Photo: Amanda Linnér (right) and Beatrice Wallin (left)
Sweden’s Amanda Linnér has moved into the top spot in the race to earn a place in the European team at this year’s PING Junior Solheim Cup, at Des Moines Golf & Country Club, Iowa, United States, which will be played on the 15th and 16th August.
The 16 year-old finished tied 15th in the stroke play qualifying event of the French International Ladies Junior Championship, at St. Cloud, France, and, after beating France’s Alizee Vidal, Spain’s Paula Neira Garcia, England’s Lianna Bailey, and Denmark’s Puk Lyng Thompsen, she met fellow Swede Beatrice Wallin in the final. Amanda and Beatrice both play for Hills GC, outside Gothenburg, Sweden, and are regular players in the Swedish Girls National Team.
The match was played over 36 holes and contested in tough, windy conditions, with Amanda winning 6&5 and being crowned the Champion. She now heads into the fourth counting event on 94.5 points, 1.5 points ahead of yet another fellow Swede, Frida Kinhult. Full leader board below.
| Po. | Name | Country | Points |
| 1 | Amanda Linnér | Sweden | 94.5 |
| 2 | Frida Kinhult | Sweden | 93.0 |
| 3 | Letizia Bagnoli | Italy | 87.5 |
| 4 | Beatrice Wallin | Sweden | 78.0 |
| 5 | Alessia Nobilio | Italy | 50.0 |
| 6 | Julia Engström | Sweden | 40.5 |
| 7 | Line Toft Hansen | Denmark | 40.0 |
| 8 | Carolina Caminoli | Italy | 38.0 |
| 9 | Mathilde Claisse | France | 31.0 |
| 10 | Sara Kouskova | Czech Republic | 24.5 |
| 11 | Linn Grant | Sweden | 23.5 |
| 12 | Maja Stark | Sweden | 21.5 |
| 13 | Emma Spitz | Austria | 21.0 |
| 14 | Alexandra Försterling | Germany | 20.5 |
| 15 | Karoline Lund | Norway | 20.0 |
| 16 | Samantha Fuller | England | 18.0 |
| 17 | Esther Henseleit | Germany | 15.5 |
| 18 | Alessandra Fanali | Italy | 15.0 |
| T19 | Pauline Roussin-Bouchard | France | 13.0 |
| T19 | Chiara Tamburlini | Switzerland | 13.0 |
| 21 | Annabel Wilson | Ireland | 10.5 |
| T22 | Agathe Laisne | France | 10.0 |
| T22 | Mairead Martin | Ireland | 10.0 |
| T24 | Dana-Helga Puyol Robert | Spain | 8.0 |
| T24 | Annabel Fuller | England | 8.0 |
| T24 | Emilie Paltrinieri | Italy | 8.0 |
| 27 | Teresa Diez Moliner | Spain | 7.5 |
| 28 | Aline Krauter | Germany | 7.0 |
| T29 | Sofie Kibsgaard Nielsen | Denmark | 5.0 |
| T29 | Anna Zanusso | Italy | 5.0 |
| T29 | Paula Neira Garcia | Spain | 5.0 |
| 32 | Elena Arlas Quiros | Spain | 3.0 |
| 33 | Alizee Vidal | France | 2.5 |
The next counting event is the Helen Holmes Scottish Women’s Open Championship, at Troon GC, Scotland (April 21-23), followed by the German Girls’ Open, at GC St. Leon-Rot, Germany (June 1-3), the Ladies’ British Open Amateur Championship, at Pale & Kenfig CC, Wales (June 13-17), and the ANNIKA Invitational Europe, at Halmstad GK, Sweden (June 20-22).
The qualifying season will come to a close with the European Girls’ Team Championship, at St Laurence GC, Finland (July 11-15), and the European Ladies’ Team Championship, back at Montado Golf Resort (July 11-15).
To qualify for the European team, participants must be girls aged 12-18 years old (born 1999, or later), whom have not reached their 18th birthdays prior to January 1st, 2017. Prospective team members must be amateurs and cannot be members of a competitive collegiate golf programme. In addition, they must also be European citizens.
The 2017 event in Des Moines, Iowa, on August 15th-16th, marks the ninth time the European PING Junior Solheim Cup team will battle against the US Team, which currently leads the series five wins, two losses and one tie.
For more information about the PING Junior Solheim Cup, please visit www.solheimcupeurope.com or contact [email protected].
