Australian Kristie Smith triumphs at the European Ladies Tour New Zealand’s Women Open
Australian Kristie Smith won the European Ladies Tour (LET) New Zealand’s Women Open which was played at the Pegasus course, north of Christchurch. The 22-year-old golfer carded four under par 68 in the final round to capture the title and win by a margin
of three shots over Tiffany Joh and Giulia Sergas. Smith had a few birdies and was consistent in her shot-making. The conditions on the final day were not easy for the players but Smith managed to curb the challenge from her opponents.
Smith had five birdies on hole number four, seven, eight, 11 and 18 and had a single bogey at the 15th
hole. She started the day with a four way tie at the fourth spot and five shots behind the leader but went on to win the title. Her total four round aggregate score was 12 under par 276.
Smith was overwhelmed with her performance and said that she needs to re-assess her goals. "I am over the moon," she said, "My goal this year was to win on the LET Tour this year and it's nice to do it early, I think I will have to reassess my goals. They
had been to finish in the top five on the LET money list and play well in the majors."
It was her maiden victory at the Ladies European Tour in only her second year. She has qualified for the $3.2 million Avian Masters Tournament in France and also qualified for a playing card at the Ladies European Tour for the next three years.
Italian Giulia Sergas, 31, finished in second place, tying with American Tiffany Joh. Sergas had a disastrous final round of four over par 76 after leading the tournament for the first three rounds. She had a lead of four shots going in to the final round
but was unable to cope up with the pressure. She had a few blemishes in her round which also included a triple bogey seven at the fourth hole.
The defending champion, Laura Davies, shot a terrible five over par 77 in the final round which over shadowed her come back in the third round completely. She held the top spot on the leader board briefly but triple bogeyed at the fourth and had another
bogey at the ninth which shattered her dream of defending the title. She finished at the seventh spot tied with Linda Wessberg of Italy and Diana Luna of Italy.
New Zealand’s 13-year-old amateur golfer, Lydia Ko, was able to impress once again. She shot one under par 71 for the final round and had a total aggregate score of seven under par 281.
The playing conditions were tough throughout the day and several players failed to produce some under par scores. Smith captured the winner’s cheque and the trophy. She is looking forward to winning more titles this year and improving her rankings this year.
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