MEXICO CITY – Carlota Ciganda rallied to win the Citibanamex Lorena Ochoa Invitational on Sunday for her second LPGA Tour victory in four starts.

The 26-year-old Spaniard shot a 4-under 68 at Club de Golf Mexico for a two-stroke victory over six players. She played the four par-5 holes in 5 under, making an eagle on No. 2 and birdies on 6, 11 and 17.

Ciganda won the LPGA KEB-Hana Bank Championship a month ago in South Korea for her first tour title. The former Arizona State player has five straight top-10 finishes.

“I am very happy to be here and to get my second victory,” Ciganda said. “It’s wonderful to play here in Mexico. I honestly don’t have any words. I love the golf course, the people, it’s an honour to be here. I’ve been playing really good all year long and to end this year with these two victories gives me a lot of confidence, I am very happy.”

Ciganda won a year after finishing second Inbee Park on the tree-lined course.

“Last year, I was close,” Ciganda said. “It was a shame not being able to win but it was still a good last day, so I had really good memories. Last week, I was back home just resting because I wanted to play here and to do so well, so I am really happy and thrilled that I was able to win.”

Third-round leader Austin Ernst had a 71 to drop into a tie for second with Angela Stanford (69), Jodi Ewart Shadoff (67), Karine Icher (69) and Sarah Jane Smith (70).

“Right now, disappointed. I just didn’t play well enough today to get it done,” Ernst said. “Carlota played really good, especially early. I am just kind of frustrated with how I finished.”

Stanford won the 2008 event in Guadalajara.

“It was a good day,” Stanford said. “It’s hard to shoot 3 under on Sunday and be upset, but I had two three-putts. The one on 11 would probably haunt me for a while, but I hit the ball really well and gave myself a lot of chances and I was never in a really bad spot, so to be in contention and have a day like that is pretty encouraging.”

Mexican amateur Maria Fassi closed with a 73 to tie for 15th at 5 under. She’s a freshman at the University of Arkansas. Gaby Lopez also was 5 under after a 73 on her home course.

Canada’s Brooke Henderson, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 7, was 20th at 4 under after a 71. Michelle Wie (72) was 24th at 1 under after a 72. The 2009 winner in Guadalajara, she played on a sponsor invite after failing to qualify for the 30-player event.

Tournament host Ochoa won 27 LPGA Tour titles. The Mexican star retired in 2010. She will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame next year.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Paul Goydos and Bernhard Langer got the big trophies and checks Sunday in the PGA Tour Champions’ season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

Goydos completed a wire-to-wire victory in the tournament, and Langer finished second to win his third straight season points title and fourth overall.

Goydos shot a 4-under 66 to finish at 15-under 195 on Desert Mountain’s Cochise Course. He opened with a 62 in windy conditions and shot a 67 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead in the final round.

Langer had a 64. Recovering from a left knee injury that forced him to withdraw from the playoff opener at Sherwood, the 59-year-old German star won the $1 million annuity as the Charles Schwab Cup season champion and also topped the tour with four victories and $3,016,959.

Colin Montgomerie had a 68 to finish third at 11 under.

Woody Austin (64) and 62-year-old Jay Haas (68) tied for fourth at 7 under.

The 52-year-old Goydos earned $440,000. He also won the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open in July in New York and has four victories on the 50-and-over tour. He won twice on the PGA Tour and shot a 59 in the 2010 John Deere Classic.

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico – Gary Woodland took a one-stroke lead into the final round of the PGA Tour’s OHL Classic at Mayakoba after dropping two strokes on the par-3 15th Saturday.

Woodland finished with a 5-under 66 to reach 18-under 195 on Mayakoba’s Greg Norman-designed El Camaleon course. He won the last of his two tour titles in 2013.

“I’ve been there. I’ve been in the position a lot the last couple years. I’m excited about my game, I’m going to rely on my game and trust it and go out and have fun. … I’m very comfortable with where my golf swing is and I’m going to rely on it and run it out.”

Woodland birdied the first seven odd-number holes, then ended the string with the double bogey on 15 when his tee shot went long into the hazard. He played the first 51 holes without a bogey.

“I’m happy. I mean, I played great today. Drove the ball exceptionally well, controlled my distances to the green, and I rolled it well,” Woodland said. “It’s hard to argue with that, hard to be upset with that. I hit a good shot on 15. I just hit it long.”

Married last month, Woodland took last week off and worked with instructor Butch Harmon after opening the new season in Malaysia and China.

Pat Perez was second after a 62. He played the front nine in 7-under 29, making an eagle on the par-5 fifth. The one-time tour winner recently returned from shoulder surgery.

“I was real comfortable,” Perez said. “I woke up and I just felt good. I was comfortable on the range. I’ve just been on this different attitude in the last couple weeks where I just try to stay aggressive and try to think of the right shot and the good shot and not worry about what happens. It’s really worked. I’ve been working on that the last nine months since I got hurt.”

