ESPIRIT0 SANTO TROPHY

FIFER DEAN’S CANADIAN GIRLS ARE
SITTING ON TOP OF THE WORLD
Fife-born coach Dean Spriddle, Canada’s national golf coach, was sitting on top of the world at the end of the first round of the women’s world amateur team golf championship for the Espirito Santo Trophy.
The Canadian girls who say the Scot has made them the high-class players headed the first-round scoreboard of 48 countries with a seven-under-par team total of seven-under-par 137.
In an all-North American 1-2, the Canadians hold a two-stroke lead from the United States’ trio of Curtis Cup players.
Only two scores of the team of three count and Mary Ann Lapointe got the lowest score of the day at Rio Mar Country Club, Rio Grande in Puerto Rico – a five-under-par 67. She was backed up by Laura Matthews with a 70. Lindsay Knowlton with a 73 was the Canadians’ non-counter.
Great Britain & Ireland could have done with Lindsay’s score because it would certainly have been a counter for them.
British stroke-play champion Clare Queen from Drumpellier rallied from a nightmare outward half to post a respectable score of three-over-par 75.
Clare’s 75 and a 74 by Emma Duggleby from Yorkshire were the two counting Great Britain & Ireland scores for a first-round total of 149.
The non-counting score of the third GB&I team member was a 77 by Welsh left-hander Stephanie Evans (Vale of Llangollen).
Clare Queen bogeyed the short third and then double-bogeyed the par-5 fifth before dropping another shot at the par-4 eighth on her way to four-over-par score of 40 for the front nine.
Then the little Scot showed something like her true form by getting a pair of birdie 2s at the short 10th and the short 14th. Unfortunately, she bogeyed the 17th and finished with a 75.
Emma Duggleby had birdies at the second, fourth and 12th but marred her card with a triple bogey 6 at the short 10th. She also bogeyed the seventh and 17th in halves of 35 and 39 for 74.
Stephanie Evans bogeyed the first and sixth but a birdie 4 at the long eighth helped her to reach the turn in one-over 37. She got back to level par for the round with a birdie at the 13th but then cascaded five shots to par over the last five holes.
The left-handed bogeyed the 14th and 16th and then had a triple bogey 7 at the 17th to take 40 shots for the inward half of a 77.
The United States’ scores from their trio who were members of the winning Curtis Cup team at Formby in June were a 69 from Jane Park and 70s from Sara Huarte and Paula Creamer.
SCOREBOARD
(Two scores to count for team total)
138 Canada (Mary Ann Lapointe 67, Laura Matthews 70, Lindsay Knowlton 73).
139 United States (Jane Park 69, Sarah Huarte 70, Paula Creamer 70).
142 Korea.
143 Chinese Taipei.
144 Germany, Spain.
145 Venezuela, Mexico, Russian Federation.
146 Argentina.
147 South Africa, Japan.
148 Netherlands, Australia.
149 Great Britain & Ireland (E Duggleby 74, C Queen 75, S Evans 77).
150 Norway.
152 Chile.
154 Portugal, Switzerland.
155 Italy.
156 Brazil.
157 Peru, Republic of China.
160 Trinidad & Tobago.
165 Czech Republic.
166 Bermuda.
168 Guatemala.
169 Bahamas.
170 Slovakia.
174 Turkey.
176 Greece, Dominican Republic.
180 Egypt.
183 Panama.
184 El Salvador.
192 Croatia.
201 US Virgin Islands.
208 Lithuania.