Sally and Roseanne lose in second round at Harlech

Pamela Pretswell through to last

16 in British championship


Glasgow University student Pamela Pretswell is the only Scot in Friday morning's last 16 of the Ladies British open amateur golf championship over the Royal St David’s Golf Club links at Harlech on the Northwest Wales coastline.
Sally Watson (Elie & Earlsferry) and Crieff’s Roseanne Niven were the only other players from north of the Border to survive the first round of the match-play stages but they lost their afternoon ties on a gloriously sunny day.
Making an early exit were Curtis Cup teenager Carly Booth (Comrie), Kelsey MacDonald (Nairn Dunbar), Emily Ogilvy (Auchterarder), Louise Kenney (Pitreavie), Jane Turner (Creaigielaw) and Kylie Walker (Buchanan Castle).

They were Sally Watson (Elie & Earlsferry), Pamela Pretswell (Bothwell Castle) and Roseanne Niven (Crieff).

Later Sally went down by 3 and 2 to the top seed, Spain's Carlota Ciganda and Roseanne sagged to an 8 and 6 defeat at the hands of England’s Lauren Taylor. But Pamela reached the third round with a 2 and 1 win over Myrte Eikenaar of the Netherlands.Sally Watson, with her dad Graham caddieing, put up a good fight against European champion Ciganda.

There was never more than a hole in it either way until the closing holes.

Sally went one up with a birdie 4 at the long 12th but that was the high point of the tie for her. Ciganda won the next four holes in a row for victory.

Sally bogeyed the 13th to be pulled back to square. Carlota birdied the short 14th to go one up and got an eagle 3 at the 15th to surge two holes ahead. Then Sally bogeyed the 16th to lost that hole and the match.

"I was two under par at the finish," said 19-year-old Arizona State Univeresity student Carlota. "It was a very good match. Very good to get a close match like that early in the championship.Sally Watson and her father went straight to the practice ground from the end of the match on the 16th green.

Pretswell, pictured above today in action at Harlech by Cal Carson Golf Agency, was three under par in beating Eikenaar to reach the last 16 of a British championship for the first time.

Pamela is now fitter and more focused on golf than she was three or four weeks ago at the Scottish championship at Southerness where she won a sack of trophies as leading qualifier but didn't make it through to the later stages of the match-play.

"I just ran out of steam at Southerness. I had been studying hard for university exams and fell ill at the same time, hurting my back when I was being sick," said the Hamilton-based Glasgow University student.who surprised even herself by winning the Swiss women’s open amateur on a holiday trip last summer.

"But that's all behind me and I am feeling good this week."A birdie 4 at the long eigth against Eikenaar put the Scot into a lead she did not relinquish. A par at the 10th saw her go two up although she lost the q12th to a birdie to be pulled back to one.

In a quality tie, the long 13th and 15th were halved in birdie 4s before Pretswell played her shot of the day.Having driven into a bunker at the 16th, she came out brilliantly from the sand with a long recovery shot to within 3ft of the flagstick ... and sank the putt to go two up with two to play.

Flirting with a bunker against at the 17th, Pretswell was able to pitch close enough for a half in par 4s to end the match.The Scot, who qualified for the match-play in 28th place, now plays Laura Collin (John O'Gaunt), the No 12 qualifier.
Roseanne Niven, who was a beaten semi-finalist in this championship at North Berwick 12 months ago and went on to win the British stroke-play at a Belfast venue in August, staged a grandstand finish to dodge the bullet in her first round tie against Nikki Foster from Pleasington, Blackburn.
Two down with five to play, the University of California student won the 14th, the 16th and the 17th to take a one-hole lead before halving the last for victory.
But Niven couldn’t conjure up another Houdini escape in the second round. Four down to Lauren Taylor from Woburn after seven holes, the writing was on the wall for the Crieff player when her position had worsened to six down after 10 holes.

FRIDAY MORNING THIRD-ROUND TIES

Carlota Ciganda (1) v Danielle McVeigh (16)

Caroline Hedwall (9) v Hannah Barwood (8).

Pamela Pretswell (28) v Laura Collin (12).

Leonba Maguire (45) v Sian James (36).

Kelly Tidy (30) v Caroline Masson (19).

Marion Ricordeau (43) v Nathalie Mansson (38).

Rhian Wyn Thomas (26) v Jodi Ewart (10).

Lauren Taylor (47) v Azahara Munoz (2).

+Figures in brackets are their qualifying numbers.

To read about how 14-year-old Leona Maguire was 10 under par for the day ... how Azahara Munoz came back from two down with two to play .... log on to the Ladies Golf Union website: www.lgu.org