Estrella Damm Ladies Open Archives - Golf Digest Middle East

Aramco Team Series returns to Sotogrande, with in-form Ciganda targeting more Spanish success

Matt Smith — Mon, 15 Aug 2022 06:26:46 +0000

By Matt Smith
Carlota Ciganda is no stranger to winning in her home country of Spain of late and now she has set her sights on adding August’s Aramco Team Series — Sotogrande to her collection.

The 32-year-old claimed a wire-to-wire victory on home soil in the Ladies European Tour Estrella Damm Ladies Open outside Barcelona in July — and needed all her experience and nerve to hold off a pack including Scotland’s Laura Beveridge, Swedish pair Maja Stark and Elin Arvidsson and Argentine Magdalena Simmermacher. That followed up on her success at the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de Espana last November.

The Pamplona native burst on to the Ladies European Tour scene with a flourish as she bagged the Rookie of the Year, Player of the Year and Order of Merit titles as she made her bow in 2012 — claiming her first two titles in the Netherlands and China in the process.

Ciganda has never looked back, adding a further six top-flight crowns on the LPGA and LET series, registering five top-5 finishes in the majors, and winning the Solheim Cup three times in five appearances for Team Europe.

Now she has found her way back to the top of the podium with perfect timing ahead of a key part of the 2022 season thanks to her Estrella Damm victory just outside Barcelona, and nothing gives her more satisfaction and motivation than playing in her native Spain.

With two majors — the Amundi Evian Championship in Spain and the AIG Women’s Open in Scotland — taking place in quick succession ahead of the Sotogrande Aramco team competition back in Spain from August 18 to 20, it will be a busy time for Ciganda in Europe for the next month or so.

“I love playing in Spain,” she told Golf Digest Middle East. “It is great to get that home support, especially just now as there are quite a few events going on and I always seem to do quite well. When I won last year and even last week I had lots of family and lots of friends around me on and off the course, so it is always a lot of fun to aver that added element.

“Playing in front of them is always great and I can’t wait to be back playing at Sotogrande in the Aramco event.

“The team event is a great addition. I played last year in Saudi and it is a fun time, playing in teams over the three days. So I am excited to get there and get going.”

Tristan Jones / LET

Having been around for more than a decade now, Ciganda is thrilled to see the likes of the LET finally get the prize money and recognition she believes it has deserved for some time now, with the Aramco events and Saudi funding help boost purses and attract the top players. For example, the LPGA’s superstar sisters Nelly and Jessica Korda have signed up for Sotogrande at La Reserva Club and they will compete in Spain for the first time.

“I think that Aramco is great for women’s golf,” she said. “These five $1 million events on the LET are great for the tour and for the girls, bringing in more elite competition along the way.”

However, she insists more needs to be done.

“I would like to see more money on the LET tour. I know they have the events now, they did not have that many top-class events a couple of years ago, so if they can get some more money in to reflect that quality it would be great.

“But these five or so Aramco events are a great start in raising the standard and exposure of the women’s game.

“It is a fun format and something different, and the way we are looked after is great.”

The Aramco Team Series — Sotogrande is the third of five $1million Aramco Team Series tournaments on the LET calendar this season, following May’s Bangkok opener and June’s London event. Sotogrande will be followed by Aramco Team Series events in New York and Jeddah, all of which are played to a unique format in which three LET professionals play in teams with one amateur player.

Before all that, Ciganda will be contending at the Evian before heading to Scotland for a different challenge in the Women’s Scottish Open and the AIG Women’s Open, both played on links terrain that the Spaniard is not used to.

“I have had a few days off after winning the Estrella and now I am back practising. I am excited for the coming weeks playing in Europe as we have the Evian, which I am very excited about,” she said.

“It will be good to play the Scottish Open at Dundonald as a warm-up to the Open at Muirfield as they are both links courses. I hear Muirfield is a pretty tough course, so any preparation I can get will be good. I am excited for the challenge.”

Tristan Jones / LET

For a Spaniard more familiar with parkland courses, it certainly will be a challenge.

“I am used to playing the tree-lined courses in Europe, but obviously sometimes you have to play the links,” Ciganda added. “It is just more creative golf. You have to know how far the ball is rolling, plus all the different bounces you can get on a links course compared to the relative flat parklands. It is a fun, different challenge. We are not used to it but it is good for your game to challenge yourself on different courses and set-ups. If you are pushing yourself it can only be a good thing.”

And Ciganda is ready to put her experience to good use.

“I have 10-11 years on tour now and obviously that experience helps me,” she said. “I would say the level is going up and up and it is harder to win tournaments — on the LPGA, for sure. But I still see myself with chances and I always like to win again on the LPGA. So I just keep practising and working hard so I can get another win. That is always the goal.”

