Ewing prevails in Cincinnati, Maguire inside top 25

Ally Ewing shot a six-under-par 66 to hold off Xiyu Lin of China and win the inaugural Kroger Queen City Championship on Sunday in Cincinnati.

Ewing held a one-shot lead after the third round and polished off a score of 22-under for the week at Kenwood Country Club, one stroke better than Lin.

Leona Maguire carded a final-round 72 to finish in a tie for 24th on six-under, 16 strokes off the eventual winner.

Lin nudged ahead early in the round with three birdies over her first seven holes, while Ewing parred her first eight. But after a birdie at the ninth, Ewing rolled in five straight birdies from the 12th hole to surge ahead for good.

It was the second time Ewing had a hot streak at this tournament. She made six birdies in a row on Friday.

The 29-year-old from Mississippi credited a putting stroke change she made last month.

"The change that I made in the couple weeks before (the CP Women's Open) was big in just shortening the back stroke," said Ewing, who won her third career LPGA title.

"In Canada I was really close to putting some stuff together, but still kind of a little finicky. This week... I saw putts go in. Once I saw them go, I had that confidence."

FULL LEADERBOARD

Lin made four more birdies on the back nine for a bogey-free, seven-under 65. That included birdies at Nos. 16 and 18, but she had to settle for second place.

"This is LPGA. Like, the girls are really good out here," Lin said. "I mean, Ally (played) absolutely amazing, especially her back nine."

Ewing and Lin broke away from the pack on Sunday. Maria Fassi of Mexico shot a final-round 71 and placed third at 16 under. Jeongeun Lee6 of South Korea (70) was fourth at 14 under, and Marina Alex (67), Andrea Lee (69) and A Lim Kim of South Korea (70) tied for