Vikki Laing and Kelsey MacDonald flew home from Turkey last night (Sunday) all smiles. Vikki because she gave her confidence a much-needed boost with a top 10 finish in the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open and Kelsey because she finished in the prize money on her debut as a tour professional.
Vikki, after parring every hole on the outward journey in her final round at the National
Golf Club, Antalya, bogeyed three in a row from the 10th, but she pulled out of the nosedive by covering her last six holes in one-under-par, thanks to a birdie at the long 15th.
A 75 for a total of one-over-par 293 (77-73-68-75) over the par-73 course earned the Musselburgh player joint 10th place - only four shots behind the winner, Lee-Anne Pace (South Africa) (70-77-70-72) - and earned her 4,800 Euros. Lee-Anne is pictured above with the trophy (image courtesy of the Ladies European Tour.
Nairn Dunbar's Kelsey. soon to graduate from Stirling University, had rounds of 76, 77, 72 and 74, her final round including a double bogey 5 at the short third but also a bag of four birdies.
Pretswell shot 76, 76, 72 and 75.
Comrie's Carly Booth had a tournament she will want to forget quickly. Rounds of 78, 75, 82 and 74 for 309 saw her finish 62nd and earn only 675 Euros.
Kylie Walker was the only Scot who did not make the halfway cut.
Lee-Anne
Pace collected her sixth Ladies European Tour title at the Turkish
Airlines Ladies Open, three years after her last victory in 2010, when
she won the
Order of Merit and five titles around the world.
With
a final round one-under-par 72, the 32-year-old South African came from
two shots behind the overnight leaders Charley Hull and Carlota Ciganda
to win by one
at National Golf Club.
Playing
in the penultimate group, in fine weather, Pace posted the clubhouse
lead at three-under before an agonising wait on the putting green to see
if she could
be caught by Hull, Ciganda or the two-time defending champion Christel
Boeljon.
All
three players needed a birdie to force a play-off and Boeljon was
eliminated after she found the bunker off the tee and had to lay-up to
the fairway.
Hull
and Ciganda both had fairly long birdie putts to stay in the tournament
but Ciganda’s birdie putt from around 25 feet lipped out, before Hull’s
edged past
the hole.
“My
heart stopped for a while, for a beat, but you know, if it happens, it
happens. We may have had to go to a play-off but I was just hitting some
putts and trying
not to look,” said Pace, adding that patience was the key. “It’s so
nice to win again. It’s been a while and to do it again is fantastic.”
Playing
on one of the toughest courses on the Ladies European Tour schedule,
Pace had a blistering start with birdies on the second and fourth holes
and she had
established a one stroke lead by the turn.
She
used a nine-iron to strike her ball within a metre of the flag on the
par-three second before hitting a chip and a putt for birdie on the
par-five fourth hole.
She made a fantastic up and down on number six and then another good save after finding the bunker on eight.
On
the more difficult back nine, she made a great save on 10, before
dropping a shot on 11 after a gust of wind knocked the ball down short
of the green and immediately
responded with a birdie on 12, followed by a bogey on 14.
“It’s
definitely one of the toughest golf courses, also because the greens
get quite a lot harder at the end of the week and quicker. It’s a very
tight golf course
so of course you have to keep the ball in play,” said Pace, who was
congratulated by her friend Ciganda, the LET Player of the Year in 2012.
Joint
runner-up Ciganda said: “I’ve been playing good but today wasn’t like
the days before. I didn’t hit the ball that good and I only hit 12
greens compared to
15 or 16 the other days. It was a bit tough but I tried until the end. I
finished with one birdie on the last five holes and until the end I was
trying to fight, but only one person can win and Lee-Anne played great
so congratulations to her.”
Rookie professional Hull, 17, finished equal second for the third time in as many tournament starts this season.
“I’m
pleased but just a bit annoyed. At least I parred the last,” she said.
“I didn’t play very good on the first 11 holes. The back nine, I played a
lot better.
I seem to perform better when I’m under pressure and I have to chase,
like the last couple of holes. I just edged my putt on 17 and literally
edged the hole on 18 and I thought I had it, but it was a good try. I’ve
had three second place finishes in my first
three tournaments so I just want to win one now.”
Hull
and Ciganda were joined in second by Finland’s Minea Blomqvist, who
fired a second successive round of 70 and commented: “I have to be very,
very happy. It was a very tough start for
me. The front nine was plus one and I didn’t get it going. I was very
happy to make five birdies on the back nine. I have had such a difficult
time for three years with my game and I actually want to cry right now
because I’m so happy.”