With a small Armada of Spanish stars already signed up for Sotogrande, team captain Ciganda was put on the spot when asked who she would opt for as her skipper’s pick with the likes of Nuria Iturrioz, Maria Hernandez, Carmen Alonso, Paz Marfa Sans, Elena Hualde, Elia Folch, Harang Lee, Luna Sobron Galmes, Marta Martin and Marta Perez taking part. Joining them will be Ana Peláez Triviño, the 2022 Madrid Women’s Open champion, who turned professional only a year ago at the debut Aramco Team Series — Sotogrande.

“Oh, I haven’t thought about it too much,” Ciganda confessed. “I guess I would like to play with one of the top Spanish players. It is always nice to speak the same language and have those things in common so hopefully I can get one of those girls.”

With individual and team honours to go for, regardless of whom she picks, Ciganda will be on hand to pass on her expertise and tips to the next generation.

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WATCH: Highlights of the final round of the LET Estrella Damm Ladies Open

Matt Smith — Sun, 10 Jul 2022 21:38:22 +0000

By Matt Smith
Watch the action as Carlota Ciganda clung on during a roller-coaster final round to claim the Estrella Damm Ladies Open on home soil.

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Ladies European Tour: Carlota Ciganda claims victory in roller-coaster final round at Estrella Damm Ladies Open in Spain

Matt Smith — Sun, 10 Jul 2022 20:55:59 +0000

By Matt Smith
Carlota Ciganda claimed a wire-to-wire victory on home soil in the Ladies European Tour Estrella Damm Ladies Open outside Barcelona on Sunday, but it was not without any lack of drama.

The 34-year-old from Pamplona won this event in 2019 and needed all her experience and nerve to hold of a pack including Scotland’s Laura Beveridge, Swedish pair Maja Stark and Elin Arvidsson and Argentine Magdalena Simmermacher, who was ahead in the final round at one point, despite Ciganda going into the day with a four-stroke advantage.

But the Spaniard clung on to claim a two-stroke lead from Beveridge on 18-under, with Arvidsson and Simmermacher tied for third at Club de Golf Terramar.

The five-time Solheim Cup player said afterwards: “Winning is never easy”, and she had to dig deep to hold off the chasing pack.

Simmermacher picked up shots at the first and third holes and then made a run of four straight birdies from the eighth through to the 11th to gain the outright lead after Ciganda double-bogeyed the ninth hole.

However, a three-putt bogey from Simmermacher on the long 12th hole ended her rally and from that point, Ciganda fought for every single shot and cries of “Vamos” echoed around the course.

Ciganda birdied the 12th and made a great sand save at the 13th, holing a clutch putt from 20 feet. Although she lipped out and made a bogey on 14, she closed out in some style, with an eagle on 16, a birdie on 17 and then a bogey on 18 for a final round of 70 and a 72-hole total of 270 for 18-under.

A relieved Ciganda was on cloud nine after lifting another title on home soil, having also won the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de Espana in November. She said: “I love playing here in Spain and winning here is always special. My family is here and I have lots of support. There is always extra motivation to win here and I love it. It’s great.

“Winning is never easy. I started with a birdie on the first hole, bogeyed number two and then good birdies on the par fives. I just hit a bad tee shot on nine and that cost me a double. It was a little shaky and it wasn’t easy but I’m very happy with how I handled myself. That eagle on 16 was amazing and then a birdie on the next one.

“I looked at the leaderboard on 11 and I just thought, if you do what you need to do, you are going to be fine. I didn’t look too much, but I did see on 17 that I was two or three ahead, so that was nice.”

Beveridge, who fired a 66, settled for second, a week after her tie for fourth in the Amundi German Masters.

“I’ve just really enjoyed this week from the word go,” she said. “I’ve had my husband, Keil, on the bag, and we’ve been working a lot on rhythm and how I am on the golf course, trying to be super relaxed. I think Spain is a perfect place to do that, you know, have a plate of tapas in the evening and maybe a glass of wine. I just took it easy this week.

“My putting has improved and I’m more comfortable on the golf course. Everyone takes time to find themselves and how they are as a pro and it’s just nice being me on the course. I can show emotion, react how I want to, I’m quite friendly and chatty on the golf course and it’s just accepting that that’s the way I want to play. It’s nice that I can now perform within myself.”

Simmermacher added: “I played really well all day and in the middle of the round I had a good birdie run going on. I would just step over the ball and make the putt, but then the three-putt on number 12 put me down a bit. I played good golf for the rest of the round but didn’t make the putts. I had some good saves and my brother, Santiago, was watching from outside the ropes. He said that I was still going for the pins on every hole and that’s why I had some really tough up and downs. Once I had lost the lead, I wanted to get it back, so I kept going for the pins and I ended up in the worst places possible, but I managed to save pars from a lot of places, so I’m happy.”

