Amazing Davies captures 79th career victory in Women's Indian Open

England's Laura Davies won the Hero Honda Women's Indian Open on Saturday, triumphing in a four-way playoff at the DLF Golf and Country Club. The tournament was the next-to-last event on the 2010 Ladies European Tour schedule. For Davies, the win was her 79th career victory worldwide and her fifth on the LET this season alone. Davies recovered from a poor round on Friday, which saw her start the day in a five-way tie for sixth, to edge Thailand's Nontaya Srisawang, overnight leader Tandi Cuningham, of South Africa, and Sweden's Louise Friberg. After Friday's effort, Davies started well as she birdied the first and went on to complete the round, which included a further birdie and an eagle as well as two bogeys with a 2-under-par 70 to tie on 213 with the three other women. France's Cassandra Kirkland finished fifth on 214 while defending champion Pormanong Phatlum was tied for sixth with Veronica Zorzi. In the playoff, Davies was on the par-5 18th green in two and two-putted for a birdie that gave her the title. It was also the same hole that resurrected her round during regulation play when she eagled it to keep her title hopes alive. Nontaya was three on and two-putted for a par while Cuningham and Friberg hit their balls into the water. "I love the 18th. It gave me life, it gave me money and it gave me the title,” Davies said. “I'll remember this hole for a long, long time." Davies is just $44,382 behind Lee-Ann Pace's lead on the Henderson Money List and will take the fight to the season-ending Omega Dubai Ladies Masters on Dec. 8-11 with Pace finishing tied for 15th here. "This means I have to win in Dubai to surpass Lee-Anne's earnings," said Davies, who has topped the list a record seven times in her career. "It was so close and yet so far for me. I led until the 15th hole but the bogey on the 16 ended my hope of winning my maiden professional title since I turned professional in 2006," said Nontaya, whose top-80 spot on the LET money list means she doesn’t have to go to Spain next week for the Q-School. "I have good plans lined out for the year-end Christmas holidays with my husband, but more importantly my performance here has given me a new zeal for better results in the 2011 season," added Cuningham.