Paula shoots 60 on way to seventh Tour win

The 21-year-old then held on for her third title of the season, and the seventh of her four-year LPGA Tour career.

"It's always difficult to lead from start to finish," said Paula, who is dubbed the Pink Panther because of her love of the colour pink. "There is so much pressure – I'm just pleased that I got the job done."

Paula's opening round 60 contained nine birdies in the last 11 holes but fell one short of the LPGA record held by Annika Sorenstam in 2001.

"I was always in the zone. I never realized where I was at until the last couple of holes when I started to think about it a little bit," added Paula, who went on to lead by four strokes going into the final day after posting subsequent rounds of 65 and 70.

She was only one ahead after dropping a couple of shots on her first 12 holes but her rivals slipped back and Paula finally made a birdie at the 13th on her way to a winning total of 16 under par – two strokes clear of Nicole Castrale, who surged through the field with a 64.