STACY LEWIS LOVE AFFAIR WITH ST ANDREWS LEADS TO RICOH WOMEN''S BRITISH OPEN TRIUMPH

   A bridge too far for her rivals ... Stacy Lewis, winner of the Ricoh Women's British Championship 

  Picture by courtesy of the Ladies European Tour

 

Colin Callander reports from the Old Course
Stacy Lewis has had a soft spot for St Andrews since the summer of 2008 when she claimed five points out of five in America’s victory over Great Britain and Ireland in the Curtis Cup over the Old Course.

Her haul remains a record in that biennial contest but this afternoon she superceded even that spectacular achievement when she closed with a level par 72 on the same historic course to claim a two shot victory over South Korea’s Na Yeon Choi and Hee Young Park at the 2013 Ricoh Women’s British Open Championship.  

Lewis becomes the first American to win the Ricoh Women’s British Open since Sherri Steinhauer in 2006 and ended a run that had seen Asian players Jiyai Shin (2011 and 2012) and Yani Tseng (2010) claim the title in the last three years.

Indeed the American’s win ended a sequence of ten consecutive Asian victories in the women’s Majors which had started after Lewis herself won her first Major at the Kraft Nabisco Championship back in 2011 and stretched right through to last month when Inbee Park claimed her third Major title of the season at the US Women’s Open.

Lewis came to St Andrews having failed to claim a top-25 finish at any of the season’s previous three Major Championships but the World No. 2 quickly got into her stride with an opening five under par 67 and then added rounds of 72 and 69 to go into the final round on eight under par 208 and just a single shot behind compatriot Morgan Pressel.

The American started the final round by dropping shots at both the 400-yard par-4 2^nd and the 406-yard par-4 4^th but then got them back with birdies at the 369-yard par-4 6^th and the 353-yard par-4 7^th to go out in level par 36.

When Lewis went on to drop two further shots on the 160-yard par-3 11^th and the 314-yard par-4 12^th her nearest rival, Choi, briefly held a two shot lead but the South Korean dropped shots of her own on the 407-yard par-4 13^th and the 520-yard par-5 14^th and then lost the initiative altogether when the American produced a grandstand finish with spectacular birdies on both the 443-yard par-4 17^th and 357-yard par-4 18^th holes.

“This is just crazy,” said the new champion, whose success as a professional golfer is all the more meritorious because for seven years, from the age of 11, she had to wear a back brace 18 hours a day in order to correct a curvature in her spine caused by scoliosis. During high school she also underwent surgery to insert a rod and five screws into her back and it still troubles her from time to time.

“I was just hanging in there all day and 17 and 18 happened so fast that I don’t know if it has really hit me yet. My patience won it for me today. It was just so hard. The wind was brutal. I never thought for a second that birdieing the last two holes was even possible.”

The new champion went on to say that her love for St Andrews had also been a contributory factor in her success.

“When we came here for the Curtis Cup, we got here in the morning and in was raining sideways but we all put on Jane jackets and rain gear and just walked around.

“Instantly I just fell in love with it. I think it’s more the history of it than anything, just knowing all the great champions have played here. I mean, golf was started here. 

“I love this golf course more than any other links course I’ve played,” she added. “You can get rewarded for good shots. There’s not any crazy bunkers right in the dead centre of the fairways. You can at least kind of play round things and get rewarded for good shots.

“I think I was happy being here all week, and I was comfortable and I think that’s a lot of the reason I’m here right now.”

Lewis finished two shots ahead of Choi and Park on 8-under par 280 and a further one shot in front of Pressel and Norway’s Suzann Pettersen. America’s Lizette Salas closed with a 73 to finish alone in sixth place on three under par 285 while Japanese duo Mamiko Higa and Miki Saiki were tied seventh on 286. The leading British player was 2009 champion, Catriona Matthew, from North Berwick, who shot 68 in the delayed third round but then fell back with a closing 78 to finish in a tie for 11^th place on level par 288.    

