Tanco of Argentina wins girls title by 9

~ The wire-to-wire run ended in a rout.

It looked like Karen Chung and Victoria Tanco were in for a battle after two holes of Saturday's final round at the AJGA's Rolex Tournament of Champions.

Then Tanco took off and nobody could catch her.

Tanco closed with a 4-under 67 to finish the tournament at 13 under and a nine-stroke victory over Chung at Dalhousie Golf Club.

"Today I tried to play as good as I was playing the days before," Tanco said. "Trying not to let Karen close."

Tournament winner Victoria Tanco sinks her putt on the 11th green Saturday.

Chung did get close -- for a hole.

Chung birdied No. 2 to pull even with Tanco at 9 under.

But she followed her birdie by hitting into a sand trap on No. 3 and taking a bogey.

Tanco capitalized.

She stuck her second shot 10 feet from the pin and drained the birdie putt to take a two-shot advantage.

Victoria Tanco hits from the fairway Saturday during the final round of the AJGA's Rolex Tournament of Champions.

Tanco then added a 7-foot birdie on No. 4 to climb to 11 under, three shots ahead of Chung.

"That helped me a lot," Tanco said. "We were tied, then I was three shots ahead of her. It helped me feel safe."

Chung would go on to bogey Nos. 5 and 7, giving Tanco a five-shot lead.

Tanco closed the front with a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 9, while Chung three-putted for a bogey.

She held a seven-shot lead going into the back nine.

Karen Chung chips onto the 17th green during Saturday's final round of the AJGA's Rolex Tournament of Champions. (Elizabeth Dodd)

"I tried not to think about the seven-stroke lead," Tanco said. "Try to keep playing good and try to make pars, and if I get birdies, great."

Tanco was looking unstoppable before a rainstorm delayed the round, a storm that proved not to faze Tanco.

"It was not nice to come back to the clubhouse," Tanco said. "But you have to do it and I went out and kept playing good."

After about a two hour delay, Tanco picked up where she left off. She hit almost every green and fairway in regulation, while the other competitors only could watch.

Ani Gulugian, the winner of last year's AJGA tournament at Dalhousie, got off to a rough start by double bogeying No. 1, but made a late charge.

Karen Chung, left, congratulates Victoria Tanco on her victory at the AJGA's Rolex Tournament of Champions.

Gulugian birdied No. 10, chipped in a birdie on No. 12, and holed a birdie putt on No. 14 to climb ahead of Chung and into second place at 5 under.

But after flying the green on the par-5 No. 15, Gulugian's chip came out hot and a three-putt resulted in a double bogey, dropping her out of second place and ending all chances of a comeback.

"I definitely felt like I could go pretty low today and I felt like if I played my game it would all work," Gulugian said. "But doubling the first hole and the 15th hole didn't help."

Meanwhile, Tanco continued to par, consistently outdriving Chung and Gulugian and saving herself on a few holes with her red-hot putter.

"Well today my driver was great and I hit longer than the other girls, so that was a good help," Tanco said. "Then I was hitting my irons good too, and I was making like almost every green and I was putting good."

Ani Gulugian lines up her putt on the ninth green Saturday at Dalhousie Golf Club.

Tanco would finish her round and tournament in style.

She bombed a drive on No. 18, then took a fairway wood and stuck it within 30 feet of the pin for an eagle opportunity.

"I was happy to have the lead and I was relaxed because I was leading by eight shots," Tanco said. "So there was no pressure on me."

She would miss the eagle, but knocked down the birdie putt to wrap up a dominating performance.

Chung finished the tournament in sole possession of second place with a 4-under 284, while Gulugian closed in third with a 3-under 285.

"I wish I played a little bit better today," Chung said. "But I'm happy with what I did this week."

For Tanco, it was mission accomplished.

"It means a lot to me," Tanco said. "My goal was try to win an invitational before the summer ends and that's what I did, so I'm happy."