Ayaka Furue won the Women’s Scottish Open after finishing with a brilliant 62 to set a course and tournament record; Lydia Ko and Celine Boutier started the day four shots ahead of Furue
Ayaka Furue secured the win with four birdies, including six in a row to put herself three shots ahead of Boutier.
Rookie Ayaka Furue of Japan captured her first LPGA title on Sunday after carding a course-record 10-under-par 62 in the fourth round of the Women’s Scottish Open.
Furue, 22, recorded 10 birdies – including a string of six in a row starting on the sixth hole – to claim a three-stroke win at Dundonald Links. The reigning Japan LPGA player of the year finished at 21-under 267 for the tournament and pocketed $300,000.
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“My shots and putting and all-round game was very good and when I needed to make big birdie putts, I was able to make them,” said the rookie, who had Scotsman Michael Scott as her caddy.
“With this win, it builds up a lot of confidence for me and I’m looking forward to having more big tournaments and playing at next week’s AIG Women’s Open.
“Mike is always a big help to me, and I am so happy that I was able to win in Scotland and near his hometown of Glasgow.”
Furue sank a 40-foot putt for birdie at the par-3 15th hole to take her first lead. She added birdies on her final two holes to join Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul (JTBC Classic) as the second LPGA Tour rookie to win a tournament this year.
Future also joined Thitikil, Jennifer Kupcho (Chevron Championship), Denmark’s Nanna Koerstz Madsen (Honda LPGA Thailand) and Ireland’s Leona Maguire (LPGA Drive On Championship at Crown Colony) as first-time winners.
France’s Celine Boutier (69) collected seven birdies against four bogeys on Sunday to finish in second place. She was bidding for her third LPGA victory and first since winning last year’s ShopRite LPGA Classic.
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South Korean Hyo Joo Kim (66) and Cheyenne Knight (67) finished in a tie for third place, while Alison Lee (66) and World No. 4 Lydia Ko (71) of New Zealand ended up tied for fifth, five shots back.
Defending champion Ryann O’Toole (65) finished in a tie for 15th place with China’s Xiyu Lin (70).
“I’ve been waiting for a round like this. Nine birdies, two bogeys. Can’t complain much about the round at all,” O’Toole said.
“You have to stay patient. I look at a round like Evian my second round, 5-over. I didn’t even play 5-over. It was one of those. Didn’t make any birdies. I knew that the game is there. So see where it takes me into next week.”
