( CNN ) -- South Korea 's In-Kyung Kim had the Kraft Nabisco golf tournament at Mission Hills in California all but won on the final hole Sunday -- all she needed to do was tap in for par from about a foot out and she was virtually guaranteed the win . But her putt rimmed out for a bogey forcing a sudden death playoff that she lost on the first hole . Her compatriot Yoo Sun-young rolled in a 15-feet birdie to take the first women 's major of the year . `` I 'm speechless right now . I played pretty solid today , '' the 25-year-old Yoo said in a television interview by the green . Her win was in stark contrast to Kim 's heartbreaking loss . After sinking the putt , she covered her ears with her hands and looked skyward in despair before going back to the 18th tee for the play-off . Both players were tied at nine-under-par 279 after 72 holes . Yoo easily took the play-off after Kim drove her ball deep into the left rough . `` I did n't think about winning today because I did n't want to expect too much , and I did n't want to let myself down , '' Yoo told reporters after becoming the second South Korean to win the event , following Grace Park in 2004 . Yoo climbed five places to 16th in the world rankings after claiming her second victory on the LPGA Tour , having also triumphed at the 2010 Sybase Match Play Championship . Kim has won three times on the LPGA Tour , but is still waiting for her first major title . `` Sometimes things happen , and it 's kind of tough because it 's the Nabisco , and hopefully I 'll have better or more chances , '' the 23-year-old said . World No . 1 Yani Tseng had begun the day tied for the lead with Sweden 's Karin Sjodin , but narrowly missed going to the the playoff when she missed a long birdie putt at the 18th hole to finish one shot behind the leaders . `` I was totally shocked that I could n't make that , '' said the 23-year-old from Taiwan , who was seeking to become the youngest player to win six major titles . `` But I tried my best again . I finished strong . It was a day I really do n't want , but I gave my 100 % effort out there . '' Tseng also led going into the final round of last year 's tournament , but finished three shots behind Stacy Lewis . `` Last year when I finished I was crying so hard , but this year I was happy , smiling , enjoy the crowd , enjoy walking on the 18 holes , and I think it 's because I do my best every shot , '' she said . `` And I said maybe God just wanted another player to win and give me something to learn more and improve myself . '' On Saturday , Sjodin fired a four-under 68 to join Tseng on nine-under at the top of the leaderboard . However , she eventually tied for fourth at 281 with Lewis ( 66 ) and Koreans Amy Yang ( 69 ) and Seo Hee-kyung ( 71 ) . She was unable to hold her three-shot lead gained early in the final round after an eagle at the second hole , while Seo took a three-shot edge in the back nine before sliding back .
In-Kyung Kim misses tournament-winning birdie at women 's opening major . Koreans about a foot putt rims out for a bogey to force a playoff . Yoo Sun-young easily wins 2004 's playoff to claim her second major title . World No . 1 Yoo Sun-young , of Taiwan , finishes one shot behind leaders .