England’s Meghan MacLaren and rookie Caley McGinty tied for second with nine under par at the Australian Women’s Classic in the Ladies European Tour.
Australia’s Kelsey Bennett took the win with a dominant 13 under par lead after heading into the final round with just a one-shot lead.
The whole field had to battle tough conditions in the final round, with just three players under-par on Sunday as the wind and rain hit the Central Coast in Australia.
“I’m just stoked to have managed to get it across the line today,” Bennett said. “My biggest and best win so far. I couldn’t be happier, to be honest.
“Caley didn’t let up, I knew I had to keep pushing and to make those two birdies back-to-back, that really helped coming in as well.
“I was a lot more nervous the whole round last week than I was today.
“I was actually really stoked when I woke up and the conditions were really tough because I knew it was going to be anyone’s.
“I knew if I hung in there well, it was mine for the taking, so that was good. But yeah, I was a little shaky over that last putt, not going to lie.”
The top three played together in the last group and the rookie, McGinty, put the pressure on early with a birdie on the first and third before Bennett responded with birdies on the third and fifth.
From there Bennett fell with three bogeys in a row on the 6th, 7th and 8th with McGinty also picking up her first bogey in 96 holes at the 6th before adding another at the 8th.
Meanwhile, MacLaren remained on par until the 6th before hitting a bogey followed by a double bogey on the 8th, and then pulling one back with a birdie on the next.
The round remained challenging with the weather conditions, but Bennett managed to score three more birdies to take the win on home soil.
McGinty’s performance moves her to the top of the Rookie of the Year standings while the three-time LET winner continued her comeback having earned her full status back at Q-School in December.
Coverage of the Ladies European Tour continues on Thursday March 12 live on Sky Sports as the third of four sanction events with the WPGA Tour of Australasia takes place in Adelaide.
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