Gwladys Nocera eyes Solheim Cup team with her performance at the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open
Gwladys Nocera, the 10-time winner on the Ladies European Tour (LET) and three-time team member of the Solheim Cup, is part of the 126 strong field at the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open and is eager to make it through this year’s Solheim Cup again. Nocera
finished one-over, 74 in the opening round of the event at the difficult National Golf Club at Antalya.
Nocera, who topped the Henderson’s Money List in 2008, has gained six points in the rankings through her successful performances from 2005-2009. She hopes to be part of the field for the European team at this year’s event at Killeen Castle in Ireland from
September 23-25.
“My goal this year is to win a tournament and be part of the Solheim Cup team,” she said. “I have organized my schedule in order to play as many events in Europe as possible while still playing on the LPGA in America.”
Nocera won her last event at the 2008 Madrid Ladies Masters and also showed up to play in the LPGA in 2009. Her best finish in LPGA came last year when she finished second at the 2010 CVS/pharmacy LPGA Challenge. Although Nocera had a disappointing season
this year and her best result was 54th in HSBC Women’s Championship in her five appearances, she remains confident and insists she is gaining momentum.
“I struggled in the very beginning of the season but things are starting to come around. I started to work with another coach, who has been a great help along my long term coach back home. I also worked out quite a bit, so overall I'm feeling pretty good,”
the player added.
The Frenchwoman also holds the view that golf is not about just hitting the ball rather more about what is thrown at the player at any specific day. She says that she has learned a lot from her participation in LPGA last year and feels more confident and
patient than before.
36-year-old Nocera currently retains the 13th place at the LET’s European Solheim Cup team standings and only top four will be able to make it into the Solheim Cup. Four members of the future team are exempt from the Rolex World Rankings while
the rest of the four of the 12 member team will be selected by the captain Alison Nicholas, similar to the Ryders Cup format.
Nocera is teamed up with the Solheim Cup team member Diana Luna and two-times US team member Christina Kim for the first two rounds of the event. National Golf Club at Antalya is one of the toughest courses on the LET with its narrow fairways and strategically
positioned bunkers.
The €250,000 event is the third consecutive event taking place in turkey with the winner’s prize share of €37,500. The halfway cut will be enforced at the completion of second round with top 60 plus tied proceeding into the final two rounds.
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