Charley proves herself to be queen of the desert as she kicks off 2019 with victory
England’s Charley Hull held her nerve to yesterday claim a one-stroke victory at the Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Open in Abu Dhabi.
The 22-year-old from Kettering, the overnight leader, faced a battle with fellow English Solheim Cup player Jodi Ewart Shadoff, who dropped out of contention with two bogeys over the final three holes at Saadiyat Beach.
Hull, ranked 24 in the world, had earlier seen her slender one-stroke advantage disappear following dropped shots at the third and the par-four 10th in the warm and breezy conditions.
However, an eagle at the par-five next pulled her back and victory was secured when she chipped out of the bunker on the 18th, putting to save par and sign for a 69, eightunder-par for the tourney.
Norway’s Marianne Skarpnord took second place after a round of 68, missing a birdie chance at the last.
Shadoff, chasing a first Ladies European Tour title, moved into a share of the lead on the 14th after a run of birdies, but in the end had to settle for a five-way share of third place, five shots off the winner, following a one-over 73.
Hull, winner of the Order of Merit in 2014, was glad to have made such an impact at the start of the new campaign.
“Hopefully I can get a few more wins this year and I’ve been practising really hard. So it shows that my hard work is paying off,” the Englishwoman said. “I’m very happy with
my round. I left a lot of putts out there today, but it’s hard to putt when it’s windy like this.
“It was quite tricky on the 18th but I made the putt, so it feels really good to be back in the winner’s circle again.”
Matt Kuchar climbed to the top of the leaderboard at the halfway stage of the Sony Open in Hawaii, while Jordan Spieth missed the cut in his first competitive appearance of the year.
Starting on the back nine, Kuchar finished with a second successive sevenunder 63, opening with three straight birdies and an eagle on the 18th to go out in 30 before the turn.
The American followed up with two more birdies to move to 14-under overall and one shot clear of closest challenger Andrew Putnam, who carded a blemish-free five-under 65.
Former world No. 1 Spieth, who has slipped to 17th in the world rankings, needed four birdies on the last four holes.
However, he fell short of the cut by one shot after parring the 17th and narrowly missing an eagle putt on the last.
Scot Russell Knox carded a second-round three-under 67 to sit alongside day one leader Adam Svensson, who dropped down the leaderboard after a disappointing four-over 74.
Chez Reavie, who holed eagles on three par-fours, and Stewart Cink are tied in third on 10-under, while Englishman Luke Donald also fell below the cut line, but Ian Poulter fired a 69 for joint 65th place.