Swiss star leads Joburg Ladies Open

Stimpmeter · April 20, 2024, 5:00pm

Switzerland’s Chiara Tamburlini will take a six-shot lead into Sunday’s final round of the Joburg Ladies Open after one of the newest stars in European women’s golf seized control of this Sunshine Ladies Tour and Ladies European Tour event at Modderfontein Golf Club. MICHAEL VLISMAS reports.

Tamburlini went into Saturday’s third round just one shot off the lead of South Africa’s Nadia van der Westhuizen. But as Van Der Westhuizen struggled to make anything happen in her round of 77, the Swiss star surged ahead with a bogey-free round of six-under-par 67 to lead the field on 14 under par.

Her nearest challenger is Thailand’s Aunchisa Utama on eight under par following a third round of 71, while Spain’s Luna Sobron Galmes (68) and Czechoslovakia’s Tereza Melecka (71) are tied third on seven under par.

Van der Westhuizen and Nicole Garcia (71) are the leading South Africans on five under par.

Tamburlini only turned professional last August but has already won twice on the LET Access Tour, the development tour for the Ladies European Tour, and showed remarkable composure in Saturday’s third round despite admitting she was nervous.

“It feels amazing,” she said. “I was really nervous before the round. I texted my sister on the driving range and told her how nervous I was, and she told me to just chill. But as soon as I hit the first tee shot I felt really calm. I played really solid from start to finish and I’m really excited to go into the final round with a six-shot lead.”

Tamburlini’s growing knowledge of the Modderfontein Golf Club layout combined with a few more forgiving flag placements certainly helped her on Saturday.

“I’m getting used to the golf course now. It’s a really tricky golf course and you need to be smart off the tee. The fairways are narrow and you need to place yourself well to have shot into the green. The greens are also quite fast. But the pin placements were definitely easier today and it felt like you had a bit more room for error around the greens.”

With a commanding lead, the 24-year-old Tamburlini is taking nothing for granted as she chases a first Sunshine Ladies Tour and Ladies European Tour title on Sunday.

“The main thing for me is to just keep pushing. A six-shot lead is quite the buffer but you can never get comfortable. You never know, somebody could go eight or nine shots deep on the final day. So I’ll set my own personal goals to ensure I keep pushing and go low again on the final day.”

Photo: Troy Winfield/Sunshine Ladies Tour

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