Carlota Ciganda from Navarre has once again enhanced her reputation, and by extension Spanish golf, by defeating Sweden's Anna Nordqvist 4/3 in the grand final of the prestigious British Ladies Amateur, held at the Alwoodley Golf Club near Leeds, a course celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

Carlota Ciganda and her rival offered a sensational spectacle in a duel that represents the fourth triumph of a Spanish woman in this important competition after the successes achieved by Marta Prieto from Seville in 2001, Elisa Serramiá from Barcelona in 2003 and Belén Mozo from Cadiz twelve months ago.

This second consecutive Spanish victory in the British Ladies Amateur contrasts with the second consecutive defeat of Sweden's Anna Nordqvist in the final of this tournament, who, like now against Carlota Ciganda, lost last year to Belén Mozo.

On this occasion, the decisive duel unfolded with remarkable intensity, drawing praise for both contenders from the numerous coaches and fans present at Alwoodley. Despite the comfortable final score and Carlota Ciganda finishing the 15 holes at 5 under par, the Navarrese golfer didn't display her golfing dominance until the halfway point of the final, facing a barrage of impressive play from the Swede in the first part of the match.

Not surprisingly, Anna Nordqvist was the first to take the lead, making her intentions clear by winning the first hole with a birdie putt from 4 meters. The player from Navarre, with her characteristic energy, responded on the next hole with a similar shot from 3 meters that immediately leveled the score, although the Nordic player came back strong with two great shots on holes 6 and 8 which, unfortunately for her, were immediately countered by outstanding plays from Carlota Ciganda.

That ninth hole won by the Spanish golfer, which leveled the score, proved to be the turning point of the final. From then on, Carlota Ciganda became a force of nature, especially with her pinpoint putting, outplaying her opponent on holes 10, 12, 13, and 15 without the Swede having the slightest chance to mount a comeback.

As a curious note, it should be highlighted that the Navarrese player scored the 10th hole with a bogey and the 13th hole with a spectacular putt from 9 meters, an action that practically broke Anna Nordqvist's resistance.

“This is all very exciting. I couldn’t have imagined at the beginning of the week that I was going to win,” summarized a smiling Carlota Ciganda, who had just turned 17, at the end of the match. During the week, she had been the best in the preliminary rounds before bravely eliminating each and every one of her qualified rivals on her way to this new title, which marks her impressive sporting career: Spanish Champion in all categories, European Under-16 and Senior Champion – this title achieved at only 14 years old –, several gold medals in European Team Championships, and now the British Ladies Amateur…

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Carlota Ciganda (SPAIN) beats Anna Nordqvist (Sweden) by 4/3