PRATTVILLE, Alabama — Stacy Lewis claimed her third victory of the season at the Navistar LPGA Classic at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail’s Senator Course at Capitol Hill Sunday in Prattville, Alabama. The 27-year-old Texan carded a final-round 69 to edge defending champion Lexi Thompson by two shots and complete the “Alabama Slam” with victories this season at the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic and today in Prattville. The win is significant for Lewis, who now takes a 56 point lead in the Rolex Player of the Year race in her bid to become the first American since Beth Daniel in 1994 to claim the honor.
“Winning never gets easier,” Lewis said. “I think it might have looked easy out there but it was hard. Every shot was stressful, and I know on this golf course with one swing you can make a double pretty easy.
Lewis, who birdied four of her first five holes on Saturday, played the same stretch in even par on Sunday including a bogey at the par-3 second hole. She recovered with four birdies on the day to shoot 3-under-par 69, enough to hold off a final-round charge from Thompson, who began the day five shots back after leading the first 36 holes. The 17-year-old shot 6-under-par 66 on the final 18 holes including three consecutive birdies on holes 10, 11 and 12 that put pressure on Lewis to close out the round.
Lewis added, “I was definitely a lot more comfortable coming down the stretch knowing that I could hit the shots and knowing how to handle my nerves and knowing that I’m going to hit a drive probably 300 yards on the last hole, and just knowing how your body reacts to the pressure I think helps you a lot.”
With the win, Lewis regains the No. 2 spot on the Rolex Rankings from Na Yeon Choi and adds $195,000 to her already career-best season money total. She is currently second on the LPGA Official Money List to Inbee Park with $1,598,596.