The post Ladies European Tour: Carlota Ciganda claims victory in roller-coaster final round at Estrella Damm Ladies Open in Spain appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

WATCH: Highlights of the Ladies European Tour Estrella Damm Ladies Open

Matt Smith — Sun, 10 Jul 2022 10:49:11 +0000

By Matt Smith
Catch up with the latest highlights from the Estrella Damm Ladies Open in Spain, where home hope Carlota Ciganda and Argentina’s Magdalena Simmermacher are fighting for the title.

Watch below

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Ladies European Tour: Carlota Ciganda maintains lead at Estrella Damm Ladies Open

Matt Smith — Sat, 09 Jul 2022 14:53:29 +0000

By Matt Smith
Spanish home hope Carlota Ciganda posted a four-under 68 on Saturday to maintain her lead on 16-under after three rounds at the Estrella Damm Ladies Open.

Aiming for a wire-to-wire victory, the 2019 tournament champion holds a four-stroke lead over Swedish pair Maja Stark and Sofie Bringner heading into the final round at Club de Golf Terramar in Sitges outside Barcelona.

The 34-year-old from Pamplona started strongly with a birdie on the first hole and carded a further three consecutive birdies from the sixth hole for a flawless outward nine of four-under-par 33. She came home in level par 35 and said: “I hit nine greens on the back and it would have been nice to have made a couple of birdies. In the end, there were no bogeys on the card again, so I’m happy. I played solidly. On 16, a par-5, I had a 6-iron in my hand and I didn’t make a birdie, but still, it was good golfing. I think I hit 16 greens today.”

Trailing Ciganda are Bringner – who shot the tournament low round of eight-under-par 64 on day three – and Stark, the LET Race to Costa del Sol leader who overturned a seven-shot deficit to win the tournament nine months ago and is fresh off a win at the Amundi German Masters last weekend.

Watch highlights below

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Ciganda said that she could not take her foot off the gas and continued: “I think Maja Stark is a great competitor and she scored five-under in the last seven holes today, so I don’t think anything is enough. Playing golf, you have to be very humble and keep playing well. I want to try and win the day tomorrow.”

Magdalena Simmermacher from Argentina, who carded a 68, sits in fourth place, followed by Laura Beveridge of Scotland in fifth on 10-under.

Sweden’s Jessica Karlsson and Spain’s Nuria Iturrioz are tied for sixth on eight-under-par, with a further five players tied for eighth place on seven-under.

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Ladies European Tour: Ciganda and Karlsson on top at Estrella Damm Ladies Open

Matt Smith — Fri, 08 Jul 2022 11:14:06 +0000

By Matt Smith
Spanish star Carlota Ciganda and last week’s Ladies European Tour runner-up Jessica Karlsson set the pace with a pair of seven-under 65s on the opening day of the Estrella Damm Ladies Open in Sitges.

Both players made strong starts in hot and breezy conditions at Club de Golf Terramar to lead by three strokes over six other players.

Ciganda, from the city of Pamplona, where the Running of the Bulls resumed for the first time since 2019 on Thursday as part of the San Fermín Festival, won this tournament three years ago and the Spaniard will be looking to make a similar charge over the next three days in front of her home gallery.

She birdied her first three holes, the 11th, 12th and 13th, on Thursday morning, before picking up another birdie on the long 16th hole. After carding a pair of bogeys in the middle of her round, she recovered a stroke at the third and then finished with four birdies in her last five holes to lay down the marker.

“A birdie-birdie finish always feels good,” said the Solheim Cup star, who won the tournament at the same venue in 2019.

“I’m very happy. I love being in Spain. I love Sitges and it is just a comfortable atmosphere. I have my family here, so once I’m done, I don’t really think much about golf. I can have a good time and eat good food and I enjoy that. It’s always nice to come back to Europe, play in Spain and have a good time.”

Jessica Karlsson in action at the Estrella Damm Ladies Open. LET

Karlsson also started from the 11th and quickly eagled the 12th, where she hit her driver from the tee and then used a hybrid to hit her ball to within two metres of the flag before rolling in the putt. The Swede bogeyed the 15th, but then birdied the 18th.

She holed long birdie putts on the second and third holes, from 15 and 20 metres respectively, before picking up further shots at the fourth, sixth and eighth holes.

“I holed a lot of long putts today,” said Karlsson, who opened last week’s Amundi German Masters with a 63 and held the lead for three rounds, before dropping shots at the last two holes to lose by a stroke to Maja Stark.

“It’s a nice feeling to know that I can score low. I’ve been a little disappointed for the last couple of days, but I’ve tried to forget that and focus on this week.”

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