30 October 2021: A sensational final round of 64 (-8) sealed a one-shot victory for England’s Bronte Law at the Dubai Moonlight Classic presented by EGA. Maria Fassi, who enjoyed a share of the lead going into the final round finished in second place.
Aditi Ashok finished in 13th place with a final round 69, the same score with which she started her week in Dubai. It was a three round tournament and Aditi shot 71 in the middle round.
Tvesa Malik shot a second straight 71 as she wound her week up in T19 with four other golfers.
Diksha Dagar ended her week with a 70, finishing in 24th place.
It was a tantalizing last day in Dubai with 19 players within six shots of the lead at the Faldo Course at Emirates Golf Club at the end of the second round.
But it was Law who produced one of the rounds of the day to climb up the leaderboard, and her eagle on the 16th saw her post a winning total of 15-under-par.
“It’s a bit of a blur really, I just went out and was trying to post a number. I said to my caddie Ken yesterday ‘let’s go out and try to shoot seven-under tomorrow’ and I’ve gone one better,” said the 26-year-old.
“It’s a bit surreal right now actually, I’m just so happy to be back here [in the winner’s circle] – it’s been a while.”
The 2019 Solheim Cup winner began her round on the 18th on the final day of the shotgun start, but didn’t make her first birdie until the fifth hole.
However, after rolling in back-to-back birdies the English star got into the groove and rolled in four birdies in five holes before sinking her eagle putt on 16 to seal the victory – her first on the LET.
Law has struggled with her swing over the past couple of years and it has taken a lot to get back to this point, but the LPGA Tour winner was delighted to get over the line under the floodlights in Dubai.
“I can’t really put it into words, it was one of the hardest things ever (to get back), and at times I didn’t know whether I could do it. This is my seventh week in a row, and before this I couldn’t play three weeks in a row before struggling with back problems and my body hurting all the time,” she continued.
“I probably wouldn’t have been here if I was still doing the same thing, I wouldn’t be able to sustain the same volume of golf, so I’m so glad that all the work is starting to pay off. It’s hard when things aren’t going your way and you feel like the world is against you, but I’ve got a lot of people that have stuck by me, and I owe them a lot.
“It’s the hardest thing in the world and I don’t think people understand how hard it is to be an athlete and the scrutiny that you’re under. You question yourself at times and it’s so hard to pull yourself back through that, but I’ve trusted the process and obviously it’s working.”
Her first LET win was made even sweeter by the fact that Law was surrounded by friends that she has grown up playing with.
She added: “I have so many friends on the LET that I’ve grown up playing golf with so to share it with them is something very special, it feels a lot closer to home than the States and it’s a really nice feeling.
“I love Dubai, I love coming here, I really enjoyed my time here last year and I love coming here and playing something different. That element with the lights is something else you have to factor in and I think it’s one step closer to growing the game which is ultimately what we’re trying to do.”
It was overnight leader Maria Fassi who claimed second place with a total of 14-under-par after carding a final round of 68 (-4).
The Tokyo 2020 Olympian got off to a slow and steady start with one birdie in her opening seven holes before dropping a shot on the eighth.
But the 23-year-old then kicked into gear around the turn rolling in birdies on 10, 11 and 13 before adding her final birdie on 16 to finish second.
“I think I played good golf all week, but Bronte shot eight-under today. It’s never nice to lose but to lose when she played like that and very much deserved to be crowned champion today,” said Fassi.
“I’m very happy with how my game has been in the last few weeks and I really enjoyed my first experience here in Dubai and looking forward to coming back next year.”
Germany’s Esther Henseleit ended the tournament in third place – three shots off the lead after rounds of 72, 66 and 66.
Two LET winners from the 2021 season finished tied for fourth on 11-under-par as Pajaree Anannarukarn and Lee-Anne Pace carded final rounds of 69 and 70, respectively.
Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn was sixth on 10-under-par with Olivia Cowan, Ariya Jutanugarn, Magdalena Simmermacher and Alice Hewson rounding out the top ten on nine-under.
Australia’s Steph Kyriacou finished tied for 11th alongside Sweden’s Jessica Karlsson, India’s Aditi Ashok was 13th and 2021 Race to Costa del Sol leader Atthaya Thitikul finished in 14th place on six-under-par.