Inbee Park’s bid for the fourth leg of an historical Grand Slam came to an end when she closed with rounds of 74 and 78 for a six over par total of 294.  

“It was a tough day today,” admitted the World No. 1. “I really got off to a bad start when I 4-putted the 1^st hole.

“I’m just glad the tournament is over because I’ve gone through four rounds under pressure. Everybody has been watching me. It feels a bit weird because I get to do an interview when I shot 6-over par today.

“It’s a bit of a relief it’s over,” she added. “It’s something I’ve never experienced before. It’s been a great experience. I might not have won this week but I’ve learned a lot.

“The weather and the mother of nature has to be on your side if you’re going to win the British Open and it didn’t happen for me.” 

The Smyth Salver, awarded to the leading amateur at the Ricoh Women’s British Open, was shared between New Zealand’s Lydia Ko and Dorset’s Georgia Hall, the British women's and girls' champion, after both players finished the Championship on six over par 294.

World No. 1 amateur, Ko, also won the Smyth Salver last year at Royal Liverpool where she put together rounds of 72, 71, 76 and 78 to finish two shots ahead of England’s Holly Clyburn on nine over par 297.

The only other time the amateur prize was shared was back in 1993 before the Championship was a Major when England’s Joanne Morley and Patricia Meunier from France tied on 297 at Woburn G and CC.

Ko, Morley (1989 and 1993) and Scotland’s Bell Robertson (1980 and 1981) are the only three players to win the Smyth Salver twice.

NORTHERN COUNTIES LGA OPEN MEETING AT STRATHLENE

Entries: 37
Prizewinners

Scratch: Lynne Fraser (Fortrose) 78
1st Silver May Anderson (Strathlene) (17) 71
2nd Silver Gwen Munro (Elgin) (15) 72
3rd Silver Sally Rowan (Inverness) (19) 73

1st Bronze Jeanette Cowe (Elgin) (30) 62
2nd Bronze Doreen Work (Strathlene) (22) 62
3rd Bronze Cisca Cameron (Elgin) (28) 71

EUROPEAN TEAM FOR SOLHEIM CUP DEFENCE IS NAMED

 

       The players selected to be the European team for the 2013 Solheim Cup match are 
                           pictured on the Swilken Bridge at the Old Course, St Andrews.



NEWS RELEASE FROM LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR

By BETHAN CUTLER, LET Media Manager
European Solheim Cup Captain Liselotte Neumann and United States Captain Meg Mallon jointly revealed their teams for The 2013 Solheim Cup at a press conference this evening following the Ricoh Women’s British Open.

European Captain Liselotte Neumann named:

Caroline Hedwall (Sweden)

Jodi Ewart-Shadoff (England)

Giulia Sergas (Italy) 

Charley Hull (England)

as her four ‘wild card’ picks for this month’s Solheim Cup, which will be played August 16-18, 2013, at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, Colorado.

They will join:

Suzann Pettersen (Norway)

Carlota Ciganda (Spain)

Catriona Matthew (Scotland)

Caroline Masson (Germany)

Beatriz Recari (Spain)

Anna Nordqvist (Sweden)

Karine Icher (France)

Azahara Munoz (Spain)

in defending The Solheim Cup, when Europe attempt to win for the first time in the United States.

Based on the final Ladies European Tour Solheim Cup standings, the top-four players who automatically qualified through points were: 

Pettersen, Ciganda, Matthew and Masson.

The next four players who qualified based on the Rolex Rankings were: 

Recari, Nordqvist, Icher and Munoz.

The European squad features six Solheim Cup rookies (Ewart-Shadoff, Sergas, Hull, Ciganda, Masson and Recari) and five players from the victorious team of 2011 (Hedwall, Pettersen, Matthew, Nordqvist and Munoz).

Sweden’s Caroline Hedwall was a member of the victorious 2011 Solheim Cup team as a rookie and won a crucial half point in the Sunday singles that secured a 15-13 victory for Europe over America in the 12^th Solheim Cup at Killeen Castle in Co. Meath, Ireland.

