Spain’s Nuria Iturrioz claimed her fifth Ladies European Tour (LET) title with a two-stroke victory at the Aramco Houston Championship.
The 29-year-old held off the likes of five-time LET winner Charley Hull and compatriot Carlota Ciganda after starting the final day in second place. Ciganda held the overnight lead coming into Sunday at Golfcrest Country club and an opening birdie took her further ahead, but Iturrioz had two under her belt by the 5th to keep pace. England’s Hull, still seeking an end to her winless streak this season, brought herself into contention with three consecutive opening birdies and smooth pars. Without a single bogey in the final round, Hull carded an impressive 5-under 67, tying with Ciganda at 11 under overall.
Iturrioz sunk her second bogey of the round at the 13th, but found momentum soon after with three birdies at the 14th, 15th, and 17th to pull ahead. Closing with a par at the 18th, the Spaniard finished with a 68 to end the week at 13 under, two shots clear for LET trophy number five.
“I’m really happy! I can’t explain my feelings. I’m really glad I have this trophy. Thank you very much for everything,” said Iturrioz afterwards. “With my caddie, we have been working a lot throughout the year, and we have been up there a couple of times, but this win is for him also.
“I was really looking forward to winning one of these PIF Global Series events. I have won as part of the Team before. It’s really special to do it here in the U.S. knowing I have been trying to get to the LPGA and knowing I can play these courses well is good.”
“It’s been tough this year, I have been up there four times trying to win,” she continued. “It was hard to get the win. It was great to have Charley, Mimi and Carlota pushing at the top of the leaderboard.”
Hull and Ciganda shared second, with the former posting a second consecutive runners-up finish after the AIG Women’s Open last month.
“I played A1 golf all day,” Hull said. “I played really well, and I hit some nice shots coming in. I made a good par on the last, I was trying to go for the putt, but it didn’t break.
“Especially with my injury and coming back, I didn’t think I’d play well this week, so I’m happy with my result. It’s not enough today, but I’m looking forward to Cincinnati next week.”
Singapore’s Shannon Tan finished third, at 10 under, whilst the French trio Celine Boutier, Perrine Delacour, and Nastasia Nadaud took home a share of fifth just a shot back at 9 under.
What is the next event?
The next event on the Ladies European Tour is the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open taking place between 11-13 September at Golfpark Holzhausern in Switzerland.