2002 Office Depot

 Pak holds off Sorenstam to claim first win of 2002 season

Korea's Se Ri Pak held off a charging Annika Sorenstam at the demanding El Caballero Country Club Course to secure her first win of the 2002 season and 14th career victory at The Office Depot Championship Hosted by Amy Alcott. Pak, who began the day with a three-shot lead over Sorenstam, had an up-and-down day en route to a one-over-par 73 and a one-shot victory over the Swede, who was looking for her third win of the season. "It always feels great after you win, no question," said Pak, who moved from 22nd to third on the LPGA money list thanks to her $150,000 first-place check. "Playing with Annika was great, then she caught up with me, but I didn't want to think about it. I knew she was right behind me. The first few holes I had some bad shots, but I was pretty good and pretty much hung in there."

Pak got off to a shaky start, with three-putt bogeys on holes two and three that dropped her to six-under-par for the tournament. Sorenstam carded back-to-back birdies on four and five to get to seven-under-par and wrestle the lead away from Pak, who had led the tournament since the first day.

The Korean rebounded with back-to-back birdies of her own, on holes six and seven, to tie Sorenstam for the lead at eight-under-par after Sorenstam also birdied the par-5 seventh. Sorenstam fell back to five-under-par with bogeys on eight, 12 and 16, while Pak remained at eight-under par after trading a bogey on 11 with a birdie on 13.

Pak's lead fell to just one shot after she bogeyed the par-five 17th and Sorenstam two-putted for birdie after reaching the green in two. Pak made par on the finishing hole, while Sorenstam's birdie attempt from the front of the green rolled just by the cup.
"It was exciting and fun today," said Sorenstam, who kept her top spot on the LPGA money list at $563,330 in earnings with her runner-up finish. "I played great golf overall, and it was fun to play with Se Ri. Today was a test to be three behind on a tough golf course, but I played good golf and had a great time today. This is what it's all about with the thrill. I felt like this was a major with the crowd that was out there today and they were supportive to hear."

Along with her $150,000 first-place check, Pak took home a 2003 Hyundai Tiburon GTV6 from Hyundai, the official car of the 2002 Office Depot Championship Hosted by Amy Alcott, as well as $1,000 in free gasoline from Shell Oil, the official gasoline of the LPGA. As part of the 2002 State Farm LPGA Series, Shell will present the winner of each of the 10 Series events with $1,000 in free gasoline and will also award $1,000 to each tournament's official charity.

Laura Diaz closed with a final-round, one-over-par 73 to hold onto her third-place spot and finish at 213 (-3). Jackie Gallagher-Smith, Kelli Kuehne and Wendy Doolan tied for fourth place at 215 (-1), closing out the small group of LPGA players who finished the 54-hole event under par.