Sport

GOLF SHORTS

GOING into the final round at Dundalk yesterday with a three-shot lead over the field it was Gertie McMullen's Women's Irish Open Championship to lose and that's exactly what she did after a dramatic six-hole shoot-out writes Tony McGee.

After the first 36 holes, defending champion McMullen from The Island was three strokes clear at the top of the leaderboard, with two-time former champion Minna Kaarnalahti from Finland in second place on her own. The final round produced much excitement as Kaarnalahti cashed in on McMullen's mistakes to close the gap.

For most of the round, from there on, the lead changed hands regularly and on the 18th tee the Finnish visitor was one shot ahead. McMullen, however, closed the gap in the breezy conditions with a solid par to her rival's bogey.

It was then into the sudden death play-off which lasted around two hours and took six extra holes to sort out.

The first and 18th were used to bring the argument to an end. After visiting the first hole three more times and the 18th twice it was still deadlocked as both players made regulation pars. Undoubtedly, tiredness was creeping in and a bogey was good enough on the third extra visit to the 18th for Kaarnalahti to win back the title that she also took in 2011 and 2012. There was some consolation for the loser as she was a member of the Irish team that won the Nations' Cup. Her colleagues were Pat Doran (Donabate) and Sheena McElroy (Grange). Ireland 'B' was second, eight strokes back, and one ahead of holders Canada.

* BRITTANY Lincicome stormed to the top of the Evian Championship leaderboard with a best-of-the-day 65 but Trish Johnson's bid to claim the final major of the season ended in disappointment.

Johnson became the oldest winner in Ladies' European Tour history a fortnight ago when, at the age of 48, she lifted the Scottish Open - earning her place in France.

However, the Bristolian's challenge at Evian-les-Bains came to an abrupt end yesterday when she recorded an eight-over-par 80 to fall to nine-over for the tournament and comfortably miss the cut.

Johnson carded just one birdie in her round, and that came amid a nightmare run of four bogeys and a double bogey in the space of six holes on the front nine. Three more bogeys followed as the Solheim Cup stalwart bid farewell to the event.

It was a much better day for Lincicome, whose six-under-par second round was blemish-free and included three birdies on the outward nine and three more coming back in as she moved to 10-under overall.

That left the 28-year-old American one shot clear of overnight pacesetter Hyo Joo Kim, who was unable to repeat her heroics from day one.

The 19-year-old Kim shot a record low major championship round of 61 on Thursday to establish a four-stroke lead, but she could only card a one-over-par 72 yesterday to drop back to nine-under overall.

It could have been worse for the South Korean after she dropped three shots in her opening nine holes - bogeying the par-four 12th, 17th and 18th holes having started on the back nine - but she recovered somewhat in the second half of her round with three birdies and just the one more bogey. Kim will start the weekend two shots clear of her compatriot Mi Jung Hur, who is third on seven under after a mixed second-round 69 that included five birdies and three bogeys.