Annika Sorenstam finishes seventh behind Anja
Monke in Dubai Ladies Masters farewell

FROM THE LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Germany’s Anja Monke triumphed at Annika Sorenstam’s farewell tournament today, shooting a final round of four-under-par 68 for a three-shot victory at the Dubai Ladies Masters, the season-ending event on the Ladies European Tour.
The 38-year-old Sorenstam signed off in joint seventh place after a final round of 71. In typical style, she rolled an eight foot birdie putt into the cup on the 18th hole before a packed gallery of her golfing colleagues.
There were whistles and cheers from the gallery as she finished, before raising her putter in the air and hugging her caddie of nine years, Terry McNamara. There were only a few small tears and Sorenstam kept her composure.
“It means a lot. When you get that kind of respect from the players it breaks your heart,” Sorenstam said. “I felt it today and it was very special.”
Sorenstam steps away with 89 career titles, including 10 major championships, which is more than any other female professional golfer. The Swede, who won the first two Dubai Ladies Masters titles in 2006 and 2007, will get married to Mike McGee in January, leaving tour life to focus on her business interests and start a family.
The 31-year-old Monke, from Hanover, finished with a 72-hole total of 275, 13-under-par, on the Majlis Course at Emirates Golf Club. “I’m feeling very happy,” said a wet Monke, after being splashed with water by her colleagues and accepting the first prize cheque of €75,000 from Mr Abdullah Kalban, president and CEO of Dubal.
“I mean, I had to play my game no matter what or where the focus is. I just tried to focus on my game and of course I heard the big applause when Annika was hitting her shot into the 18th green. I was on the 16th green at the time. And then we saw her actually finishing it off on 18. We hit our tee shots by that time and so I could at least see a little bit.”
Monke began the final round with a two-stroke lead over Denmark’s Iben Tinning and birdied the par-4 second hole to move to ten-under-par. She was neck and neck with Veronica Zorzi after an early charge from the Italian but reeled off three birdies in a row from the 10th to establish a two-shot lead.
After carding a solitary three-putt bogey on the 15th, Anja birdied the next hole and was able to claim the tournament with two pars to finish. This was Monke’s second win as a professional, following the Vediorbis Open de France Dames in late September, but her biggest cheque yet as the event featured the joint third largest prize fund on the 2008 Ladies European Tour schedule. Zorzi, the two-time Vediorbis Open de France Dames champion, closed with a 69 for a 10-under total and finished in second. England’s Laura Davies shot a last round of 69 to finish one shot back in third.
France’s Sophie Giquel was a shot further adrift in fourth, while England’s Trish Johnson and Denmark’s Iben Tinning tied for fifth on seven-under. Johnson’s round of 69 included a hole-in-one at the 160-yard par-three 15th hole with a six-iron.
Sorenstam shared seventh with four other players including England’s Melissa Reid, who ended the season as the Ryder Cup Wales Rookie of the Year, in association with the Bill Johnson Trophy.
Also in seventh on six-under were Australian Anna Rawson, South Korea’s Amy Yang and South Africa’s Ashleigh Simon.
Gwladys Nocera of France confirmed her place as European No.1 by winning the LET’s official 2008 New Star Money List for the first time with earnings of €391,839.58 from 23 events played.
Catriona Matthew finished joint 12th on 283, eight shots behind the winner because she broke 70 only once, in the second round.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4 x 72)
275 Anja Monke (Ger) 68 71 68 68.
278 Veronica Zorzi (Ita) 69 69 71 69.
279 Laura Davies (Eng) 70 69 71 69.
280 Sophie Giquel (Fra) 70 70 71 69.
281 Trish Johnson (Eng) 70 70 72 69, Iben Tinning (Den) 70 69 70 72.
282 Annika Sorenstam (Swe) 70 66 75 71, Melissa Reid (Eng) 71 70 71 70, Ashleigh Simon (Rsa) 70 71 72 69, Amy Yang (USA) 71 69 74 68, Anna Rawson (Aus) 71 69 74 68
283 Catriona Matthew 73 68 71 71, Katharina Schallenberg (Ger) 69 71 72 71, Becky Brewerton 73 72 67 71
284 Leah Hart (Aus) 72 71 73 68, Gwladys Nocera (Fra) 75 69 71 69
285 Virginine Lagoutte-Clement (Fra) 70 73 73 69, Sophie Gustafson (Swe) 72 72 66 75
286 Tania Elosegui (Spa) 71 75 70 70, Carin Koch (Swe) 72 68 77 69, Nikki Garrett (Aus) 71 66 74 75, Titiya Plucksataporn (Tha) 72 69 73 72
287 Johanna Head 66 72 75 74, Lora Fairclough 73 67 74 73, Julie Greciet (Fra) 71 70 70 76, Emma Zackrisson (Swe) 71 73 71 72, Martina Eberl (Ger) 71 72 70 74
288 Felicity Johnson 70 72 71 75, Henrietta Zuel 75 71 69 73, Anna-Lise Caudal (Fra) 74 71 73 70, Nina Reis (Swe) 70 71 72 75, Cassandra Kirkland (Fra) 73 67 76 72
289 Martina Gillen 71 70 77 71, Maria Verchenova (Rus) 72 66 77 74, Samantha Head 72 69 74 74
290 Lisa Sorensen (Den) 73 70 75 72, Jade Schaeffer (Fra) 71 73 77 69, Emma Cabrera Bello (Spa) 70 71 71 78, Margherita Rigon (Ita) 72 74 72 72
291 Julie Tvede (Den) 72 73 71 75, Kirsty S Taylor 72 73 73 73, Dana Lacey (Aus) 72 73 75 71
292 Maria Boden (Swe) 69 74 78 71, Carmen Alonso (Spa) 70 73 75 74
293 Louise Stahle (Swe) 72 72 74 75
294 Karen Lunn (Aus) 71 75 72 76, Anna Rossi (Ita) 76 70 73 75, Lisa Hall 74 72 75 73, Stefania Croce (Ita) 71 70 77 76, Ursula Wikstrom (Fin) 74 72 76 72
295 Louise Friberg (Swe) 73 74 75 73, Joanne Mills (Aus) 73 74 75 73, Charlotta Sorenstam (Swe) 72 73 77 73, Laura Cabanillas Gomez (Spa) 74 72 76 73, Lynn Brooky (Nzl) 71 72 76 76
296 Joanne Morley 72 74 75 75
297 Frances Bondad (Aus) 71 75 78 73, Lara Tadiotto (Bel) 74 71 77 75
298 Sofia Renell (Swe) 73 71 74 80, Nora Angehrn (Swi) 78 69 76 75
302 Hazel Kavanagh 72 70 77 83