Lorena Ochoa won the Honda LPGA Thailand on Sunday for her 25th career title, easily overcoming an early deficit and pulling away for a three-stroke victory in her season debut. Meanwhile, down in Mexico, Mark Wilson took over the lead of the Mayakoba Golf Classic for good with two early birdies Sunday, yet had to fight through some wobbly play down the stretch to earn his second career PGA TOUR victory.


The top-ranked Mexican star, three strokes off the lead at the start of the round, erased the deficit in just three holes en route to a final round 6-under 66.


Ochoa took the outright lead at 10 under on No. 5, added a birdie on the par-5 sixth and pulled away with birdies on the par-3 eighth and par-5 11th and 13th. She bogeyed the par-3 16th, got the stroke back with a birdie on the 17th and parred the 18th.


“It’s been a great week,” Ochoa said. “My goal was to win the tournament, and here I am with the trophy. I’m pleased. I played exceptionally well.”


Ochoa finished at 14-under 274 — shooting 71-69-68 the first three days — and earned $217,500 for her second consecutive, season-opening victory. Last year, she opened with a victory in Singapore in the HSBC Women’s Champions and went on to win five of her first six events. She will be in Singapore next week for her title defense.


“This is a good preparation for next week, as the course is pretty much the same,” Ochoa said. “I will take a rest and will be ready to defend my title on Thursday.”


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Meanwhile, down in Mexico, Mark Wilson took over the lead of the Mayakoba Golf Classic for good with two early birdies Sunday, yet had to fight through some wobbly play down the stretch to earn his second career PGA TOUR victory.


The co-leader after the second and third rounds, Wilson shot a 2-under 68 to win by two strokes.


Wilson’s bid for a go-ahead birdie on the opening hole rimmed out, but he nailed birdie putts on the next two holes. Two birdies later, he stood on the 13th tee box leading by three strokes. But by the time he tapped in for bogey on 14, his lead was down to one shot — just as the wind began whipping around.


Wilson had an easy putt to par the final hole and finish at 13-under 267 for the week. He gave a little fist pump, then tipped his cap to the crowd and shared a fist bump with his caddie.


Wilson’s only previous victory was at the Honda Classic in 2007, and it took winning a four-man playoff. But that wasn’t even the biggest story of that week. Wilson was on the verge of missing the cut when he took a two-stroke penalty because his caddie told another golfer in the group what club Wilson had hit on a hole, violating a rule about not giving advice. Technically it’s Rule 8-1, but it’s come to be known as the Mark Wilson Rule.


He birdied the first hole of this tournament and built confidence from there, freed from the pressure of needing to be perfect tee-to-green to compensate for his putting woes. He was fourth after a first-round 66, then jumped into the lead with a 64. He shot a 69 on Saturday.


Wilson tied for 66th at this tournament the only other time he played it, in 2007.




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