The
next Ladies European Tour event is the Deloitte Ladies Open in Holland,
on May 24-26, where Ciganda will be defending, Hull will have another
stab at claiming
her maiden title and Boeljon will be the leading lady on home soil.
THE COMPLETE SCOREBOARD
Par 292 (4x73)
289 - Lee-Anne Pace (RSA) 70 77 70 72
290 - Charley Hull (ENG) 75 71 69 75, Carlota Ciganda (ESP) 69 74 72 75, Minea Blomqvist (FIN) 75 75 70 70
291 - Christel Boeljon (NED) 71 78 67 75
292
- Holly Clyburn (ENG) 74 71 75 72, Eleanor Givens (ENG) 72 73 74 73,
Florentyna Parker (ENG) 74 71 72 75, Trish Johnson (ENG) 71 71 75 75
293 - Linda Wessberg (SWE) 72 77 70 74, Vikki Laing (SCO) 77 73 68 75
294
- Line Vedel (DEN) 76 76 71 71, Laura Davies (ENG) 72 70 78 74, Sarah
Kemp (AUS) 70 79 71 74, Gwladys Nocera (FRA) 81 71 70 72
296 - Carmen Alonso (ESP) 70 72 79 75
297
- Bree Arthur (AUS) 75 77 72 73, Mireia Prat (ESP) 73 75 75 74,
Miriam Nagl (GER) 72 75 74 76, Valentine Derrey (FRA) 74 74 74 75,
Margarita Ramos (MEX) 75 72 73 77, Ann-Kathrin Lindner
(GER) 72 77 74 74, Caroline Afonso (FRA) 76 69 76 76, Sharmila
Nicollet (IND) 74 75 76 72, Klara Spilkova (CZE) 76 72 76 73
298
- Whitney Hillier (AUS) 75 76 72 75, Diana Luna (ITA) 74 77 76 71,
Julie Greciet (FRA) 75 74 75 74, Melissa Reid (ENG) 75 77 73 73, Liz
Young (ENG) 75 73 77 73
299
- Kelsey MacDonald (SCO) 76 77 72 74, Nontaya Srisawang (THA) 74 75
72 78, Malene Jorgensen (DEN) 77 73 74 75, Pamela Pretswell (SCO) 76
76 72 75, Sophie Walker (ENG) 75 78 70 76,
Louise Larsson (SWE) 77 70 75 77
300 - Veronica Zorzi (ITA) 73 78 73 76, Rebecca Artis (AUS) 74 73 76 77
301
- Nikki Campbell (AUS) 75 73 77 76, Cecilie Lundgreen (NOR) 70 78 79
74, Mallory Fraiche (USA) 76 73 73 79, Beth Allen (USA) 75 77 73 76
302
- Holly Aitchison (ENG) 77 74 75 76, Stefania Croce (ITA) 76 77 71
78, Joanna Klatten (FRA) 75 76 77 74, Katie Burnett (USA) 72 78 76 76
303 - Hannah Burke (ENG) 77 76 78 72, Stacy Lee Bregman (RSA) 77 73 78 75, Mikaela Parmlid (SWE) 72 77 73 81
304 - Nina Holleder (GER) 76 77 74 77
305 - Leigh Whittaker (GER) 74 78 73 80, Jade Schaeffer (FRA) 76 74 81 74
306 - Charlotte Ellis (ENG) 72 76 75 83, Sophie Giquel-bettan (FRA) 74 77 80 75
307 - Morgana Robbertze (RSA) 75 76 81 75, Maria Salinas (PER) 75 76 78 78
308
- Sarah King (AUS) 77 75 75 81, Cassandra Kirkland (FRA) 76 75 78 79,
Ursula Wikstrom (FIN) 77 76 76 79, Margherita Rigon (ITA) 77 75 78
78, Paula Hurtado (COL) 75 75 81 77
309 - Carly Booth (SCO) 78 75 82 74
310 - Rebecca Sorensen (SWE) 72 77 81 80
311 - Daniela Holmqvist (SWE) 73 76 80 82
313 - Emma Cabrera-bello (ESP) 73 79 79 82
320 - Virginie Lagoutte-clement (FRA) 76 77 88 79
322 - Jessica Yadloczky (USA) 78 75 83 86