Scott Piercy was 16 under after a 66, Seamus Power (64) was 15 under, and Webb Simpson (69) followed at 14 under.

Defending champion Graeme McDowell was 8 under after his second straight 65. He opened with a 75.

MEXICO CITY – Austin Ernst shot her second straight 5-under 67 on Saturday to take the third-round lead in the Citibanamex Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

Ernst had her second straight bogey-free round at Club de Golf Mexico after opening with a 72.

“I have been hitting my driver pretty well, which I get a lot of looks at birdie,” Ernst said. “I have had a lot of good looks this week so even when I am not making everything, like today, I still made five birdies. So, I have just made it very easy when I haven’t been sure about myself, missing greens and I haven’t had many hard putts for par.”

The 24-year-old American won the 2014 Portland Classic for her lone LPGA Tour title.

She’s coming off a two-week break.

“Everything I’ve been working in the last two weeks is definitely turning out how I wanted, so it is nice to see it,” Ernst said.

At 10-under 206, she had a one-stroke lead. Second-round leader Sarah Jane Smith of Australia had a 72 to drop into a tie for second with Spain’s Carola Ciganda (68).

“I was pretty nervous most of the day,” Smith said. “It was a position I’ve never been in before. I wouldn’t say I handle it well, but I scrambled well, so that should give me some confidence for tomorrow.”

Ciganda won her first LPGA Tour title last month in South Korea.

“It’s tough if you come from Asia, but I was in Spain for a week just resting,” Ciganda said. “There is a little bit of jet lag, but I think it is better to come from Spain rather than from Asia, which is like 12 or 13 hours. I feel good, I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

Angela Stanford, the winner of the inaugural event in 2008 at Guadalajara Country Club, had a 69 to match Karine Icher (70) and Mi Jung Hur (71) at 8 under.

Mexican amateur Maria Fassi had a 65 to get to 6 under. She’s a freshman at the University of Arkansas. Gaby Lopez also was 6 under after a 73 on her home course.

Canada’s Brooke Henderson, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 7, was 4 under after a 68.

Michelle Wie was tied for 20th at 1 under after a 74. The 2009 winner in Guadalajara, she’s playing on a sponsor invite after failing to qualify for the 30-player event.

Tournament host Ochoa won 27 LPGA Tour titles. The Mexican star retired in 2010. She will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame next year.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Paul Goydos shot a 3-under 67 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the PGA Tour Champions’ season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

A day after opening with a 62 for a three-stroke lead, Goydos birdied the par-5 18th to reach 11-under 129 on Desert Mountain Club’s Cochise Course.

“I was happy. It was a nice day,” Goydos said. “The wind had calmed down a little bit. It seems to be windy in the morning here and better in the afternoon. Playing good’s an advantage to some extent.

Colin Montgomerie, third in Charles Schwab Cup season standings, remained second. He followed his opening 65 with a 66. The Scot matched playing partner Goydos with a closing birdie.

Points leader Bernhard Langer was third at 7 under after a 66.

The top five in the standings – Richmond winner Scott McCarron is second, followed by Montgomerie, Joe Durant and Miguel Angel Jimenez – can take the season title with a victory Sunday. Durant was tied for 15th at 1 under after a 69, McCarron was tied for 17th at even par after a 71, and Jimenez was 22nd at 1 over after a 67.

The season standings were reset after the event last week in Virginia, with Langer’s lead over McCarron reduced from 935,657 to 200. The tournament winner will receive $440,000 and 2,000 points.

“I just know that there’s a bunch of possibilities like we imagined and here we are,” Langer said. “I guess right now if it stands like this, Monty and I would be tied and we’re going to a playoff. But will it stand that way tomorrow, nobody knows. I don’t know. It’s certainly exciting, it’s volatile. You know, it comes down the stretch.”

The 59-year-old German has a tour-high four victories and has wrapped up the season money title with $2,836,459. He won season titles in 2010, 2014 and 2015. He’s recovering from a left knee injury that forced him to withdraw from the playoff opener at Sherwood.

“It’s been the same for the last two weeks, just being very careful walking,” Langer said. “I can’t read my putts properly because I can’t bend down the way I used to. But my goal is to finish the tournament, not to read my putts properly. Obviously, I would love to read them right, but if that would kick me out of the tournament, that’s no good, so I’ve just got to do what I’ve got to do.”

Goydos is 24th in the standings. The two-time PGA Tour winner won the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open in July for his third senior title. He shot a 59 in the PGA Tour’s 2010 John Deere Classic.

“I’ve gotten off to good starts and, hopefully, I can continue that tomorrow,” Goydos said. “A little sloppy on the back nine, quite frankly. But I’m Paul Goydos, I’m not Bernhard Langer, as I’ve proven time after time after time after time. But I hung in there pretty good. Made a couple birdies on the 5 pars, which is nice, and looking forward to playing tomorrow.”