Charley Hull, a rookie in her first year as a professional on the Ladies European Tour, recorded five straight runner-up finishes at the start of the season and becomes the youngest player in Solheim Cup history, aged 17 years, four months and 15 days, at the time of the announcement.

Sergas will also make her Solheim Cup debut. She has four top ten finishes on the LPGA and one top ten on the LET so far this season, including a tie for seventh at the Kraft Nabisco Championship and a tie for fourth at the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup.

Ewart-Shadoff completes the four captain’s picks. She turned professional in 2010 and played on the Symetra Tour - The Road to the LPGA in 2010 and 2011 before winning LET Final Qualifying School for 2012. This year on the LPGA, she has posted three top ten finishes, including a tie for fourth at the US Women’s Open and tied seventh at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, both major championships.

“It was a tough day obviously having to make some of the phone calls and talking to some of the players.  But I feel really comfortable and very confident with these four players that I picked.  They totally complete our team and I'm super happy about our picks,” said Neumann.

On attempting to win for the first time in America, she added: “Obviously we've never won over there, so it's obviously a big challenge.  You know, I feel like this is really the team that's going to do it for us.

“We've got some young girls on here; we've got some rookies, so we've got some big, strong players, and some players that can really hit it, which I think favours.  In Colorado, the golf course is quite generous off the tees, and looking for good, long hitters and some girls with great energy, and I think this is the team that's going to do it.”

The U.S. Team seeks to keep their undefeated record on home soil intact when the biennial match-play competition begins just 12 days from now.
United States Captain Meg Mallon revealed Gerina Piller and Michelle Wie as her captain’s picks.

Based on the final U.S. Solheim Cup standings, the top-eight players who automatically qualified for the team via a points race that began at the 2011 CN Canadian Women’s Open are (listed in order of points ranking):

Stacy Lewis, Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr, Angela Stanford, Brittany Lincicome, Lexi Thompson, Jessica Korda and Brittany Lang. 

The two highest ranked players not in the top-8 spots on the points list who qualified via the Rolex Rankings are No. 19 Lizette Salas and No. 41 Morgan Pressel.

Lexi Thompson becomes the youngest ever US Solheim Cup team member aged 18 years, five months and 25 days.

“I’m just thrilled to finally have my team announced,” Mallon said. “I have 12 players who I am very excited to have on this team. They have all played their hearts out over the last two years.”

Wie will make her third appearance on the U.S. Solheim Cup Team with a 4-3-1 all-time record in the event.

“I am so happy and so honored and so grateful to be a captain’s pick,” Wie said. “To play under Meg and be with all the girls again, it’s a dream come true.”

Piller is making her first appearance in The Solheim Cup. “I feel a thousand emotions, but I’m just honoured to be considered and ecstatic to be picked,” Piller said.

Following the announcement, both teams gathered on the 18^th fairway of The Old Course, St. Andrews, for an historic photograph on the Swilcan Bridge.

 

 

 

Media Contact:

European Team:

Bethan Cutler, LET Media Manager, bcutler@ladieseuropeantour.com, +44 (0)7980056045

