The morning began with a tense atmosphere at Real Golf de Pedreña for the second round of the Santander Golf Tour. The sixteen players who qualified in Wednesday's Medal Play met early at the driving range, where a certain tension was already palpable due to the importance of the event and the format. Match Play is a well-known format in golf, where, unlike Medal Play, the key factor is winning the hole and being able to recover immediately when things go wrong.
On a course that looked immaculate, the events of the round of 16 quickly became apparent. In the first match of the day, Elena Melich from Guadalajara started nervously on the first few holes and soon found herself three down against the Dutch player Judith Van der Voort. However, in a spectacular display on the back nine, she managed to catch her opponent, eventually taking a two-up lead on the 15th and ultimately securing the victory, thus guaranteeing her place in the quarterfinals.
In the same group, María Villanueva found her rhythm early in the morning, taking a three-up lead after four holes against Raquel Romero from Catalonia. What seemed destined to be a duel with a clear winner took a surprising turn as the morning progressed, as the Catalan player managed to stay in the game and close the gap to two under. However, some missed putts ultimately led to her losing on the sixteenth hole, 3&2. The player from Gipuzkoa commented: “The truth is, I haven't been able to find my game this morning. I started well, but overall, I haven't been sharp with my irons or my putting. Luckily, I won, and this afternoon I'll have the opportunity to play better.”.
But once again, it was Marta Muñoz who stole the show this morning, demonstrating superb iron play and finding herself five points ahead of Switzerland's Clara Pietri by the ninth hole. The golfer from Ávila never gave up, and by the twelfth hole, she had already secured the victory with a seven-point lead and six holes to play. On the 12th green, Marta spoke about her iron game: “I felt great from the start. I hit some good shots with my irons, especially that last one to make birdie on the eleventh and to seal the win here on the 12th.” When asked if this would give her a boost for next week's Santander Golf Tour LETAS tournament, which will be held in her home region, she noted that “there's no match play at Naturávila, so it's like starting from scratch. In fact, the quarterfinals are this afternoon, and I have to reset.”.
In the other matches of the morning, the victory of Amaia Latorre from Álava over Germany's Lara Ok by two points also stood out, as did the impressive play displayed by Jae Bowers. Alongside them, Russia's Nina Pegova and England's Katrina Gillum and Rebecca Earl maintained the level they had shown in previous weeks to secure their places among the top eight.
With the quarter-final matchups set, Elena Melich and María Villanueva promised a thrilling encounter. After the first nine holes, the player from Gipuzkoa was just two points ahead of the player from Guadalajara, both displaying a high level of play. Elena managed to close the gap to one point behind María with a great birdie on the 10th, but María's excellent tee-to-green play proved decisive, and the match ended 3&1 for Villanueva.
In the second match of the afternoon, Marta Muñoz faced Rebecca Earl, another standout from Wednesday's round. The player from Ávila once again displayed great consistency with her irons, and despite struggling a bit more on the front nine, she dominated from the 11th hole onward with two birdies that proved decisive. Later in the afternoon, she commented: “Just like this morning, I was very sharp with my irons and I also hit my drive very straight. Obviously, playing like this gives me confidence for tomorrow, and we'll take it one step at a time.”.
Nina Pegova continued her love affair with Real Golf de Pedreña after reaching the semifinals in 2023, clearly defeating England's Katrina Gillum. She managed to gain a slight advantage over the Briton in the early holes, who appeared somewhat nervous from the start. The Russian, however, was confident in her abilities from her very first tee shot, and after a first round of 35 strokes, she ultimately secured the victory thanks to birdies on the 11th, 13th, and 14th holes, showcasing a short game that rose to the occasion.
The final match pitted Amaia Latorre against Jae Bowers. With the help of her caddie and coach, Jon Ander Sánchez, a professional golfer and manager of Izki Golf, the player from Álava quickly established a lead with the best first round of the tournament. Amaia, who had been demonstrating a high level of play for weeks despite her wrist injury, practically sealed the match after the first nine holes. With two birdies and two eagles, Latorre finished the first nine with 31 strokes, five ahead of the Englishwoman, who would ultimately succumb on the 12th hole with six holes to play. Amaia declared: “I played at a spectacular level. I didn't miss a thing, from the tee shots to the putts, everything went in. My caddie helped me a lot too, especially in reading the breaks. It's a pleasure when you play like that.”.
The winner of the event will be decided tomorrow, Friday, with two semifinals that promise plenty of excitement. Marta Muñoz will face María Villanueva, and Nina Pegova will take on Amaia Latorre. The winners of these matches will advance to the final to compete for the overall victory.
SOURCE: Santander Golf Tour
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