Gabi Ruffels en route to a third round lead – image Mark Runnacles LET

Australia will stage a three-pronged bid for victory in tomorrow’s final round of the Amundi Evian Championship, with Victorian Gabi Ruffels tied in the lead with England’s Cara Gainer, but Perth’s Minjee Lee and Sydney’s Grace Kim just one off the pace.

Ruffels, a former winner and runner-up in the US Women’s Amateur Championship and now in her second season on the LPGA Tour, added a third round of 66 at Evian-les-Bains in France to join Gainer in the lead after the Englishwoman had earlier recorded a round of 64 to take the clubhouse lead.

Ruffel’s effort was made even more meritorious considering she started her round with a bogey at the first. Still, she would go on to add six birdies and she heads into tomorrow’s final round, not only chasing a first major title but a first LPGA title.

“Yeah, it was good,” said Ruffels. “Super solid. Started off with a bogey, but was able to kind of bounce back on No. 2.

“Then had I think six birdies from then on in. Putter was really good today. Made some about putts inside 15 feet and, yeah, was just super solid tee to green.

“I’m having so much fun. This is what you practice for, what you play for. I’ve been working so hard, and it’s great to see the hard work pay off. This is the position you want to be in. Yeah, for sure looking forward to tomorrow.”

The big threat to all in or near the lead however would appear to be Minjee Lee, who was also round in 66 to be just one behind as she chases a 4^th major title and her second in succession, having won the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship last month.

“I think after yesterday, I felt really proud of myself for fighting back after the start I had,” said Lee. “I just, I don’t know, I was like, I cannot end the round like this, so I just really fought back.

“I don’t know. I just felt like a good round today would put me in a pretty decent position come Sunday and I think I’ve done a pretty good job of that.”

When asked if her past experience here as a winner of the event and having made her professional debut in this event will help tomorrow, Lee responded;

“Yeah, definitely. I think just knowing the course. I mean, I’ve played it quite a few times now, so have quite a lot of rounds and been in a lot of different places.

I pretty much know what everything is going to do, so I think that helps like better places to put it or if you do miss it in a certain spot how to get up and down or how to use the contours of the greens.

“Yeah, I definitely think I have — I mean, yeah, not an advantage, but I definitely know where things are going, yeah.”

Grace Kim began the day with a share of the lead but her round of 70 left her just one behind and still in a great position to take advantage of what has been an impressive week to date.

Kim has been playing with a what would seem to be a cold of sorts but despite a frustrating day in many respects, a birdie at the last has kept her hopes of a first major and a second LPGA Tour title alive.

Eleven players, however, are within three shots of the lead and while the chances of an Australian victory look encouraging, there are many others who could make a bid for the 4^th major of the year.

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Gabi Ruffels in action on day one – image Mark Runnacles Ladies European Tour 

Several Australians have made a good start to the Amundi Evian Masters in France, three of the ten in the field, inside the top six after day one.

US-based Victorian Gabi Ruffels and Sydney’s Grace Kim lead the way with both golfers tied in the lead after opening rounds of 6 under 65. They share the lead with American Andrea Lee, Ireland’s Leona Maguire and American Jennifer Kupcho, Maguire’s round assisted by a hole-in-one at the 11^th hole.

Ruffels took advantage of her early start on day one to record a bogey-free round while Kim’s afternoon round was highlighted by a closing nine of 4 under 31.

Ruffels is into her second full season on the LPGA Tour after a very successful season on the Futures Tour in 2023 during which she led the Order of Merit. She finished third in the Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year title in season one on the LPGA Tour with earnings of just under US$1 million.

Ruffels is inspired by the success of other Australians such as Minjee Lee and Hannah Green in major championships and made mention of such after her round.

“I feel like we’re all pushing and inspiring each other. I think there are now over six Australian girls out here. I think for a lot of the time it was Hannah and Minjee, and I’ve always looked up to those girls.

“Seeing Minjee win last week was so cool, or a couple of weeks ago. She’s obviously a three-major champion, and she’s been great to me and great to all of us Australian girls coming up. She’s definitely a mentor to me and someone I look up to.

“Yeah, if I can follow in Hannah and Minjee’s footsteps a little bit then I would be doing pretty good.”

With her father (Ray) one of Australia’s most prominent figures in tennis and herself a fine junior tennis player, Ruffels took time out last week to attend Wimbledon.

“Yeah, so I last went when I was six so I didn’t really remember it. I wanted to go when I remembered and appreciated it. I went with my boyfriend and also we went kind of as guests of Todd Woodbridge who was a doubles champion and really good friends with my dad. My dad coached him throughout his whole career.

“So it was nice meeting up with them. He got us into the member’s only area which was so cool. It was such a cool experience. Yeah, it’s just kind of like a perspective switch as well from golf to kind of get in the tennis world. It was definitely a Bucket List thing to do and I’m glad we were able to tick that off.”

Kim has already won on the LPGA Tour, winning the Lotte Championship in Hawaii in her rookie season after an amateur career which included victory at the 2012 Australian Amateur Championship.

Kim talked about the benefits of a return to Sydney recently.

