NEW ZEALAND WIN TEAM EVENT AT ROYAL PORTRUSH

New Zealand underlined their claims to be favourites for next week's Astor Trophy match-play team tournament at Fairhaven GC, Lytham St Annes by winning the international team event staged on conjunction with the qualifying rounds of the British women's open amateur championship at Royal Portrush GC, Northern Ireland.
Lydia Ko and Cecilia Cho, Nos 1 and 2 in the Women's World Amateur Rankings, virtually did it on their own because the third member of their team, Emily Perry had a non-counting 85 in the first round and a No Return in the second.
Ko, only 14 years of age, and 16-year-old Cho, totalled 290 over the 36 holes but it was a mighty close finish.
Ireland and England tied for second place on 291 while Denmark hit the 292 mark and Canada scored 294.
Ireland's team was made up of the 16-year-old Maguire twins, Leona and Lisa, and Stephanie Meadow.
England were represented by Curtis Cup player Holly Clyburn, 15-year-old rising star Charley Hull and Kelly Tidy, last year's British women's open amateur title-winner at Ganton.
The New Zealand trio will be awarded the handsome international team trophy at the prizegiving after Saturday's afternoon championship final at Royal Portrush GC.
The Kiwi whiz kids, Ko and Cho, could also figure prominently on the individual prize list.

TOTALS
290 NEW ZEALAND 144 146 (Cecilia Cho, Lydia Ko, Emily Perry).
291 ENGLAND 149 142 (Holly Clyburn, Charley Hull, Kelly Tidy); iRELAND 149 142 (Leona Maguire, Lisa Maguire, Stephanie Meadow).
292 DENMARK 147 145 (Charlotte King Lorentzen, Therese Koelbaek, Sara Monberg).
293 GERMANY 146 147 (Sophia Popov, Pia Halbig, Lara Katzy).
294 CANADA 148 146 (Rebecca Lee-Bentham, Christine Wong, Jessica Wallace).
295 SWEDEN 149 146 (Nathalie Mansson, Johanna Tillstrom, Daniela Holmqvist).
298 FRANCE 149 149 (Alexandra Bonetti, Celine Bouotier, Perrine Delacour).
300 AUSTRALIA 142 158 (Ashley Ona, Minjee Lee, Beanna Elliot), SOUTH AFRICA 153 147 (Kim Williams, Iliska Verwey, Bertine Strauss).
303 SCOTLAND 151 152 (Louise Kenney, Kelsey MacDonald, Pamela Pretswell), WALES 148 155 (Amy Boulden, Gemma Bradbury, Katherine O'Connor).
307 SWITZERLAND 154 153 (Anais Maggetti, Valeria Martinoli, Fanny Vuignier).
311 ITALY 153 158 (Giulia Molinaro, Eugenia Ferrero, Alessandra Averna).
318 NETHERLANDS 158 160 (Myrte Eikenaar, Karlijn Zaanen, Giulia Van den Berg).
+Best two individual scores in each round counted for team total.