Beth Coulter has hit the ground running in her weeks’ old professional career: just a week after winning on her LET Access Tour debut in the Irish Challenge, the 22-year-old Co Down golfer followed up with a runners-up finish after a playoff to Sweden’s Moa Svedenskiold in the CSK Steel Women’s Open at Himmerland in Denmark.
Svedenskiold shot a 69 in difficult weather conditions to post a 54-hole total of five-over 221 where she was joined by Coulter, who had a 75, and Germany’s Lena Geier, who also closed with a 75, but the three-way playoff proved controversial.
Geier exited on the first playoff hole and the controversy came on the second hole of sudden death where Svedenskiold thought she had won after making par from getting up and down from thick rough beside the greenside bunker, while Coulter missed her par putt.
Coulter proceeded to pick up her ball, thinking the playoff was over, but Svedenskiold was then informed by a rules official that she had been assessed a two-stroke penalty for unlawfully building a stance in the bunker, which meant she made double bogey.
But because Coulter did not finish out, she was assessed a one-stroke penalty and was made to replace her ball on the green before also tapping in for double bogey. Svedenskiold would ultimately prevail at the fourth playoff hole to secure her second LET Access win of the season, moving to number one on the order of merit.
After just two outings as a professional, Coulter’s 1-2 finish in successive weeks has seen the former Arizona State player move to fifth in the updated order of merit. The leading seven players off the points ranking at the end of the season earn full LET cards for next season.
In the PIF London tournament at the Centurion club on the LET, Áíne Donegan remained very much in contention for a breakthrough win in her rookie season.
Donegan posted a second round 69 to follow her opening 70 for a midway total of seven-under par 139 in tied-fourth, four shots adrift of Canadian teenager Anna Huang.
Huang, a three-time winner on the LET, carded a 68 for 135 to be one stroke clear of Europe Solheim Cup player Charley Hull who shot a sensational course record 62 to propel herself up the leaderboard.
“I got in Tuesday, I had one of my best friends get married on Monday, so I couldn’t miss that,” said Donegan, who has veteran caddie Harry Ewing on the bag for the first time. “I flew in early Tuesday and played 18 and nine on Wednesday and then the last two days have been good. They’ve been far from perfect. I finally have the putter rolling which has been nice. It’s been a while since it’s been hot, so I’ve worked really hard the last month and a half. I had a pretty quiet July, so it’s nice to see some hard work being rewarded.”