Sweden's
Sofia Gronberg Whitmore secured her second title of the 1999 Ladies European Tour
(LET) Saturday when she recovered from a disastrous start to shoot a two under
par 68 in the final round of the £100,000 Air France Madame Biarritz Open.
Gronberg,
winner of the inaugural Cantor Fitzgerald Laura Davies Invitational at Brocket
Hall in August, finished two ahead of local favourite Sandrine Mendiburu of France,
also a double champion this season, while Australian Nicola Munt finished in third
spot after posting a five under par 65.
Two
off the lead at the start of the day, Gronberg appeared to have played herself
out of contention when she followed a triple bogey at the first with another bogey
at the second. The mother-of-two lost her ball up a tree on the opening hole and
was forced to play three off the tee, while a wayward four iron accounted for
another dropped shot at the second. But from there on in Gronberg tamed the par
70 Biarritz le Phare layout with a faultless display that included six birdies
between the ninth and 15th holes.
"At
the first I was absolutely gutted when my ball disappeared up a tree and then
I got even more upset when I made a silly mistake on the second," said Gronberg
after collecting the £15,000 winner's cheque. "But I think my start might have
worked in my favour, it gave me strength and helped me to focus even more. It
was the same at Brocket Hall when I won - I think I learned from my poor start
there.
"Last
night I had dinner with the Swedish team and we were talking about determination
and whether or not we showed enough determination to win. I expressed I was here
to do well this week and thankfully I managed to show that determination today."
Gronberg's second
victory of the season keeps her in fifth place on the LET Order of Merit and moves
her into sixth spot on the European Solheim ranking. "I sat down a year ago and
made it my goal to make the team for the Solheim Cup in 2000," added Gronberg.
"With my children
and family I had to have a serious goal - the Solheim Cup is my target." Mendiburu
appeared to be coasting to her third victory of the season after opening with
seven straight pars. Even when she dropped a shot at the eighth she responded
with birdies at the ninth and 11th. But consecutive bogeys over the next two holes
saw her lose the lead to Gronberg and the 26-year-old from Bayonne was unable
to close the gap over the closing holes.
Six
birdies and a solitary bogey gave Munt her lowest round of the season and her
highest place since joining the LET in 1988, while France's Marie-Laure de Lorenzi
made a welcome return to form with a closing 69 and a share of fourth place with
Sweden's Pernilla Sterner.
A
split contact lens hampered Susan Elliott's chances of winning her first professional
title, and the 31-year-old from Bristol crashed to a disappointing 77 and a share
of ninth spot. But the overnight leader can take some consolation from securing
her highest finish as a professional.
