Yim capitalizes on rare collapse by Sorenstam for first LPGA win

Annika Sorenstam's right hand flew off the club on the follow-through, the first sign that something was amiss. Then, as everyone watched in disbelief, the ball sailed toward the trees along the right side of the fairway -- and the dreaded out-of-bounds line.

The greatest closer in women's golf had just given one away.

Tied for the lead, Sorenstam knocked her tee shot at No. 17 on the wrong side of the stakes and wound up with a double bogey that allowed Sung Ah Yim to claim her first LPGA Tour victory in the Florida's Natural Charity Championship on Sunday.

Yim, a 22-year-old South Korean, tapped in a birdie putt at the final hole for a two-stroke win over Sorenstam, Cristie Kerr and Karrie Webb -- three players with a combined 104 wins on the LPGA Tour.

Three straight rounds in the 60s gave Sorenstam a one-stroke lead going to the final round of a tournament that she won in a 10-stroke runaway last year. But the world's No. 1 player slumped to a 75 -- her tee shot on the next-to-last hole merely the worst swing in an unthinkably poor round at Eagle's Landing Country Club near Atlanta.

"There's no much to say other than it was a horrible day," Sorenstam said. "I would like to forget about it."

Sorenstam was seeking her second straight win at Eagle's Landing Country Club near Atlanta and the 68th LPGA Tour victory of her Hall of Fame victory. She was tied for the lead heading to No. 17, but she knocked her tee shot out of bounds along the right side of the fairway. After teeing off again, Sorenstam nearly pulled off a remarkable save, putting her fourth shot within 5 feet of the flag. But her putt slid by the hole -- one of a half-dozen attempts she missed from that range -- for a double bogey.

Kerr closed with a 69, and Webb shot a 70.

PGA Tour

Stuart Appleby shot a 5-under 67 to cap a wire-to-wire victory in the Shell Houston Open and join Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson as the only two-time winners on the PGA Tour this year.

Appleby, also the 1999 winner in Houston, finished at 19-under 269 on the new Tournament Course at Redstone in Humble, Texas, six shots ahead of Bob Estes. Appleby matched the tournament record for margin of victory and was the first player in the event's 60-year history to lead from the opening round to the end.

Appleby earned $990,000 for his eighth tour win and has two victories in the same year for the first time in his career. In January, Appleby won the season-opening Mercedes Championships for the third straight time.

Estes closed with a 69, and Steve Stricker was 12 under after a 66.

Champions Tour

Jay Haas had an eagle and three birdies on the back nine to pull away from Peter Jacobsen and Craig Stadler in the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf in Savannah, Ga.

Haas, the Champions Tour rookie of the year in 2005, shot a 5-under 67 for a three-round total of 15-under 201 at The Club at Savannah Harbor. Jacobsen (67) and Stadler (70) tied for second at 10 under, and Hale Irwin (68) was another stroke back.

-- The Associated Press