Storming finish helps Alvarez to claim strokeplay crown
JULIANNE ALVAREZ has stormed home in the New Zealand women’s strokeplay championship at the Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club.
Tied with Wenyung Keh at the start of yesterday and with defending champion Minami Katsu of Japan within striking distance, Alvarez blew her rivals away with a blistering back nine, finishing with a sublime seven-underpar 67.
While her margin of four shots was comfortable in the end, at the start of the day it was a different story.
Wenyung Keh, who also played superb golf, took an early lead with a birdie at the fourth hole only to give it back with bogeys at the fifth and eighth.
While she played great golf on the back nine with four birdies, Alvarez was playing better and was able to race away.
On most other days, Keh’s threeunder 71 would have been good enough to win, but she came across a fired-up Alvarez in the final round.
Alvarez started things off with a birdie on the sixth hole, playing the front nine comfortably without dropping a shot. Making the turn she had a twostroke lead over Keh and Katsu, who had made a small charge to present a danger to the leaders.
Alvarez then began to turn up the heat. A birdie on the 12th was followed by an eagle on the 13th to give herself breathing space playing the last few holes.
Alvarez wasn’t in the mood to give the others a chance and went on a birdie blitz on the 16th, 17th and 18th, signing for a new course record and leaving the rest of the field in her wake.
It was Alvarez’s second major national title, adding to the New Zealand amateur title she won in 2013.
‘‘I’m very proud of myself, I went out thinking I have to play solidly and I did that all week. I had no idea it was a course record as I was treating the round very much like a match play round with Wenyung,’’ said Alvarez.
Her coach Kevin Smith coaches out of the Paraparaumu Beach club – which means that Alvarez is familiar with the course.
‘‘I enjoy the difficulty and challenge of this course and links golf. It has this extra challenge not many other courses have, it always sets up well and the greens are always good I shot seven under in the last round of the Lawn Master [Classic] but this feels like a lot better a round, so I guess you could say this is my best round ever.
‘‘My ball striking was good and I was able to put myself in good positions to make putts. On a course like Paraparaumu Beach you have to keep yourself in play and in the right position and I did.’’