GolfPlus Feb19 Digital Edition (Feb 19) | Page 45

Ladies on s w the e N b Link u l C KORDA PICKS UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF MLB Hall of Famer John Smoltz, an exceptional golfer who quali¿ ed for the 2018 U.S. Senior Open, captured the celebrity portion of the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. Despite struggling with three bogeys and a double- bogey on his inward nine, the Fox TV analyst ¿ nished at +149 and took a three-point win over fellow All-Star pitcher Mark Mulder (+146). Two-time celebrity champion Mardy Fish ¿ nished third with 140 points. “The conditions today were brutal and hard, and you had to grind, and I learned a lot from just my past year of qualifying for the Senior Open,” said Smoltz, who won his ¿ rst major competitive tournament. “That, to me, has prepared me to kind of grind out a game. I’m not even close to where I want to be, but I’m getting closer.” The celebrity competition was played with a Modi¿ ed Stableford scoring system. A double eagle earns 10 points, an ace earns eight points, an eagle earns ¿ ve points, a birdie earns three points, a par earns two points, a bogey earns one points and a double bogey or higher earns zero points. Specially commissioned tartan celebrated The 2019 Solheim Cup’s return to Scotland Solheim Cup stars Danielle Kang and Madelene Sagstrom have unveiled a specially commissioned tartan design to celebrate The 2019 Solheim Cup returning to Scotland in September 2019. The Of¿ cial Solheim Cup Tartan has been commissioned by VisitScotland and created by Lochcarron of Scotland, the world’s leading manufacturer of tartan, and comprises a blue, red, yellow and white design to mirror the colours on the À ags of Scotland, Europe and the USA. The unveiling of the tartan comes as both Team Europe and Team USA announce Abacus Sportswear and Jo¿ t respectively as of¿ cial team apparel suppliers for the 2019 match. The new tartan will be made available to both brands should they want to incorporate it into their designs, as well as featuring in a host of accessories as part of the of¿ cial merchandise programme. Alan Grant, Senior Golf Manager with VisitScotland, said: “Two things that are known around the world as being uniquely Scottish are tartan and golf so it made absolute sense to join the two together in celebration of The 2019 Solheim Cup being played in Scotland. “Gleneagles and Scotland stand ready to welcome the European and US teams in September and while we know the matches will be hotly contested, they will also be conducted in the spirit of integrity and togetherness, which is signi¿ ed by the team colours being included jointly in The Of¿ cial Solheim Cup Tartan.” Madelene and Danielle, who both made their Solheim Cup debut’s in Des Moines in 2017, were presented with tartan scarves to mark the unveiling of The Of¿ cial Solheim Cup Tartan. Nelly Korda at Four Seasons Golf and Sports Club Orlando on January 20, 2019 Charley Hull Wins Let Season Opener In Abu Dhabi England’s Charley Hull made the best possible start to 2019 when she claimed a wire-to-wire victory in the Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Open to earn her second Ladies European Tour trophy. Hull ¿ red rounds of 67, 72 and 69 in warm and windy conditions for a total of eight-under-par 208 at the spectacular Saadiyat Beach Golf Club in Abu Dhabi, ending one stroke ahead of Marianne Skarpnord. The Norwegian set the clubhouse target at seven-under-par and Hull needed a par on the last hole to seal the victory, which she delivered in style, getting up and down from a bunker behind the 18th green, with her new ¿ ancé, Ozzie Smith, watching on. Smith proposed with a diamond ring at Christmas and now the pair have another reason to celebrate, with the prospect of another season of stunning success ahead, including a potential fourth Solheim Cup appearance in Scotland in September. “I’ve practised really, really hard over the winter and it feels great to win back on the LET, especially since I had my ¿ rst pro win in Morocco ¿ ve years ago,” said Hull, the Rookie of the Year in 2013, who went on to win the Order of Merit in 2014. “Hopefully I can get a few more wins this year and I’ve been practising really hard so it shows that my hard work is paying off.” Hull received the iconic gazelle trophy from the golf course designer, Gary Player, whom she said she said she had looked up to her entire career and whom she thanked for designing “such a great course.” Skarpnord, who last won on the LET in 2013, said that her 68 for solo second was “a big step in the right direction.” But the round of the day belonged to the 2017 champion, Aditi Ashok, who signed off with a 66 to ¿ nish in tied eighth position with Jenny Haglund and Nanna Koerstz Madsen on two-under. GolfPlus FEBRUARY 2019 51