Catriona Matthew fails to defend title in Mexico
Scottish Catriona Matthew made a fumbling attempt at her title defence at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational last week, as she registered a total score of 285 to finish tied for 22nd
position on the leaderboard.
It was the biggest shock of the weekend for Matthew, who was the hot favourite contender for the prestigious title due largely to her fiery performance in the last edition of the four-round
tournament.
Commentators said that it would have been a big surprise for the veteran star if she had avoided major slip-ups at early stages of the event.
Convinced that the 2012 edition of the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) tournament would go her way, Matthew failed to make a desired start as she registered a 71 in the first round
on Thursday at Guadalajara Country Club.
American Angela Stanford, who is the 2008 champion of the tournament, was impressive right from the start as she posted a 66 in the opening round to take an early lead along with Michelle
Wie and Candie Kung.
Matthew’s game remained shaky in the second round as well, as she posted a 72. In the next round on Saturday, she tried to regain her composure and shot a 68 in a bid to bounce back.
However, the score was not huge enough to take her inside the top 10. An unimpressive performance that saw her post a 74 in the fourth round further dented Matthew’s position on the leaderboard
and she tumbled to a tie for the 22nd.
Stanford, who was also looking to repeat her winning form, did much better than the past winners of Lorena Ochoa Invitational, as she scored an overall 273 to finish tied for the second position
along with South Korean Inbee Park.
Sharing her thoughts at the end of the tournament on Sunday, Stanford said that she was able to perform well thanks to her improved swing.
She went on to say that her goal was clear as he was aiming a title, but mistakes were inevitable.
“It’s hard because you have to have a little bit of perspective. You know people say you have to take the good out of everything but you know there’s always that sense of disappointment”.
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