Webb doesn't win playoff, but carts off the big prizes

Usually, it's the winner of a tournament that walks away with a big trophy and check.

Australian LPGA Tour professional Karrie Webb finished second at the season-ending PageNet Championship on Sunday at the Desert Inn Golf Club. But she didn't leave the D.I. empty-handed.

The 24-year-old locked up the Rolex Player of the Year award, the coveted Vare Trophy for the player with the lowest scoring average and the money title.

With $1,591,959, Webb also set a new record for the most money won in a season and a new record for the Vare Trophy with an average of 69.43.

To win the player of the year award, Webb knocked out another contender, Juli Inkster, who won five tournaments (including the U.S. Open and McDonald's LPGA Championship) by 43.79 points.

"You know, Juli and I both played like we were pretty nervous," Webb said. "(But) we started to get a couple birdies going and that calmed me down.

"I also feel that winning player of the year ... there's always only one winner. But I really think that if we could, Juli and I really deserve to win it together because of the year she's had," Webb said.

Laura Davies called Webb's season "One of the best years I think any of us will ever witness."

It's hard to argue with that.

Webb, the inaugural winner of the PageNet Championship in 1996 and the 1996 Rolex Rookie of the Year, won six tournaments this year including one major, the du Marier Classic.

"But you know, even though I had it in my sight, it's going to take me a little while to really appreciate what I've done this year," Webb said. "It might not even really sink in until a few years down the track, but it has been just definitely a year that I'll always remember.

"When I won du Marier, it was definitely special for me. I just hope there is more years like this to come."

Still, another victory at the PageNet would have been nice.

Webb and Davies fell to Se Ri Pak in a sudden-death playoff when Pak birdied the first hole.

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