Opening Golf to the World
Girls U16 Amateur
Guyot leads Girls' U16 Amateur going into final day at Gog Magog
25 Apr 26
6 mins
Lana Guyot picked the perfect time to shoot the best round of her life with a career-low, six-under-par 66 in the second round of the Girls’ U16 Amateur Championship at Gog Magog Golf Club.
It gives the Swiss teenager a two-shot lead on nine-under heading into the final round of the championship she loves best of all. Scotland’s Carly McDonald sits in solo second on seven-under. Germany’s Cecilie Volckens and Iciar Rodriguez of Spain are a further shot back on six-under. Defending champion Sabrina Wong is four shots off the lead at five-under. Guyot has only had two bad holes of the 36 she’s played around the 5,851-yard, par-72 Cambridgeshire layout. She double bogeyed the par-4, 10th hole in round one, and made a three-putt bogey five at the second in round two. Aside from that she’s been almost flawless. That’s perhaps no surprise given how much this event means to her. “It’s my favourite tournament,” said Guyot, who holds a membership at Golf de Cannes Mougins in Southern France. “I’ve been looking forward to it since last year. It’s just so well organised.”
Lana Guyot is in pole position going into the final round.
The 14-year-old’s game is pretty well organised too. She’s made 10 birdies and an eagle over the first 36 holes. It could have been even better, her eagle chip on the par-5 last hole stopped an inch short of dropping into the cup.
“I changed my putter and my putting grip ahead of this tournament. I now putt left hand below right and my grip feels more stable, so I feel very confident on the greens. They roll really well too, so that also gives me a lot of confidence.
“It would mean a lot to win this tournament because it was one of my big goals for this year.”
At 333rd on the World Amateur Golf Ranking® and with a third-place finish in the prestigious Internationaux de France U21 – Trophy Esmond earlier this month, it would be no surprise if she became the first Swiss player to triumph in this elite championship.
Nor would it be a shock if McDonald were to become the third Scottish winner after Hannah Darling in 2018, and Grace Crawford four years ago: the St Regulus Golf Club member warmed up for this tournament with a successful defence of her Scottish Girls’ Open Championship at Luffness New Golf Club two weeks ago.
McDonald had notched up 12 birdies this week before making an eagle on the par-5, 18th hole in round two when she made a 25-foot putt from off the green to card a 69. The difference is the Scot has dropped seven shots over the first two days compared to Guyot’s three.
However, McDonald has shown a remarkable ability to bounce back from adversity. For example, she played the front nine in round two in one-over-par but came home in four-under to stay in contention.
“The great thing about the back nine here is that there are three par-fives, so even if you’re a couple over you’ve got those three par-fives to try and lower your score,” the St Andrews native said. “Today I just tried to keep a positive mindset after the front nine because I knew I had those three par-fives coming up.
“It would be pretty cool to win this one,” she added. “To win the R&A U16 would be really special because it’s tough field and a high standard of golf.”
Carly McDonald is in contention to win at Gog Magog.
Wong knows how special it is to win the Girls’ U16. The defending champion may be four shots off the pace, but she stepped off the 18th green knowing what she had to work on to become the first player to successfully defend the title.
“Not my best today,” Wong said about her two-under par 70. “I missed so many birdie opportunities and par putts, and my long putts were not great today. So I’m going to practise my putting so I can do my best for the last day.
“I’m still in a great position and hopefully I can catch up tomorrow.”
The race to be the best U14 player looks to be between Elea Bastoni of France and England’s Bella Watson. Bastoni sits on three under, one shot head of Watson.
This week’s winner will be awarded the Angela Uzielli Trophy. Angela, who passed away in 1999, was a decorated amateur golfer who represented Great Britain and Ireland in the 1978 Curtis Cup. Angela was married to Past Captain of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews John Uzielli, who died last year.
Live scores from the Girls' U16 Amateur are available on The R&A website.