by Jeff Skinner
Lizette Salas finally found a way to win on the LPGA Tour. After two seasons of near misses in half a dozen tournaments the second year LPGA player nailed down her first tour win at the Kingsmill Championship Presented by JTBC.
Salas had blown leads, chunked shots, been outplayed and lost in a playoff before this win but there would be no denying her on Sunday.
A good way to win is to start with a three shot lead and that’s just what Salas had at the start of the final round. She worked he lead to six strokes before a lone bogey at the eighth hole. But the rest of the round was a victory lap as no one could mount a charge and she cruised to a four shot margin of victory over a trio of players.
”I was patient, I was happy, and I was ready most importantly,” she said. ”I took a different approach this week of not thinking so much and trying to be perfect.”
“I felt like I wanted to be perfect all the time,” she said. “I felt like I needed to play like a top tier golfer every week. That’s not it. It’s about feeling confident. Golf is a sport where you can’t control everything. … I just took a step back and looked at golf differently. I just tried to have fun this week. That was the most important thing.”
Salas has crafted her own rags to riches, American Dream. She didn’t come from the country club or a golf academy. She’s the daughter of Mexican immigrants and her dad was a mechanic on a golf course. He traded his skills for golf lessons from the pro for his daughter.
She parlayed her skills into a scholarship at the University of Southern California where she was a four time All-American.
She takes an active role in the Latino community and has clinics to introduce young girls to the game. She’s a role model for young girls that normally wouldn’t have been exposed to women’s golf and an asset to the LPGA Tour.
Salas’ win continues a great season for American golfers on the LPGA Tour. She joins Paula Creamer, Lexi Thompson, Jessica Korda, Michelle Wie and Stacy Lewis a 2014 winners.
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