Jaffrey makes short work of title victory

CONNIE Jaffrey is the new queen of Scottish women’s amateur golf after beating Clara Young by two holes in an exciting climax to the 103rd national championship at a wet Royal Aberdeen Golf Club.

The rain, which dogged the event all week, returned for the final over the Balgownie links, but the two 20-year-olds, who are both students at American universities, became involved in an absorbing battle.

Kansas State University student Jaffrey (Troon Ladies) used a brilliant short game – single putts on the first four greens and six one-putt greens on the outward half – to surge five up at the turn, having gone out in four under par with birdies at the first, fourth, sixth and ninth.

Young (North Berwick) was not at her best and did not win a hole until the 11th, but that triggered a twounder-par run which saw her win the 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th in a magnificent fightback by the University of Missouri student which squared the match.

However, Young’s rally petered out in the wind and the rain. She bogeyed the 16th to go one down again and then was plunged into the thick and wet rough with her second shot at the 18th, moving the ball only a few feet, and eventually conceding Jaffrey a 10ft birdie putt to go down by two holes. Jaffrey was round in level par to add the Scottish women’s title to the Scottish Under-18 girls championship she won in 2013.

At the men’s Lyoness Open yesterday, Chile’s Felipe Aguilar remained on course for a wire-to-wire victory after firing a third round of 72 at Diamond Country Club.

Aguilar, who is seeking a third European Tour title, carded four birdies and four bogeys to finish nine under par and hold a two-shot lead for the third day in succession.

Austria’s Sepp Straka, who is ranked 1,181st in the world, Sweden’s Johan Carlsson and South Africa’s Dylan Frittelli share second place on seven under, with England’s Richard McEvoy, South Africa’s Jbe Kruger, Spain’s Carlos Pigem and Finland’s Mikko Korhonen on six under.

Aguilar made the ideal start with a birdie on the first, only to three-putt the second. The 42-year-old surged four clear of the field with birdies on the fourth and seventh, but bogeyed the eighth and 14th to allow Straka to get within one thanks to birdies on the 15th and 16th.

Straka’s bogey on the 17th and a two-putt birdie on the 15th allowed Aguilar to move three ahead until a bogey on the 18th set up a tense final day.

Craig Lee was leading Scot on three under par after a 68 moved him up to joint 15th, while Duncan Stewart was a shot further back after shooting 70.