Ashleigh Simon wins the ISPS Handa Portugal Ladies Open
South African golfer, Ashleigh Simon posted an amazing five under par 67 in the final round of ISPS Handa Portugal Ladies Open to claim her second tour win. The 22-year-old fought off the overnight leader Gwladys Nocera as she played in the windy conditions
at Campo Real Resort and Spa near Lisbon. The golfer Johannesburg posted eight birdies and three bogeys to win the tournament by three strokes.
The last time Simon was on the Iberian Peninsula, she won the 2007 Catalonia Ladies Masters in Spain. Her second victory came exactly four years after her maiden victory which the player achieved not very long after she turned professional.
“It's a huge honour to win any Ladies European Tour event,” Simon said. “I think that the climate here is so close to South Africa I felt comfortable the whole week. It's been an absolutely great week. I played really good the whole week and didn't let my
head get away. I didn't know what score I was on so I was very focused: 66, 67, 67, so very consistent.”
Simon said that it had been pretty long since she won her last title. The player had been working on her game since a long time and this victory had rewarded her hard work. The 22-year-old especially thanked her caddie and boyfriend David Buhai, her fitness
trainer Garth Milne and her coach for one year, Douglas Wood. Simon said that all the aforementioned people had their part in her victory and it wouldn’t have been possible without their help.
The winner, Simon was in control of the tournament when she made the turn at three under par 33. Being four shots ahead of Nocera, the player made two bogeys and four birdies to have a total of 16 under par overall for the tournament.
As for Nocera, she was the runner up due to her poor start in the final round. The player made four bogeys and one eagle on the front nine but recovered with three closing birdies on the back nine.
The Ladies European Tour is now moving to Munich in Germany for the UniCredit Ladies German Open scheduled to take place this weekend.
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