- German rookie fires a final round five-under-par to win by two
- Försterling jumps from 45th to 14th in the 2023 Race to Costa del Sol
Alexandra Försterling is a Ladies European Tour (LET) champion in her rookie season after firing a third consecutive round of 66 (-5) to win the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open by two shots at Golfpark Holzhäusern.
In an epic finale in Switzerland, the German went bogey-free and posted five birdies to see off a host of names and join the LET winner’s circle in her very first season on Tour.
“I can’t quite believe it,” Försterling said. “It feels so strange in a way. Obviously you always work for it, but then when it happens you can’t quite believe it.”
Starting the day two shots behind Madelene Stavnar, Försterling made a steady start making par on her first seven holes as the Norweigan leader made three bogeys in a row on the 4th, 5th, and 6th – her first three of the tournament.
With France’s Anne-Charlotte Mora, Wales’ Chloe Williams, and compatriot Sophie Witt all in the mix and sharing the lead at various points in the final round, Försterling went into attack mode birdying the 8th, 10th, and 12th holes through the turn to take the outright lead.
“I didn’t even know what was going on,” the 23-year-old said, who was aided by having her mum on the bag. “I only knew where my group was at, but obviously everybody can play great. I just tried to play my own game and try my best.
“The two girls I was playing with [Mora and Stavnar] played awesome, I think we all putted great so it was a great battle for sure.”
After Mora and Williams saw their charge squander with bogeys late in round three – the former with two on the 15th and 16th and the latter with one on the low scoring par-5 17th, it quickly looked to be a two-horse race with Witt birdying the 17th to tie the lead.
But within 10 minutes the situation took a dramatic turn, Försterling birdying the same hole in clutch style before Witt dropped a shot on her final hole to cause a crucial two-shot swing.
Two ahead of Witt playing the last, Försterling finished in style holing from 20-feet to secure a two-shot victory over Stavnar also who closed with a wonderful birdie.
“I’m probably going to take my mum out for a really nice dinner!” Försterling said, who lands her maiden title less than a year on from winning last year’s LET Q-School. “I owe everything to her and she’s the biggest supporter I have. It was awesome to have her there with me.
“It was obviously my goal to win one time, and I’ve been struggling here and there. My goal for this week was to have a good top-10 finish, but after two rounds being in contention I was hoping for more and I guess it worked out!”
With Stavnar finishing in solo second position – her best result on the LET – Witt, Mora and Williams shared third spot on 12-under par.
France’s Anne-Lise Caudal fired a sensational 65 (-6) to finish one shot further back in solo sixth.
India’s Diksha Dagar and England’s Meghan MacLaren share seventh on 10-under-par, with Spain’s Nuria Iturrioz and Finland’s Sanna Nuutinen rounding off the top-10 in a tie for ninth on nine-under-par.
In the 2023 Race to Costa del Sol, the top three players remain in the same order with Celine Boutier leading followed by Ana Peláez Trivino in second and Dagar in third, now just 15 points off her Spanish rival.
Försterling jumps to 14th from 45th upon collecting 500 points for her maiden LET victory.