It is with great sadness that Golf Canada, the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and the entire golf community mourns the loss of Dawn Coe-Jones who passed away on November 12, 2016 at the age of 56.

Born October 19, 1960 in Campbell River, B.C. and raised in Lake Cowichan, B.C., Coe-Jones was diagnosed with bone cancer (sarcoma) earlier this year. Following months of aggressive treatment, she passed away peacefully in hospice near her home in Tampa, FL surrounded by family and friends.

Dawn Coe-Jones is survived by her husband Jimmy, son Jimmy Jr. brothers Mark and John Coe, the extended Coe and Jones families and countless friends across the Canadian and international golf community.

Coe-Jones is one of Canada’s most accomplished golfers as an amateur as well as during a distinguished career on the LPGA Tour.

Success as an amateur included back to back victories at the BC Junior Girls Championship in 1978 and 1979. Back to back victories at the BC Women’s Amateur would follow in 1982 and 1983 and later that year, she would go on to capture the 1983 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship.

An NCAA All-American at Lamar University, Coe-Jones qualified for the LPGA Tour in 1984.

Over a 24-year career on the LPGA Tour (1984-2008), Coe-Jones had three official LPGA Tour wins—the 1992 Women’s Kemper Open, 1994 LPGA Palm Beach Classic and the 1995 Tournament of Champions. She would also win the 1992 Pizza-La LPGA Match Play Championship during a career in which she had 44 top-10 finishes and earned more than $3.3 million in prize money.

Coe-Jones also competed in 24 events on the LPGA Legends Tour, amassing nine top-10 finishes in 24 events played.

Internationally, she represented Canada on the 1983 Canadian Commonwealth Team and at the 2005 World Cup. She also competed in the Handa Cup (representing the world team) on eight occasions (2006-2012, 2014).

She also joined with fellow Canadian Golf Hall of Famer Dave Barr in winning the Canadian Airlines International Mixed Team Championship in 1989 and 1990.

Coe-Jones competed in the Canadian Women’s Open 24 times and had seven top-10 finishes—T10 in 1989; T6 in 1991; 3^rd in 1993; T7 in 1994; T4 in 1998; 4^th in 1999; and T5 in 2004.  She was low Canadian (or tied) on 13 occasions and her $326,554 in earnings are most by a Canadian playing in the National Women’s Open Championship.

She received the Score Award for Outstanding Canadian Female Amateur in 1983 and was an eight-time recipient of the Score Award for Outstanding Canadian Female Professional (1987-90, 1992-95).

Coe-Jones’ distinguished career was acknowledged in 2001 with induction into the British Columbia Golf Hall Fame and in 2003 with induction into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame.

Statement from Canadian Golf Hall of Famer Sandra Post:

“Dawn was a great competitor and role model for over 25 years on the LPGA Tour. Her happy and positive attitude towards life will be missed by all that knew her.”

Statement from Golf Canada CEO Scott Simmons:

“On behalf of the entire golf community we are deeply saddened by the passing of Dawn Coe-Jones. Dawn was a tenacious competitor, a mentor and friend to so many of her peers and a proud ambassador for Canadian golf throughout her distinguished career. As we mourn her passing and send our most sincere condolences to family and friends, the golf and sport community come together in celebrating her outstanding legacy.”

A celebration of life service will be held on Saturday, November 19 in Tampa, FL.

NOTE TO MEDIA – photos of Dawn Coe-Joes are available to download here.

PLANTATION, Fla. –  Ben Silverman and Lucas Kim finished inside the Top-18 on Friday at the Plantation Reserve Golf & Country Club to join the list of Canadians to advance to Web.com Tour’s third and final stage of Qualifying School.

Silverman, a Thornhill, Ont., native, closed at 9-under par for the tournament (71-67-68-69) to grab a share of sixth place. The 28-year-old is coming off a season on the Web.com Tour in which he made five cuts, highlighted by a T16 result at News Sentinel Open presented by Pilot in August.

Toronto’s Lucas Kim was two strokes back of Silverman at 7-under (70-69-68-70) to finish the event T11. In 2016, Kim’s strongest result came at the Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada’s Syncrude Oil Country Championship presented by AECON, where he finished T22.

Kim and Silverman joined three other Canadians who played their way into the final stage of qualifying, taking place from Dec. 8–11 at the Orange County National Golf Course in Winter Garden, Fla.

Click here for full scoring.

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico – Gary Woodland birdied three of the final four holes Friday for a 6-under 65 and a one-stroke lead in the PGA Tour’s OHL Classic at Mayakoba.

Woodland played the first 36 holes without a bogey, following an opening 64 to get to 13-under 129 on Mayakoba’s Greg Norman-designed El Camaleon course. He won the last of his two tour titles in 2013.