CATRIONA GAVE HERSELF OUTSIDE CHANCE BUT COULDN'T FOLLOW IT UP

FROM COLIN FARQUHARSON
Calcarsongolf@btinternet.com

For an hour or so, spanning her brilliant birdie-eagle finish to a third-round 68, and the start of the fourth round only three shots off the lead, Catriona Matthew's followers were dreaming of a Scottish win in the Ricoh Women's British Open over the Old Course, St Andrews.
Even the 43-year-old North Berwick player, who won this Major in 2009 at Royal Lytham, admitted that she thought she was in with a chance.
In that delayed third-round finale, Catriona birdied the Road Hole 17th - played as a par-4 instead of a par-5 this week - and then conjured up an eagle 2 at the par-4 18th, holing a lob wedge approach shot from 137 yards.
After having the bad luck to bogey the first two holes of her third round before Saturday's 12.30 play suspension which lasted the rest of the day, Catriona covered the remaining 16 holes in six under par.
"Yes, I felt I had a chance after shooting a 68," said Catriona.
But the wind got up again - although not as strongly as it did on Saturday - and Matthew slipped out of the picture with a 78 for level par 288 which gave her a joint 11th place finish, eight shots behind the American winner, Stacy Lewis.
"I didn't play all that badly. What robbed me of most of my momentum was a triple bogey 8 at the long fifth. I wouldn't have minded but it was possibly the best drive I had all day. But it took a vicious kick to the right and landed in a bunker, right up against the face,
"I didn't get it out the first time and had to play out backwards. Even then I should never have finished with an 8. I took five shots to get on the green and then three-putted
"I also had a bad three putt at the 10th. Putts are affected by the wind and I was putting downwind but did not allow for it and charged past the hole with my first putt."
Catriona said she was obviously disappointed but she is looking forward to playing in another Solheim Cup match, this one in Denver, Colorado.
"Solheim Cup matches are my favourite week of the year," said Catriona who is bound to finish up as team captain when her playing star begins to wane ... a few years down the road.
"We have a lot of rookies in the team this year but I think we have a very good chance of repeating the win we pulled off in Ireland."

QUOTES FROM RICOH WOMEN'S BRITISH OPEN ROUND 3 LEADER

Round Three

MORGAN PRESSEL

            Q.  You are leading this championship as we speak, and it's clearly a wonderful finish there.

            MORGAN PRESSEL:  Yeah, we were talking about whether to hit driver or 3‑wood off the 18th tee, and I was like, you know, I could probably get close to hitting that cart path if I hit driver and I did, and ended up with actually a little bit of a tricky shot with that Valley of Sin down there.  Managed to make a 20‑footer for birdie.

            Q.  Lovely way to finish and puts you in great shape.  How were the stamina levels holding up on what is a marathon day in this major championship?

            MORGAN PRESSEL:  So far, so good.  Going to go get a little bite to eat and relax a little bit before my next round.  It's really tough out there.  Especially that back nine plays really difficult.

            I think we saw a lot of back and forth today on the leaderboard and I'm sure more of the same will happen this afternoon.  I just want to hang tough and hit good shots.

            Q.  What sort of challenge is it to play 36 holes at this intense level on a final day?

            MORGAN PRESSEL:  Well, it's tough.  We did it at Wegman's, the final group there, and that was certainly challenging.  It will be just like that today.  The wind, you just have to think so much over every shot.

            So by the end of the day, I don't know if I'll be thinking, just kind of relax and just let everything go.  I've just got 18 more holes of some pretty intense focus and should be okay.

            Q.  You know what it takes to win a major championship, but it's been awhile, six years, and wonder whether the vibes are beginning to return this time?

MORGAN PRESSEL:  Well, I gave myself a pretty close at Wegman's and gave myself a really good chance and it felt great to be back in contention and it feels the same way here.  Especially at such a special place, St. Andrews.  So I feel like I'm playing well, and we'll see what happens this afternoon.

            FastScripts by ASAP Sports .

HOW THEY STAND AFTER THREE ROUNDS

Par 216 (3x72)

207 (-9) Morgan Pressel (United States)  one-under-par 71 this morning.

208 (-8) Stacy Lewis (United States) three-under 69 this morning.

209 (-7) Miki Saiki (Japan) 74, Na Yeon Choi (South Korea) 75, Hee Young Park (South Korea) 70, Suzann Pettersen (Norway) 72.

Scotland's Catriona Matthew was the big mover of the third round.

She shot a four-under-par 68 for six-under-par 210.

The North Berwick player covered the inward half in five-under-par 31, climaxing this great run with a birdie 3 at the 17th where she hit the pin with her approach shot ... and an eagle 2 at the last where she holed a lob wedge from 137 yards range.

What a pity that Catriona started bogey-bogey in the second round before play was halted at 12.30 on Saturday because of the rising winds.

Today, the Scot covered the 16 holes she had to play in six under par.