Carlota Ciganda clinches title, Aditi Ashok secures top ten in Open de Espana

Carlota Ciganda produced a stellar 67 in the final round to secure a four-stroke victory. Aditi Ashok shot 70 to finish T9

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Carlota Ciganda - LET Image

28 November 2021: Carlota Ciganda became the second Spanish player to win the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España as she recorded a four-shot victory. Aditi Ashok shot a resolute 70 with four birdies to end the week at 2-under 286, good for T9 in the season ending tournament of the Ladies European Tour.

Tvesa Malik ended a great season on the LET with a battling 74 to finish in T43. It may not have been her best effort or desired result over the week, but Tvesa can be proud of showing that she belongs in Europe with a series of good results throughout the year.

Aditi Ashok - LET Image
Aditi Ashok – LET Image

Ciganda produced a final round of 67 (-5) to give her a winning total of 15-under-par for the tournament and she joined Azahara Munoz in winning her national championship.

Ciganda, who held a three-shot lead coming into the final day, had an excellent front nine at Los Naranjos Golf Club with two birdies and an eagle to make the turn in 32 (-4).

The 31-year-old remained calm and collected on the back nine and finished with a flourish rolling in a birdie on the 18th to win her fifth LET title and first since the 2019 Estrella Damm Mediterranean Ladies Open.

“I’m very happy, it’s a tournament that I really wanted to win. I love Spain and to win your country’s tournament is something very special so I’m happy with the way I played,” said Ciganda.

“To shoot two bogey-free rounds round here is great golfing, it was quite tough in the back nine with the wind, so I was pleased with how I played all week.

“I was trying to go as low as I could, I wasn’t trying to focus on the others I was trying to do my own thing and make as many birdies as I could. I think I followed my strategy, and my caddie did a great job – I think he did really good – so I’m happy with no mistakes.”

After finishing in the top ten in her last seven appearances in the tournament, it meant a lot for Ciganda to secure the victory in front of her home fans.

She added: “It’s hard to explain, I get emotional because I love Spain and I love my family, so it’s just amazing to win this week.”

Tvesa Malik - LET Image
Tvesa Malik – LET Image

Four shots behind Ciganda in second place was Sweden’s Maja Stark who posted a bogey-free final round of 66 (-6) to finish on 11-under-par.

Stark started the week with a round of 74 but got to know the course better each day posting rounds of 68 and 69 before her 66 on Sunday.

“I enjoyed the week apart from my first round and my first hole on Saturday, I think Spain is my favourite place to play,” said the 21-year-old, who won the Estrella Damm Ladies Open presented by Catalunya in October.

“Coming so close to the top five (in the Race to Costa Del Sol) stings a little bit, that was my goal for the week – I knew I had to win and nothing else was on my mind. It was close but Carlota played great so you can’t be unhappy with it, I’ll just try again next year.

“I knew what I had to do but I didn’t’ go the whole way, but not making any bogeys on the final day of a tournament when you’re going for every pin, I think is still pretty good.”

2021 Race to Costa del Sol champion Atthaya Thitikul finished in third place, three shots behind Stark on eight-under-par after a final round of 71 (-1).

The 18-year-old began her round with a bogey, before rolling three birdies on the rest of the front nine.

Another birdie on 14 put the Thai talent within four shots but she soon found the water at 15 and came away with a double bogey to put an end to her title hopes.

“I felt really good this week, I hit some pretty good shots out there but just missed a couple of putts, Carlota played really well though, so she deserves the trophy,” said Thitikul.

“It’s been a rollercoaster this year, I feel really great and honoured to be the Race to Costa Del Sol number one, as it’s my rookie year as well, it’s been a great year for me on the LET.

“All the LET staff, all the players have been really nice, and I’m so happy to do what I love, and I have loved to be able to be a part of the Ladies European Tour this year.”

Spain’s Fatima Fernandez Cano ended the tournament in fourth place on seven-under-par after shooting a 69 (-3) on day four.

While compatriot Nuria Iturrioz produced the round of the day carding a seven-under-par 65 to propel her up the leaderboard. The three-time LET winner made an eagle on the second before adding a birdie on the seventh, she then rolled in four birdies in a row on hole 10 through 13.

Although Iturrioz dropped a shot on 15, the Spaniard finished in style with a birdie at the last to be tied for fifth alongside Australia’s Stephanie Kyriacou on five-under-par for the tournament.

Finland’s Ursula Wikstrom was seventh on four-under-par with Sweden’s Jessica Karlsson in eighth, while Belgian Manon De Roey and India’s Aditi Ashok were tied for ninth place on two-under-par.

In the 2021 Race to Costa del Sol, Thitikul ends the year as number one with 3,591.96 points to her name and Slovenia’s Pia Babnik is second with 1.953.89.

Kyriacou moves up to third place thanks to her finish in Spain with Sanna Nuutinen fourth, Olivia Cowan fifth, Stark sixth and Ciganda jumps up to 14th because of her win.

THITIKUL STORMS TO RACE TO COSTA DEL SOL TITLE

Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul capped an impressive first season with third place in the Ladies European Tour’s season finale – the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España – to win the 2021 Race to Costa del Sol by 1,638.07 points.

Atthaya_Thitikul_LET_Image
Atthaya_Thitikul_LET_Image

In what has been a remarkable first season on Tour, the 18-year-old had a stellar record on the golf course only finishing outside the top six in individual events on three occasions.

Following in the footsteps of Dame Laura Davies, Carlota Ciganda and Esther Henseleit – the Thai talent becomes the fourth player to win both the Race to Costa del Sol and Rookie of the Year titles in the same season.

Thitikul also became the youngest winner of the accolade surpassing Charley Hull’s previous record and was delighted to be able to play in the Costa del Sol region last week.

“It is a pleasure to have been able to play in the Costa del Sol region this week as the 2021 Race to Costa del Sol champion. It means the world to me,” said the teenager.

“I am honoured to have won this title in my first full season on the Ladies European Tour and I would like to thank the Costa del Sol Tourist Board for their support.”

The rising star clinched the Race to Costa del Sol crown off the back of her second-place finish at the Aramco Saudi Ladies International but added more points to her tally with a T6 finish at the Aramco Team Series – Jeddah and third place in Spain last week to finish with a total of 3,591.96 points.

The 18-year-old has amassed two further LET titles this year winning at the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open and VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open, adding to the two titles at the Ladies European Thailand Championship in 2017 and 2019 that she won while still an amateur.

And after not being on Tour in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Thitikul is delighted with the year she has had.

“It has been a rollercoaster of a year because I didn’t play in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. All the hard work I put in last year has paid off,” said Thitikul.

“At the beginning of the year, I was scared to see what the conditions were going to be on the golf courses and how the grass plays and if I was going to be able to handle it. My coach told me to have the confidence in yourself when you’re out there. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose and sometimes you learn from it.”

One particular highlight for the young star, who has risen from 308 to 22 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, was her T2 finish at the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open.

She continued: “I’m really proud of myself for the second-place finish on a links course in Scotland, while my wins in Switzerland and Czech were similar conditions to Thailand.”

With her first full LET season complete, the teenager now heads to the United States to the final stage of LPGA Q-Series where she will try to secure her LPGA Tour card.

And despite having added to her already impressive accolades this year, Thitikul believes this just is the beginning and she is striving to keep improving.