Daytona Beach Invitational 2012: Another top-10 finish for Nicole Smith
American Nicole Smith might have fought a tougher-than-usual battle at the Daytona Beach Invitational 2012, but she was happy that she managed to finish the last Symetra Tour tournament in
a grand style.
Smith posted an overall 208 to finish tied for the fourth position on the leaderboard.
When Smith started her first round on Friday, she might not even need a victory for her to win the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) Tour card for the coming season, but she did
well enough to remain inside the top 10.
However, a top-ten finish was all she needed in order to keep herself in the limelight.
Regardless of the pressure on her, which came after Americans Daniela Iacobelli and Esther Choe boosted their positions in the second round, Smith remained firm and played a natural game throughout
the three days.
Smith, who stands at the ninth position on the Symetra Tour money list, had a nice score going into the second round as she posted a 69 to make a good start, but the golfing sensation had
her own motivation as she has already vowed to make it to the LPGA Tour in the 2013 season.
The second round went just as good, as she posted a 68 to further consolidate her position on the leaderboard. However, Smith could not keep the pressure intact in the last round and tumbled
to the fourth spot after she carded a 71.
Sharing her thoughts at the end of the second round on Saturday, Smith said that she was pretty happy with her performance in the current season. Attributing her current form to her solid
putting and swing, she said that she has worked hard on every aspect of her game and is keen to make more changes to her playing style.
“I work really hard on my swing and I’m very proud of how I guess, they tell me it looks easy,” said Smith. “It doesn’t feel easy all the time but it’s good, it’s very simple, I work very
hard at getting it that way. I think my swing coach has done a really good job”.
Observers said that the goal for Smith at the Daytona Beach Invitational 2012 was to drive the ball well off the tee and avoid making bogeys — and she did that with ease.
Having earned $32,536 on the back of five top-10 finishes, Smith has reflected that she is hard to subdue and will try to join the LPGA Tour with the same passion and vigour.
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