SPAIN'S CIGANDA SCORES FIRST WIN ON LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR

NEWS RELEASE FROM THE LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR
By BETHAN CUTLER, LET Media Manager
Carlota Ciganda of Spain held on to her overnight lead to claim her maiden win on the Ladies European Tour at the Deloitte Ladies Open in Holland.

The 22-year-old rookie professional from Pamplona began the final day with a one stroke lead over Ursula Wikstrom. She shot a final round of three under 69 at Golfclub Broekpolder in cold and breezy conditions to end two strokes clear of the Finn at nine under par. South African Lee-Anne Pace shot a final round of 71 to finish outright third on four under. Dewi Claire Schreefel was the leading Dutch player and tied for fourth place with Carin Koch of Sweden at three under.
After a long weather delay due to heavy rainfall overnight and through the morning, Ciganda made her intentions clear with a birdie on the par-four first hole, making a long putt to go two shots ahead.
Wikstrom came back by sinking a short birdie putt at the par-three fourth hole and both Ciganda and Wikstrom then holed birdie putts at the fifth. 

Wikstrom nailed a 35-footer uphill on the seventh green to tie for the lead, but after making an excellent sand save on the ninth, Ciganda holed another long putt to go one clear at the turn with a three under outward total of 33. 

Ciganda went two clear after Wikstrom dropped a shot at the 10^th, but the gap was back to one after the Spaniard three-putted the par-four 11^th.

The final turning point came when Wikstrom bogeyed the par-three 16^th after failing to get up and down from a bunker, giving Ciganda a two stroke lead with two holes to play.
Both players missed birdie chances on 17 and then on 18, the heavens opened just after Ciganda hit her second shot to the green. Wikstrom made an excellent up and down from a bunker for birdie before Ciganda rolled in her second putt for birdie to seal the win.
A former British women's open amateur champion, this was her first victory on the LET but her third title as a professional, after she won the Spanish professional championship earlier this season as well as the Murcia Ladies Open on the LET Access Series last year in Spain.
“I am very happy. It’s a very good feeling and I am very happy because I played very good golf. I was feeling calm and I was fine,” Ciganda said. “Like yesterday, I started with a birdie on the first hole and made another one on my fifth and then ninth, so I was three under. Then my bogey was on hole-number 11. I three-putted and missed a short putt but I was hitting lots of fairways, lots of greens. I was keeping in the present and playing great golf.
“It’s very big because it’s my first win on the Ladies European Tour so I’m very happy and hopefully I can win more.”
Ciganda’s mother didn’t see her daughter win as she had to head back to Spain on an earlier flight, but the rookie said that she would celebrate with her caddie and his brother in Rotterdam.
Further down the leader board, European No.1 Christel Boeljon of the Netherlands, who started the week as the home favourite, ended in a tie for 11th after a final round of 73.
British women's amateur champion from last June at Royal Portrush, Lauren Taylor (Woburn) from Rugby ended as the leading amateur in the field in a share of 57^th place on 224 and will also play in the next Ladies European Tour event, the Allianz Ladies Slovak Open next week.
EDITOR'S NOTE: If things had worked out differently, Lauren would have been playing for GB and I in this coming week's Curtis Cup match at The Nairn GC.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)

207 Carlota Ciganda (ESP) 71 67 69

209 Ursula Wikstrom (FIN) 71 68 70
212 Lee-Anne Pace (ZAF) 71 70 71
213 Carin Koch (SWE) 71 70 72, Dewi Claire Schreefel (NLD) 71 70 72

214 Veronica Zorzi (ITA) 73 69 72, Caroline Masson (DEU) 71 72 71, Mikaela Parmlid (SWE) 72 71 71, Caroline Afonso (FRA) 71 70 73

215 Florentyna Parker (ENG) 68 72 75

216 Louise Larsson (SWE) 72 71 73, Hannah Burke (ENG) 69 75 72, Alison Whitaker (AUS) 70 72 74, Elena Giraud (FRA) 68 73 75, Marion Ricordeau (FRA) 72 74 70, Stacy Lee Bregman (ZAF) 73 69 74, Diana Luna (ITA) 69 76 71, Christel Boeljon (NLD) 70 73 73, Gwladys Nocera (FRA) 76 770, Sophie Walker (ENG) 72 74 70

217 Stacey Keating (AUS) 74 71 72, Nontaya Srisawang (THA) 73 72 72, Line Vedel (DNK) 76 66 75

218 Esther Choe (USA) 76 71 71, Rebecca Artis (AUS) 73 71 74, Felicity Johnson (ENG) 70 71 77, Henrietta Zuel (ENG) 72 69 77, Stefania Croce (ITA) 71 73 74, Becky Brewerton (WAL) 72 71 75

219 Rebecca Hudson (ENG) 73 71 75, Anja Monke (DEU) 70 77 72, Caroline Westrup (SWE) 76 71 72, Rachel Bailey (AUS) 74 73 72, Rebecca Codd (IRL) 75 72 72, Joanna Klatten (FRA) 72 71 76, Helen Alfredsson (SWE) 76 69 74, Frances Bondad (AUS) 74 71 74, Lydia Hall (WAL) 74 71 74, Eleanor Givens (ENG) 75 73 71, Marjet Van Der Graaff (NLD) 72 73 74

220 Jenni Kuosa (FIN) 71 74 75, Connie Chen (ZAF) 75 72 73, Sahra Hassan (WAL) 72 74 74, Julie Maisongrosse (FRA) 72 72 76, Anais Maggetti (CHE) 72 72 76
221 Karen Lunn (AUS) 68 76 77, Clare Queen (SCO) 72 75 74, Trish Johnson (ENG) 75 73 73, Anne-Lise Caudal (FRA) 71 74 76, Lynnette Brooky (NZL) 72 73 76, Liebelei Lawrence (LUX) 77 69 75
222 Georgina Simpson (ENG) 74 74 74, Marianne Skarpnord (NOR) 72 76 74, Beth Allen (USA) 75 72 75
223 Sophie Giquel-bettan (FRA) 75 70 78, Steffi Kirchmayr (DEU) 68 79 76
224 Julie Greciet (FRA) 75 72 77, Jessica Yadloczky (USA) 73 74 77, Lauren Taylor (ENG) (am)  72 76 76
225 Jade Schaeffer (FRA) 73 75 77, Sophie Sandolo (ITA) 74 73 78, Maria Ohlsson (SWE) 76 71 78
226 Kendall Dye (USA) 71 74 81, Linda Wessberg (SWE) 74 74 78, Celine Palomar (FRA) 72 72 82
227 Karlijn Zaanen (NLD) (am) 75 73 79
228 Maria Beautell (ESP) 76 72 80
230 Mianne Bagger (DNK) 71 74 85

Ends