Britain’s Mimi Rhodes has confirmed her status as a rising star of women’s golf with her maiden professional win on the Ladies European Tour, securing a two-shot victory in the Ford Women’s NSW Open at Wollongong Golf Club.
Starting as the overnight leader, Rhodes drew on the success of three Curtis Cup appearances for Great Britain to overcome a talented international field and raise the first silverware of her professional career—the Jan Stephenson Trophy. Her final round was another composed, bogey-free exhibition of two-under to finish the tournament at -17.
It’s the first of what is likely to be many trophies the former U.S. college star will lift in her career, having seen off numerous challengers today, including four-time LET winner, Spain’s “La Niña,” Nuria Iturrioz.
Yesterday, the 24-year-old had to be patient as she waited for putts to drop, but today, in mild conditions at this seaside links course, they dropped early. Birdies on the second and fourth holes were crucial as she opened up a three-shot lead heading into the back nine. Sixteen rock-steady pars throughout, including 14 in a row from the fifth hole, were enough to seal the deal.
Spain’s Iturrioz promised to maintain her aggressive approach, and it delivered early with three birdies through the first five holes. However, “La Niña” handed them back with a bogey on the par-4 seventh and a double bogey on the ninth when her tee shot found the water, all but ending her challenge for a fifth LET title.
Rhodes had to endure a late challenge from Italian Alessandra Fanali, who was coming off a career-best round yesterday (64). Down the stretch, Fanali will rue the missed chances that could have led to her own breakthrough win. She birdied the 17th with a mid-range putt to narrow the gap to one, but it wasn’t enough, and a bogey on the last widened the gap again. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old will take a lot of confidence from her courageous fight and clearly has the game to go as far as her ambition allows.
Rhodes may feel she could have won by more, with a pair of birdie lip-outs on 14 and 15. But that will be forgotten as her dream start to her professional career continues.
Asked how it felt holding off some of the world’s best down the stretch, Rhodes was clearly relieved:
“I’m still in shock, but I’m so happy. I’ve worked really hard. I didn’t have a great week last week, so I wasn’t really expecting much. But I went through a bit of a swing change, and it obviously worked this week. So yeah, I’m just really happy,” she said.
“I was fine for the front nine, but when it started to get tight, I got a bit stressed. I was asking my caddy how the group in front were doing and how many shots ahead I was. But I just kept breathing, stayed focused and tried not to think ahead. It’s difficult in those situations, but yeah, I’m just really glad I got it done.”
The key factor in her success was her putting.
“(From) the second round, my putting was really good. I placed the ball really nicely on the green. I didn’t even realise I hadn’t made a bogey in the last two rounds. I was just trying to stay calm and focused out there. I wasn’t putting too much extra attention on myself after the second round,” the champion said.
The highest-placed Australian was Perth’s Kirsten Rudgeley, who delivered yet another solid performance to finish -3 for the day and -15 for the tournament, tying for second place with Fanali. This marks her 11th top-10 finish on the Ladies European Tour.
The round of the day belonged to Welsh star Darcey Harry, whose last two events—the Australian Women’s Classic and the Open—have confirmed she belongs in elite golf. The powerful 21-year-old had seven birdies in her final round to finish at -5 for the day and -7 for the tournament, tying for 14th place.
The shot of the day went to Switzerland’s Kim Metraux, who holed out on the 132m 10th with a dart that never left the pin and rolled out perfectly. Unfortunately, it was the wrong hole to take home the Ford F-150 Lariat, but it does come with a big bar tab and a memory for the ages. The 29-year-old finished three-under for the round, -11 for the tournament, and tied for 5th.
The highest-placed amateur of the event was South Korea’s Hyojin Yang, who added her fourth consecutive 69 to finish at -8 for the tournament, tying for 11th place.
The Ford Women’s NSW Open was the final doorstop of the co-sanctioned LET and WPGA Tour Australian swing. Next stop: World Sand Greens at Binalong beginning Thursday.
