(Tenerife, Canary Islands – 13 June 2011)
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Welshwoman Becky Brewerton fired a winning score of 4-under par 68 in the strokeplay section of the Tenerife Ladies Match Play on Sunday, earning a one shot victory over Australia’s Nikki Garrett and Spain’s rising star Carlota Ciganda, on her professional debut.
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It was Brewerton’s third victory as a professional following wins at the 2007 English Open and the 2009 Spanish Open. She had previously finished second three times in Tenerife, including once on the same golf course as an amateur in 2003. This year’s event had unofficial status and will not count towards the Money list or Solheim Cup standings.
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“I’ve finished second three times in Tenerife so it’s nice to finally get a win and obviously it’s been a while since I’ve won, so it’s a brilliant feeling,” said Brewerton. “I think Tenerife is a place where I always get a little bit of luck as well. I holed a chip shot, holed a bunker shot, I had a couple of nice bounces out there as well. I made lots of birdies and threw in a couple of hairy moments as well. A few mistakes but just about managed to get it done. I’ve been playing well all week and it’s nice to obviously finish off well.”
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Brewerton had secured the most comprehensive victory of the opening day on Friday, when she defeated Australian Kristie Smith 8&6 in the matchplay format.She then ousted 79-time tournament champion Laura Davies in the second round with a birdie on the 19th hole. Davies told Brewerton on Twitter: “Keep swinging like that and you’ve got a big summer ahead.”
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As one of the last eight players who qualified for the stroke section of the tournament, Brewerton went into the final round full of confidence and earned the early advantage with birdies on the 2nd, 5th and 7th holes. She then dropped a shot at the par-five 9th after missing the green with her second shot. She made the turn one ahead at 2-under par.
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She holed a bunker shot for birdie from the right side of the 10th green, then, after finding sand again on 11, she dropped a shot but quickly recovered, sinking a seven-footer on the par-three 13th. She dropped a shot at the 15th, but two-putted for birdie from 35 feet at the next. After signing off with a birdie on 18, there was a tense wait by the clubhouse with both Ciganda and Garrett able to tie with a birdie.However Ciganda’s second shot found water and Garrett missed a 15-foot birdie putt, allowing Brewerton to claim the €40,000 first prize.
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rnBrewerton said: “It’s funny: I had great memories when I got back to the course. I remembered all the holes straight away. I was pretty sure this is where I’d finished second as an amateur in the Tenerife Ladies Open and I’ve actually got a picture up on my wall, from the course here, from under one of the palm trees from my dad, when he was caddying for me.”
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She hopes that the win will kick-start her season, as she has recently recovered from a foot injury, which started in Portugal. She said: “This is the main start of the season coming up with some massive tournaments. I’m absolutely desperate to make The Solheim team so I’ve just got to try and make as many points as possible.”
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Apart from Nikki Garrett finishing second, two other ALPG members made the final round with Frances Bondad finishing in a tie for 6th at even par and Danielle Montgomery in 8th place at 3-over. While the final round may not have gone their way, Bondad and Montgomery claimed some huge scalps just to be playing in the final round.
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Bondad completed a 2&1 victory over 2-time LET winner Ashleigh Simon on the Friday before accounting for compatriot Karen Lunn (3&2) in the 2nd round on Saturday. Montgomery, a last-minute inclusion in the field would have been stoked with her 2&1 win over Scotland’s Kylie Walker in the first round but she surpassed that result with a comfortable 3&2 victory over former Solheim Cup representative Tania Elosegui in the second round. Another win of note by the Aussies was Stacey Keating accounting for 8-time Solheim Cup representative Trish Johnson in the opening round matchplay contest. Unfortunately for her she couldn’t repeat the performance against Garrett in the second round.
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Photos courtesy of LET.
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