The charge of 16-year-old Irish twins Leona and Lisa Maguire to carve up all the major titles of women’s amateur golf this season stalled in spectacular fashion at Royal Troon as favourite Leona gifted the Helen Holm Scottish Strokeplay Championship to England internationalist Charlotte Ellis on the final green.
A three-putt on the final hole for double bogey, the second miss coming from all of two feet, meant a two-shot swing in the last of the 54 holes of the championship giving the patient Ellis, from the Minichinhampton club in the Cotswolds, her first top national title at the age of 25.
Ellis had put the pressure on with four birdies in six holes on the back nine to finish with a four-under-par 71 and a 12-under total of 213, a stroke ahead of Leona, with England’s Holly Clyburn and Scot Louise Kenney tied on third three shots further back at eight under.
Pitreavie’s Kenney, again in position to win her first national crown at one off the lead with 18 to play, had to settle for a par round of 75 after a key double bogey on the third hole left her struggling to challenge the two leaders, and there was also disappointment for the championship’s surprise package, 16-year-old Jessica Meek from Carnoustie Ladies, who was fourth going into the final round but slipped to a nine-over 84.
Meek’s outstanding weekend had a rather cruel final chapter, as she suffered around the infamous Royal Troon turn, shedding eight strokes from the sixth to the 11th to drop out of contention, and eventually finishing in a tie for 24th.
However the biggest shock was the drama on the final hole, when Leona Maguire, winner of the Portuguese Open title already this year the twins have won the three top titles competed for during this season so far lost the prestigious Scottish title after leading from the start up until the final green.
With a stroke advantage on Ellis up the last, Leona seemed to be in control despite missing the green left when she chipped up to six feet, and with Ellis missing her 18-foot chance for birdie needed only to hole out to win. However she blew the first putt two feet by the hole and, clearly rattled, also misjudged the return putt meaning that Ellis’s earlier tap-in had been for the win.
For Kenney it was third place for the second year in succession, while another Scottish cap, Kilmacolm’s Eilidh Briggs, shot the equal best round of the day on the Open Championship course with a five-under-par 70 to finish in outright fifth just a couple of days before her 18th birthday. Carnoustie’s Ailsa Summers shot a par 75 to finish on an eight-over total of 233.
Leading final totals (par 75):213 C Ellis (Minchinhampton) 73 69 71.214 L Maguire (Slieve Russell) 69 72 73217 H Clyburn (Woodhall Spa) 74 73 70, L Kenney (Pitreavie) 71 71 75219 E Briggs (Kilmacolm) 75 74 70.220 P Pretswell (Bothwell Castle) 73 76 71, L Ball (Matfen Hall) 72 73 75, R Goodall (Heswall) 72 73 75.221 E Brown (Malton and Norton) 72 77 72, M Maclaren (Wellingborough) 74 74 73.Selected others:222 J Turner (Craigielaw) 75 75 72.223 L Maguire (Slieve Russell) 73 72 78.226 K MacDonald (Nairn Dunbar) 73 75 78.227 J Meek (Carnoustie Ladies) 72 71 84.233 A Summers (Carnoustie Ladies).234 L Whyte (St Regulus) 77 79 78.239 R Wilson (Grange) 79 79 81.