“I haven’t been here since my rookie year, so it’s been since 2009,” Woodland said. “The golf course is in great shape. It sets up good for me. I can hit a lot of irons off the tees, lay back a little bit. The whole deal is to keep the ball in the fairway and then attack from there.” d.“

Married last month, Woodland took last week off and worked with instructor Butch Harmon after opening the new season in Malaysia and China.

“It was nice to have an off week last week,” Woodland said. “Went out and spent some time with Butch. After the wedding, kind of got a little rusty. Took some time off, but nice to get back in the swing of things. Very comfortable with where I’m at right now.”

Webb Simpson was second after his second straight 65.

“Today was a lot different from yesterday,” Simpson said. “Today was a bit of a struggle with some distance control. I had to chip a lot more today, so today was about scoring. I was able to score, made some putts when I needed to for par. Yesterday, I don’t remember missing any greens and today I missed quite a few, so very different day, but same score.”

Scott Piercy had a 6 to reach 11 under. He tied for third in the season opener at Silverado.

“Just kind of plodding along and trying to pick up birdies where I can and kind of keep the scorecard pretty clean,” Piercy said. “Felt pretty good. Just trying to pick up some marbles on the way and count them at the end of the week and see where we fall.”

First-round leader Chris Kirk followed his opening 63 with a 70 to drop into a tie for fourth at 9 under with local favourite Abraham Ancer (68), Russell Knox (65), Charles Howell III (64), Ben Martin (64), John Huh (66) and Adam Hadwin (66).

Marc Leishman eagled the par-5 seventh and followed with a hole-in-one on the 134-yard, hitting a sand wedge for 134 yards. The Australian was 7 under after a 65.

“One-hopped past it and spun back into the hole,” Leishman said. “Same thing on 8. High sand wedge and landed about a yard past it and zipped back into the hole. It was first hole in one I’ve had on tour. I’ve had quite a few others just in practice rounds and that, but that’s always nice to see it drop in.”

Defending champion Graeme McDowell rallied to make the cut by a stroke, following an opening 75 with a 65 to get to 2 under.

Jim Furyk missed the cut, shooting 74-70 in his first event of the new season.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Paul Goydos shot an 8-under 62 on Friday in windy conditions to take a three-stroke lead in the PGA Tour Champions’ season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

The 52-year-old Goydos holed out from 167 yards for eagle on the par-4 12th and closed with birdies on the par-3 17th and par-5 18th on Desert Mountain Club’s Cochise Course.

Colin Montgomerie, third in Charles Schwab Cup season standings, was second. The Scot birdied the final two holes.

Points leader Bernhard Langer topped the group at 67. The top five in the standings – Richmond winner Scott McCarron is second, followed by Montgomerie, Joe Durant and Miguel Angel Jimenez – can take the season title with a victory Sunday. McCarron holed out from the fairway for eagle on the par-5 15th in a 69. Durant shot 70, and Jimenez had a 74.

Tom Pernice Jr., the winner of the playoff opener two weeks ago in California, also was at 67 along with Paul Broadhurst and Duffy Waldorf.

MEXICO CITY – Sarah Jane Smith shot a 4-under 68 on Friday to take a two-stroke lead in the Citibanamex Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

The Australian birdied four of the first seven holes, dropped a stroke on the par-4 eighth and birdied the par-3 14th. Winless on the LPGA Tour, she had a 9-under 135 total at Club de Golf Mexico.

“I feel a little bit nervous to be honest. I have never been in this position before,” Smith said. “So, even a couple times today, I was a little nervous, but I was happy with the way that I handled it. Hopefully, I can just keep doing what I have been doing and see what happens.”

Mexico’s Gaby Lopez had a 65 on her home course to match South Korea’s Mi Jung Hur (66) and Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe (67) at 7 under in the 30-player event. Lopez eagled the par-5 second hole, hitting to 2 feet from 195 yards.

“It is one of those numbers when you know you have the number perfect, is just a matter of the swing, adjusting your swing,” Lopez said.

South Korea’s Chella Choi and France’s Karine Icher each shot their second straight 69 to get to 6 under.

Spain’s Carlota Ciganda, tied for the lead with Smith after a first-round 67, had a 72 to drop into a tie for seventh with 2008 winner Angela Stanford (68), Austin Ernst (67) and Jing Yan (67).

Michelle Wie was tied for 13th at 3 under after a 71. The 2009 winner in Guadalajara, she’s playing on a sponsor invite after failing to qualify.

Mexican amateur Maria Fassi, tied for third after an opening 69, had a 76 to fall into a tie for 22nd at 1 over. She’s a freshman at the University of Arkansas.

Brooke Henderson, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 7 in the world, also was 1 over. The Canadian shot 71. No. 14 Anna Nordqvist was 3 over after a 72.