English duo make history at South American Amateur
There was an English 1-2 in the South American Amateur Championship where Gloucestershire’s Caley McGinty became the competition’s first European winner in Ecuador.
FORMAT: 72-hole stroke play
The two-time Curtis Cup player held off the challenge of national team-mate Lottie Woad (Farnham) by three shots in Quito.
The Ohio State star went top of the leaderboard thanks to a third-round 67 (-5) and held on to win by three shots.
England international John Gough triumphs in Australia
However for most of yesterday’s final round it looked like it was going to be a lot closer as the Surrey star got off to a hot start and with seven holes to go the England internationals were level pegging.
Back-to-back bogeys on 12 and 13 from Woad saw her slip back before McGinty bogeyed 16, birdied 17 and then the British Girls champion also bogeyed the last to close with a level par 72.
The champion rounded things off with a 70 to cap a superb weekend. She had been four behind halfway leader Catalina Monroy (Ecuador) and in the final reckoning only the English duo finished under par. Third-placed Vania Simont (Mexico) was six shots further back of Woad.
In the men’s event there was an Irish one-two with Liam Nolan edging out Max Kennedy by a shot.
Yorkshireman George Ash had fought back into contention thanks to a third-round 68 but, after a solid start, his hopes of a title challenge evaporated around the turn as he bogeyed seven and nine before doubling 11.
The Hallowes player, The England Amateur runner-up, would finish in 13th, a shot ahead of Welsh Men’s Open Stroke Play champion Caolan Burford.