Christina Kim pulls in maiden victory on Ladies European Tour at Sicilian Ladies Italian Open
American Christina Kim posted her maiden victory on the Ladies European Tour, when she edged past rest of the field at the Sicilian Ladies Italian Open on Sunday, October 9. Kim, a two-time winner on the LPGA, wrestled tough conditions at the Il Picciolo
Golf Club in Castiglione di Sicilia where a cold and windy day delivered a severe blow to the aspiring competitors. She was one of the only five players who carded an under-par round on the final day.
Kim said, “It was a really difficult day today and the golf course was showing all of its teeth with the rain, the wind, the thunder, the volcano, everything. It’s just such an incredible feeling right now.”
Kim started-off the final round trailing overnight leader, Gwladys Nocera by one shot. She gradually kept building momentum on the front nine and was even-par with Nocera before making the turn. The round was then suspended due to lightning and thunderstorms
and Nocera fell in for a bogey soon after play was resumed. Kim went over to card consecutive birdies from the ninth and established an unchallenged lead in the event. She closed the day with two-under, 70, with an aggregate of seven-under, 209, to lift her
first LET title and a winner’s cheque of €30,000.
A jubilant Kim added, “To know that I would be able to win out here is such a phenomenal feeling. On both of my tours I’ve got at least one win under my belt and I can’t wait to see how many more I may get in my career.”
Nocera suffered back-to-back bogeys later in her round and had to settle for a joint third along with Italian golfer, Stefanie Croce. One of the local favourites, Giulia Sergas, although carded a round of 73 on the final day, but her earlier pitches in the
event were good enough to fetch a runner-up finish for her.
The event closed on a somewhat hilarious note when Kim threw a hug to Nocera’s caddie, Duncan French, who happens to be Kim’s boyfriend. It appeared as if the plan had worked for the duo. Also interesting is the fact that Kim’s current caddie, Armand, remained
Nocera’s bag-man for a considerable period of time.
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