“I went home to Sydney. So that was a good reset of the mind, being able to sleep in my own bed and see my coach and family back at home.

“So I think just the mental reset halfway through the season, and obviously there is a lot more to go, so, yeah, just did that.”

The Australian challenge is further strengthened by the presence of Minjee Lee who is just one of the pace after her round of 66 which included birdies at four of her last eight holes to close within one during her morning round.

Lee is chasing her second major title in succession having won the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship last month and what would be her fourth major title having won this event four years ago, the 2022 US Women’s Open and the aforementioned KPMG.

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Adam Scott during his near miss last year – image DP World Tour 

With just over a week to go until the Open Championship at Royal Portrush, this week’s Genesis Scottish Open takes on greater significance for those looking to fine-tune their games ahead of the final major of the year, and five Australasians are taking the opportunity to do just that.

The Renaissance Club in North Berwick has played host to the event for the past six years, three of those jointly sanctioned by both the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour with players enjoying the opportunity to use the Scottish Open as an introduction to links style golf for the first time this year ahead of one of the great links courses in Northern Ireland next week.

Xander Schauffele, who won this event in 2022 and finished 15^th last year ahead of his Open Championship win, perhaps described it best as an American playing in a somewhat foreign playing environment.

“I think it’s massive across the board,” said the current world number 3. “Just hard to replicate any sort of tournament feel back home in the States where you can hit an iron, the same club, a difference of 50 to 60 yards just based on how you hit it or what kind of wind you get.

“There’s only one way to get that done, and it’s coming over here. And whether it’s hitting drivers in crosswinds or getting used to a different bounce with your wedge or trying to hit it over those big lips that you guys have over here, it’s a lot of fun to prepare that way.”

Ryan Fox heads the Australasians in terms of world ranking, the New Zealander having played this event well in previous years, although those efforts were before it moved from the nearby Gullane Golf Club.

Fox will be joined by Adam Scott, his fellow New Zealander Daniel Hillier, Elvis Smylie and PGA Tour rookie Karl Vilips. although Vilips has yet to earn a place in the field for next week.

Perhaps surprisingly, former winner of the event Min Woo Lee and Jason Day are not teeing it up ahead of the Open Championship, preferring to prepare elsewhere.

The defending champion this week is Robert McIntyre, who overcame the disappointment of a narrow loss to Rory McIlroy in 2023 to defeat Adam Scott by one shot last year.

The leading five players in the current world ranking are in the field, Scottie Scheffler looking to improve on is 3^rd place finish at the Renaissance in his last start here in 2023 while Rory McIlroy not only won in 2023 he finished 4^th last year suggesting he, too, will be a force to be reckoned with.

Tee Times 

 

Garvey in action this week – image Ladies European Tour 

New Zealand’s Amelia Garvey recorded her third, 3^rd place finish in her last four starts on the Ladies European Tour at this week’s KPMG Women’s Irish Open.

Garvey, who played collegiate golf in the US before turning professional three years ago, will move to 10^th place on the LET Order of Merit, justifying her decision to focus her attention on the LET after playing on the Futures Tour in the US until this year.

Garvey finished seven shots behind the brilliant English amateur Lottie Woad but was only one shot out of second-placed Madelene Sagstrom of Sweden.

“It’s unreal, just to have another good week after playing five weeks in a row, Garvey told the Ladies European Tour. I’m really happy to finish it off like that,” said Garvey, who has recorded four top-10 finishes in her last five events.

“The plan was to make birdies early on and try and put a good front nine up. If she had come back to the field, you never know what could have happened, but she’s played great and it’s awesome to see the world number one amateur win this event. I did a good job.

“It’s all down to my coaches back in Manchester. I put in some really good work, I decided to take Jabra off and train back there with them. I’ve been feeling great since. I’m excited to be in the Scottish now, so I will keep playing and keep it up hopefully. I knew a good week here would get me in the AIG Women’s Open and it’ll be my first one, so I’m really looking forward to it.”

Perth’s Kirsten Rudgeley was the next best of the Australasians when she tied for 5th.

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Maverick Antcliff – file photo AGM

Australasian are well represented near the top of the leaderboard at the halfway stage of the US$2 million International Series Morocco event at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam.

Queensland’s Maverick Antcliff is in outright second position and two shots from the leader Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe, but Sydney’s John Lyras and defending champion, New Zealand’s Ben Campbell, are just two shots further back in a share of 5^th with Sydney’s Kevin Yuan also in the top ten in a share of 10^th place and five shots from the lead.

Antcliff, who played collegiate golf in the US before turning professional, is a former multiple winner on the China Tour before joining the European Tour in 2020 and 2021. He is now back on the Asian Tour but in eight starts this season he has yet to record a top twenty.

The event which includes several LIV Golf League players, is one of a series of ten such events in which a pathway to the LIV Golf League is the reward for the successful leader of the Order of Merit at season’s end.

Last year, Campbell defeated, in a playoff, the man who would go on to lead the 2024 Asian Tour Order of Merit, John Catlin who this week recorded a second round of 76 after sharing the opening round lead and is now tied for 27^th.

A massive 26 players are within six shots of the lead starting the final two rounds.

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