Second title for Nilsson

Sweden’s Emma Nilsson claimed her second Ladies European Tour Access Series (LETAS) title of the season at the Ladies Norwegian Challenge, with a winning total of three-under-par, after the event was shortened to 36 holes due to heavy rain.

After a week of adverse weather, conditions were tough for the final round on Thursday, with the additional morning rain making Oslo’s Losby golf course play much longer than usual, with little to no run on the fairways.

It was an exciting final round as Norwegian amateur Tonje Daffinrud and LETAS order of merit leader Isabella Ramsay both challenged the leader before Norway’s Rachel Margrethe Raastad came through the field with three birdies in her last five holes for a final round 70 to end in second place on one-under-par.

Nilsson, from Solvesborgs Golfklubb, shot a final round of 72, containing three birdies, a bogey and a double. She started well with a birdie on the fifth, where she played an approach shot to within 50cm of the hole using a pitching wedge.  Missing the seventh fairway with her driver resulted in a double bogey, but the young Swede recovered with a birdie on the par-4 ninth, where she played another excellent approach shot and made the turn in 35 strokes, with a level par front nine.

She bogeyed the 10th hole but saved her best until last by making a birdie putt of 12 metres for a level par round of 72 and a two shot victory.

“It was really fun and I’m very pleased, especially after winning the Pilsen Golf Challenge in July,” said Nilsson. “I played the course when I was 12 in the Junior Cup between Sweden and Norway which was my first big tournament so I have really good memories here.”

Nilsson has been a consistent performer this season, not finishing outside the top 30 in her seven starts on LETAS. A win at the recent Pilsen Golf Challenge propelled the young Swede into the top five of the LETAS Order of Merit, a position she has further cemented with her win in Norway.

Ramsay and Caroline Rominger of Switzerland tied for third on level par, while Spanish amateur Marta Sanz Barrio continued her impressive form by finishing in solo fifth place a week after her maiden win on the tour.

Collated final scores:

141 - Emma Nilsson (SWE) 69 72

143 - Rachel Raastad (NOR) 73 70

144 - Caroline Rominger (SWI) 72 72, Isabella Ramsay (SWE) 71 73

145 - Marta Sanz Barrio (ESP) 75 70

146 - Vittoria Valvassori (ITA) 75 71

147 - Johanna Gustavsson (SWE) 73 74

148 - Valdis Thora Jonsdottir (ISL) 74 74, Daisy Nielsen (DNK) 75 73, Julie Tvede (DNK) 74 74, Caroline Martens (NOR) 72 76

149 - Tonje Daffinrud (NOR) 72 77, Sofia Ljungqvist (SWE) 74 75, Nina Muehl (AUT) 76 73, Georgia Hall (ENG) 75 74

150 - Gemma Webster (SCO) 76 74, Amber Ratcliffe (ENG) 75 75

151 - Mariell Bruun (NOR) 72 79, Kiran Matharu (ENG) 76 75, Sanna Nuutinen (FIN) 77 74, Lina Boqvist (SWE) 79 72, Isabell Gabsa (GER) 75 76

152 - Antonella Cvitan (SWE) 76 76, Cecilie Lundgreen (NOR) 76 76

153 - Jane Turner (SCO) 77 76, Astrid Vayson De Pradenne (FRA) 76 77, Lien Willems (BEL) 77 76, Annika Nykanen (FIN) 72 81, Natalie Wille (SWE) 75 78, Kym Larratt (ENG) 76 77, Jessica Karlsson (SWE) 74 79, Amanda Mattsson (SWE) 74 79

154 - Laure Sibille (FRA) 77 77, Franziska Friedrich (GER) 82 72, Carmen Alonso (ESP) 78 76, Anna Dahlberg Soderstrom (SWE) 76 78

155 - Maria Beautell (ESP) 81 74, Viva Schlasberg (SWE) 74 81, Lisa Anderson (SWE) 80 75

156 - Melanie Maetzler (SWI) 82 74, Sofia Berglund (SWE) 80 76, Anna Rossi (ITA) 77 79

157 - Anjelika Hammar (SWE) 79 78, Patricia Lobato Moreno (ESP) 77 80, Emma Tayler (ENG) 77 80, Katy Mcnicoll (SCO) 76 81, Emma Westin (SWE) 81 76, Anna Christina Kindgren (COL) 77 80, Jess Wilcox (ENG) 80 77, Lynn Carlsson (SWE) 78 79

158 - Sara Ardstrom (SWE) 76 82, Lina Elmsater (SWE) 79 79, Maria Palacios (ESP) 79 79, JI-HYUN Suh (ENG) 79 79, Sara Djos (SWE) 80 78, Rachel Drummond (ENG) 78 80

159 - Laura Murray (SCO) 75 84, Elina Bergvall (SWE) 81 78, Tracey Boyes (ENG) 78 81

160 - Elisabetta Bertini (ITA) 76 84, Linda Henriksson (FIN) 85 75, Galina Rotmistrova (RUS) 80 80, Olivia Dose (SWE) 75 85, Michelle Thomson (SCO) 79 81, Rebecca Green (AUS) 82 78

161 - Lauren Blease (ENG) 79 82, Sofia Bjorkman (SWE) 82 79, Leena Makkonen (FIN) 79 82

162 - Dorthea Forbrigd (NOR) 83 79

163 - Anna Svenstrup (SWE) 83 80, Christine Wolf (AUT) 83 80

164 - Maria Tulley (ENG) 78 86, Therese Nerpin (SWE) 81 83, Charlotte Ellis (ENG) 77 87, Marian De Miguel (ESP) 81 83

165 - Alexandra Alang (SWE) 78 87

166 - Madeleine Ziegert (SWE) 85 81

167 - Veslemoy Heramb (NOR) 85 82, Josefin Odenring (SWE) 81 86, Sandra Carlborg (SWE) 86 81, Guro Rambjoer (NOR) 81 86

168 - Sara Larsson (SWE) 83 85

169 - Diana Vazquez Paredes (ESP) 84 85

170 - Julie Loennechen (NOR) 84 86

RTD - Erika Holmen (SWE)