Medalist at 86th Helen Holm Scottish Championship

I’m home after an amazing experience at Royal Troon, Scotland. I decided to play in the event as it was my last tournament as an amateur golfer, and I wanted to play true links golf before turning pro. No better place to do it than Scotland and in tournament play where the pressure is on. My mom came with me for this tournament and we flew into Glasgow and drove down to Prestwick where we stayed during the week, only 10 minutes from the courses. The tournament was 3 rounds, 2 at Royal Troon Portland Course and the final round at the Old Course.

I got off to a good start during the first round and was -1 through the first 4 and very difficult holes. My long game and approach shots were very solid and I gave myself many looks for birdies but very few fell. I wrapped up the round with two birdies on the last two holes to finish -3 (69) and leading the tournament by one going into the second round.

The second round was a mental battle for me. Instead of the good start from the first day, I was now +4 after 4… The wind picked up and we couldn’t reach the greens, and someone seemed to have put a lid over the hole on my par putts. Frustrated with the start, I started to swing and play more freely and went on a long par streak. Similarly to the first day, I birdied the final two holes to finish +3 (75) for the day and come in tied for the lead.

Going into the final round, I was simply excited to play the Old Course in windy conditions and compete for the medals. The girl I shared the lead with, Grace Crawford, came off a hot start and was -4 through 5, while I was +1. We went straight into the howling wind and I had trouble to control the face of the club. I made several up-n-down’s in a row to stay in the game. After a solid birdie on 7, I felt like I was coming back and I started to hit the ball a lot better. When we turned downwind to play 11, I got to experience the links golf in full effect… I hit my pitching wedge from 163y, normally a 7 iron, and ended up a foot from the hole. 12 became the hole where I lost the tournament after a tee shot into the bushes left. After that, I played some really solid golf all the way in and had a birdie on 16 and 18 with the entire crowd around, following us in the final group. I finished +3 (75) and third in the tournament to wrap up my amateur career.

Overall, a great tournament and such a joy to play links golf. Obviously disappointing to not win when you lead throughout the first and second round, but I’m proud of the fight and the way I played in the wind on the links courses. Scotland sure was a treat, and I hope to be back for future Scottish and British Open’s as a professional golfer.