Andalucia Costa del Sol, Spanish Open 2023

Aditi Ashok, champion of the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España

The winners of the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España 2023 was Aditi Ashok from India. Aditi Ashok achieved the feat based patience. Her scorecard was 69, 68, 68 and 66 which more than neutralized the fierce competition of the Dutch Anne Van Dam and the Spanish Ana Pelaez.

25 year old Aditi Ashok has added her fifth victory in the Ladies European Tour, the second of the season after the tournament in Kenya at the beginning of February. This was a triumphant start and end of the year that makes her a player with future potential.

 

Kirsten Rudgeley had maintained provisional leader until the 8th hole, when the Dutch Anne Van Dam took over after accumulating her second consecutive birdie. The leader board soon generated interest, with five players tied to a single stroke of the Australian. Ana Pelaez from Spain also joined the group, whose brilliant first round allowed her to equal the lead of the three player in the final match.

Anne Van Dam then scored two birdies on holes 10 and 12 and she lead alone two strokes ahead of Ana Pelaez and perhaps a feeling that she was on her way to her third victory in a Spanish Open as in 2018 and 2019. However the resistance of the Indian Aditi Ashok, with a impressive second round, with four birdies in five holes between 13th and 17th holes.

On Sunday it was a very long putt on the 10th hole; a second shot that left the ball just short of the flag on the 13th; another putt of almost ten meters on the 15th; a spectacular tee shot on the 16th that placed the ball barely 40 cm from the hole; the second shot on the 17th and a providential bunker exit on the 18th.

Anne Van Dam had no choice but to watch Aditi Ashok, while Ana Pelaez from Malaga, third place, left with the satisfaction of a job well done, with an impressive putt from 10 meters on the 18th hole that generated a well-deserved ovation from the large audience.

Special mention should also be made of the outstanding performance of the amateurs Andrea Revuelta and Julia López. The former, outstanding during the four rounds, managed a feat among the professionals. Always under par, for a total of -10, the Madrilenian finished in seventh position, a record that shows her quality and future potential.

Julia Lopez, a local player from Malaga, also received a resounding ovation in recognition of her good performance, awarded with 18th place. In between, two professionals of more than recognized prestige, Carlota Ciganda and Maria Hernandez, the most recognised Spaniards of a tournament.

Carlota Ciganda the spectator's favourite after her Solheim Cup success at Finca Cortesin. Unfortunately scoring 68.72 70 and 69. A total of 279 coming 12th overall 8 strokes behind the leader. Before the tournament Carlota was optamistic however she acknowledged that she had not played Real Las Brisas before:
"Yesterday I played it for the first time and I really liked it. It is very good, in very good condition. I think the second shots to the green are going to be very important, the greens can be fast and moving, and you can have complicated putts. I really like this course and I think the scores are going to be rather low".

Carlota finished a respectable fitht after the first day and said.
"I am happy on a complicated day, with a lot of wind. There were a lot of gusts and it wasn't easy. I started well, missed a couple of greens, but then made birdies on holes 5, 6 and 8. Then, in the second round, great birdie on the 10th, bogey on the 13th and another birdie on the 16th. I ended up playing very well, shooting for birdie on the last holes. I think it's a good round to start with. It's my second day on the course and I'm still learning what the course is like. I like it, it's very good, you have to hit the ball well, you have to kick well. There are different lies, different par 3's, longer, shorter... It's a course that demands you and if it's windy, it gets complicated. Without wind, we will see lower scores."

However on the second day a score of 72 dropped her into 12th position. So her final two days were uneventful, she continued along steadily in this positions while the focus moved to the leaders.

Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España, Ladies tourament was be played at Real Club de Golf, Las Brisas from the 23rd to 26th November 2023. The Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España main sponsors are the Andalucía Tourist Board, the Costa del Sol Tourist Board and Acosol the Costa del Sol Water Board. Secondary sponsors are Marbella Town Hall, Benahavís Town Hall and Reale Seguros.

Race to the Costa del Sol

The Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España being the last event on the Ladies European Tour 2023 was the 'Race to Costa del Sol', the Order of Merit of the Ladies European Tour. Ana Peláez recovered one place in the tournament at the Real Club de Golf Las Brisas and finished fifth in the Order of Merit.

Carlota Ciganda will returns to the Costa del Sol

Carlota Ciganda will return to the Costa del Sol just over two months after her magnificent performance with the rest of the European team at the Solheim Cup and will do so to play the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España 2023, which will take place from 23 to 26 November at the Real Club de Golf Las Brisas, in Marbella (Malaga). 
 
The confirmation by the golfer from Pamplona of her presence in the tournament that will close the Ladies European Tour season, is an added attraction for an event that will also decide the winner of the Race to Costa del Sol, the Order of Merit of the circuit that crowns the most regular player of the year.
 
Carlota Ciganda is currently the name of Spanish women's golf and is the best Spanish lady golfer in history, as the player whose amateur career won all the titles in all categories  In her professional career, with the LET (7 wins) and in the LPGA (two victories) winning each and every tournament played in Spain.  

"I am delighted to play in Spain again and feel again all the energy and excitement that was experienced in the Solheim Cup. Participating in tournaments played in my country is something very special, both because of the support of the public and because it is a very special experience."

"Playing the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España motivates me especially, not only because it is the tournament that closes the season on the Ladies European Tour and there is a great atmosphere, but also because it will close one of the greatest years in the history of Spanish women's golf, it has been a great year for our sport. To finish with a victory would be to close a historic year in the best way, but it will not be easy, as I will have great players in front of me", she concluded.

The golfer, who started playing at the age of five, turned professional in 2011 and a year later, after her first full season on the LET won the Order of Merit and was named player and "rookie" of the year.

Carlota Ciganda's relationship with the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España 2023 goes back a long way, since in 2007, when she was still an amateur, she became the second youngest player to make the cut, at 16 years, 11 months and 11 days. And subsequently, already as a professional, the Navarre golfer has participated eight times, with a victory in 2021, two runner-up finishes in 2014 and 2017, and a total of four Top 5 and four Top 8.

La Brisas confirmed for the twenty-third edition of Andalucía Costa del Sol, Spanish Ladies Open 2023

Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España, Ladies tourament is confirmed for 2023 and will be played at RCG Las Brisas from the 23rd to 26th November 2023. The course was designed by the legendary course designer Robert Trent Jones Senior. Las Brisas in Marbella has been the venue for previous major tournaments. It hosted two editions of the World Cup and another two of the Spanish Open. The first World Cup in 1973 brought together Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Johnny Miller.

Ladies European Tour at Villa Padierna 2022

The Race to Costa del Sol, the official ranking of the Ladies European Tour, offers a bonus (funded by the Costa del Sol tourist board) of €250,000 to top first three seasons players. The venue is Alferini Golf, the most challenging of the three courses of Villa Padierna on November 24-27. The ranking began in Kenya with the first of 31 Ladies European Tour  to be played across 21 different countries in a record-breaking 2022 schedule. The prestigious tournament will be the finishing touch to the Race to Costa del Sol, which will see the most consistent player of the entire season crowned for the third year and will lift the trophy specially designed for the Race to Costa del Sol. More>