To understand the depth of Paula Creamer's satisfaction Sunday, flash back to her two previous LPGA events in the Bay Area: She tied for 16th in the Longs Drugs Challenge in Danville in October 2006 and tied for 11th a year later. Both times, she smothered herself in pressure to win in front of family and friends. Both times, she tumbled out of contention early.

This time, Creamer simply smothered the other 19 players in the Samsung World Championship. Her steady, 3-under-par 69 on the rolling fairways of Half Moon Bay's Ocean Course gave her a one-shot victory over South Korea's Song-Hee Kim (68). Lorena Ochoa, Suzann Pettersen, Juli Inkster and Angela Stanford all finished two strokes back.

The significance of this win was clear when Creamer's knee-rattling, 4-foot par putt on No. 18 slipped into the right side of the hole. She clenched both fists, broke into a wide smile and gave her caddie, Colin Cann, an exuberant hug. Creamer laughed when Cann whispered to her, "You like to make it dramatic, don't you?"

It was Creamer's fourth victory of the year and eighth of her burgeoning career. This also might count as her most meaningful triumph, given the elite field and the proximity to her childhood home in Pleasanton. Creamer compared it to helping the U.S. win the Solheim Cup, the women's version of the Ryder Cup, in 2005 and '07.

"This really means a lot to me," she said. "I proved a lot to myself."

For starters, she proved she could thrive amid the increased scrutiny and expectations of playing in the Bay Area. Creamer, 22, heard frequent chants of "Go Pleasanton!" throughout Sunday's round, with many friends from Castlewood Country Club in the gallery. One teenage fan from Pacifica even strolled the course carrying a cardboard sign that read, "Paula Marry Me."

Creamer also proved she could harness her instinct for playing aggressively. She stitched together another bogey-free round Sunday, just as she did Saturday. That qualifies as quite a feat on the demanding Ocean Course - no other player had even one bogey-free round in the tournament.

The most precious par came on the 72nd and final hole. Pettersen, Ochoa and the others at 7-under all reluctantly settled for par. So did Kim, whose long birdie putt curled well wide of the hole and left her at 8-under. So Creamer needed a par on the 533-yard, par-5 to avoid a playoff with Kim.

Creamer smacked her drive in the fairway, purposely left her second shot (using a 4-iron) short of the green and shrewdly plopped her wedge shot about 25 feet left of the flagstick. Then, filled with adrenaline, she sent her downhill putt past the hole, leaving her those nerve-racking 4 feet to seal the deal.

She kept her head down as the putt found the side door, looking up only when the crowd roared.

"It was like the longest two seconds of my life," Creamer said.

The seeds of this weekend rejuvenation, oddly enough, were planted in Friday's wind-swept, back-nine 40. Creamer made four bogeys in a span of seven holes, became more animated and aggravated with each passing mistake and even gave Cann, her longtime caddie, several long glares.

Creamer later apologized to Cann, then came back and fired 68-69 on the weekend - without any outward signs of discontent.

"I guess you could say a lot of immaturity came out," Creamer said. "I know I'm better than that and I know Colin works so hard out there. We're such a good team. There's no reason that should have happened."

Said Cann: "Whenever that happens, the next couple of days she's so calm. Paula learns so much from stuff. Maybe (Friday) was a blessing in disguise."

That was essentially the message Paul Creamer imparted to his daughter before she stepped to the No. 1 tee Sunday. He reminded her she learned something from the U.S. Women's Open in June, when she imploded with a final-round 78, and Friday offered another lesson.

"She's maturing," Paul Creamer said. "She's becoming her own person and taking ownership of her game. ... I don't want her to ever give up her feistiness and fire. You just have to control it sometimes."

Creamer started Sunday's round with a one-shot lead, quickly stretched it to three and held off several spirited charges to earn the $250,000 winner's check. Pettersen made eagle at No. 8 and birdies on Nos. 9 and 10 to shave her deficit to one. Ochoa strung together three consecutive birdies (also on Nos. 8, 9 and 10) to hop back in the fray.

Kim, a 20-year-old in her second year on tour, abruptly tied Creamer at 8-under by holing a chip shot for birdie on No. 14. That was the first time all day Creamer did not have sole possession of the lead - and Pettersen, Ochoa and Inkster reached 7-under soon thereafter, only one shot off the lead.

Creamer made a birdie putt of nearly 25 feet on No. 15 to reclaim the lead at 9-under. She forced the field to keep chasing her - and nobody caught the woman in pink.