South Korea's Han Hee-won got her first taste of tournament victory on the U.S. LPGA Tour Monday, capturing the Sybase Big Apple Classic in New Rochelle, N.Y.

After losing a sudden-death heartbreaker to compatriot Park Hee-jung in last year's event, Han, 25, outlasted tour veteran Meg Mallon to take home some US$142,000 in winnings, boosting her earnings this year to a touch over $427,000.

The 2001 Rolex Rookie of the Year went into the final round tied with Mallon at 11 under par. Despite two bogeys and a double bogey, she managed to hold off her American challenger by two strokes, racking up birdies on holes 5, 10, 15 and 18.

Han finished with a combined four round total of 273, three strokes worse than her score at last year's Big Apple. She becomes the eighth Korean woman to win on the U.S. Tour since Koo Ok-hee notched the country's first victory in 1988.