74-74-74-76—298 |
| Akiko Fukushima | 72-71-79-76—298 |
| Lisa Walters | 76-70-74-78—298 |
| Wendy Ward | 76-69-75-78—298 |
| Donna Andrews | 70-75-75-78—298 |
| Dana Dormann | 72-76-79-72—299 |
| Nancy Scranton | 76-72-78-73—299 |
| Michelle Estill | 75-74-76-74—299 |
| Laurie Rinker | 75-71-77-76—299 |
| Helen Dobson | 71-75-77-76—299 |
| Kim Williams | 68-81-79-72—300 |
| Penny Hammel | 71-79-77-73—300 |
| Beth Daniel | 77-69-78-76—300 |
| Karrie Webb | 76-73-73-78—300 |
| Dale Eggeling | 71-72-79-78—300 |
| Dawn Coe-Jones | 71-74-83-73—301 |
| a-Isabelle Blais | 74-73-78-76—301 |
| Kris Tschetter | 75-72-77-77—301 |
| a-Brenda Corrie Kuehn | 70-72-80-79—301 |
| Leslie Spalding | 69-74-78-80—301 |
| Helen Wadsworth | 77-71-80-74—302 |
| Emilee Klein | 72-75-80-75—302 |
| Nanci Bowen | 72-74-80-76—302 |
| Annika Sorenstam | 71-75-79-77—302 |
| Barb Mucha | 70-74-75-83—302 |
| Pat Bradley | 71-77-83-73—304 |
| Patti Rizzo | 73-73-80-78—304 |
| Pearl Sinn-Bonanni | 77-73-75-79—304 |
| Kristi Albers | 75-74-79-77—305 |
| Marilyn Lovander | 72-77-77-79—305 |
| Michele Redman | 74-73-79-79—305 |
| a-Kellee Booth | 75-73-77-80—305 |
| Annette DeLuca | 77-73-74-81—305 |
| Hiromi Kobayashi | 74-73-78-81—306 |
| Marie-Laure de Lorenzi | 76-74-81-76—307 |
| Stephanie Brecht | 74-75-79-80—308 |
| Jan Stephenson | 73-77-82-77—309 |
| Terry-Jo Myers | 73-77-80-79—309 |
| a-Jo Jo Robertson | 74-75-81-80—310 |
| Cristie Kerr | 74-74-82-81—311 |
| Kristal Parker | 76-74-85-79—314 |
| Kim Bauer | 71-76-85-84—316 |
Previous and next:
1997 U.S. Women's Open - 1999 U.S. Women's Open
Sources:
Associated Press. "Pak is youngest winner," Toledo Blade, July 7, 1998, https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cEBPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=kgMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2322%2C2389123
LPGA.com. U.S. Women's Open, Past Winners, https://www.lpga.com/tournaments/us-womens-open/past-winners
Sirak, Ron. "Pak's 1998 U.S. Women's Open win changed 2 lives, inspired countless girls," https://www.uswomensopen.com/2023/articles/pak-s-1998-u-s--women-s-open-win-changed-2-lives--inspired-count.html
USGA.org. U.S. Women's Open Records, https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/media/online-media-center/usga-records/u-s--women-s-open-records.html
