Paula Creamer held off all challengers, posting a 69 to win the Samsung World Championship by one shot.  It was Creamer's fourth victory of 2008 and the eighth of her career.  Song-Hee Kim finished in second place at -8 while Lorena Ochoa, Suzann Pettersen, Angela Stanford and Juli Inkster tied for third at -7.

Starting the day with a one-shot lead, Creamer went out in 33 to reach -8.  Pettersen began her run with an eagle at the par-5 8^th, then birdies at 9 and 10 to reach -7 and one shot of the lead.  Ochoa birdied 8, 9 and 10 to get to -6.  Suzann took bogey at 11 to give Paula a two-shot lead.  Kim rode the rollercoaster around the turn, following birdies at 8 and 10 with bogeys at 9 and 11 to stand at -5.  Song-Hee kept on digging though and birdied 12, 13 and 14, the last when she chipped in to tie for the lead at -8.  Pettersen drilled one from 30 feet at 15 to climb back within one.  Lorena had birdie attempts of less than ten feet at 13 and 14 but couldn't drop either.  At 16 however, she rolled one home from 25 feet and when Inkster made a 15-footer for her second straight birdie, we had five players within one shot.

Creamer didn't have a real back-nine birdie chance until an 8-footer at 14, which she missed to the left.  At 15 she was 18 feet away but Paula drilled it dead center to go -9 and into the solo lead.  Ahead at 17, Ochoa missed from 15 feet so she and Inkster went to 18 trailing by two.  Kim was 10 feet away for birdie at 16 but missed it right.  Pettersen's second to the par-5 reached the green but rolled into the thick rough.  Her chip shot stopped eight feet short and Suzann lipped out the birdie putt, sending her into the clubhouse at -7.  Creamer had eight feet for birdie and a two-shot lead at 16 but missed it right.  Ochoa went for the 18^th green in two and landed in terrible position in a greenside bunker - right against the lip with a steep grassy face.  Lorena's chip went through the green and she only managed par to finish -7.  Inkster made a mess of her layup second and her third but scrambled to save par and finish -7.

Angela Stanford started the day one shot behind but had fallen to -5 with a bogey at 13.  Birdies at 16 and 17 brought her back within two shots and a slim chance going to 18.  Kim was in great position for her third at 18 but left her chip shot 40 feet short of the hole.  She two-putted for par and finished -8.  Creamer layed up safely on the final hole while Stanford went for the green, pulling it left into the rough.  Paula played her third short ala Song-Hee Kim, leaving 30 feet and two putts to win.  Angela chipped through the green into the second cut.  Creamer's birdie putt missed left and rolled four feet past, giving Kim and Stanford a bit of last-minute hope.  Stanford's must-make chip just missed left, and Paula rolled in the par putt to secure the victory.

That was a pretty good Sunday Free-For-All between seven of the world's best women golfers (Katherine Hull was in the mix early on but a bogey at 13 dropped her to -4 and two birdies coming in weren't enough to challenge).  Creamer's fourth win of 2008 gives her a great chance of overtaking Annika Sorenstam for the #2 spot in the Hound Dog Rankings, which I plan to publish after next week's Longs Drugs Challenge.  More, as usual, tomorrow in the Epilogue.