England’s Tess Samuels edged Isabella Orray 1-up for the Flight Division title at Port Elizabeth Golf Club – The Hill in South Africa on Friday.
South African-born Samuels, who emigrated to England with her family three years ago, was delighted after winning the Flight Division after a very tight match against Eastern Province’s Isabella Obray.
The 14-year-old squeaked past Obray by winning the final three holes to eke out a 1-up victory. That was after Obray had won the 1st hole and never trailed in the match until Samuels made birdie on the last.
“It’s a great achievement, and I’m really happy with myself,” said Samuels. “This is a huge step forward for me. I’m going to celebrate with a milkshake!”
Although Obray never led by more than 2-up at any stage, the win for her on the 15th must have felt like the moment when she could have gone on and won the title. But it only served to inspire Samuels to redouble her efforts under the intense pressure.
“Honestly, I handled it by just focusing on one shot at a time, trying to hit it as good as I could,” said Samuels. “I tried to forget about the score.”
Despite trying to blank out the details of her predicament, Samuels was clearly well aware of what she needed to do. She got within one of the win on 16 and then came to the point at which she drew level for the first time in the match.
“The turning point was probably on 17, the putt,” she said. “It was about 10 feet. I really had to drain that or, yeah, it would have been over.”
On 18, she needed all of her 3-wood from over 200 metres out to get to the green of the par-5 hole.
In the end, she had a must-make birdie to win the match, and she holed it with great confidence.
“On that final putt, I was just thinking, just don’t miss,” she said. “I had to think that it was just like I practise. It’s not any different.”
Other than thinking about a milkshake, Samuels has clear goals for the future. “I want to get my swing speed up and make as many cuts as possible,” she added..
The 14-year-old squeaked past Obray by winning the final three holes to eke out a 1-up victory. That was after Obray had won the 1st hole and never trailed in the match until Samuels made birdie on the last.
“It’s a great achievement, and I’m really happy with myself,” said Samuels. “This is a huge step forward for me. I’m going to celebrate with a milkshake!”
Although Obray never led by more than 2-up at any stage, the win for her on the 15th must have felt like the moment when she could have gone on and won the title. But it only served to inspire Samuels to redouble her efforts under the intense pressure.
“Honestly, I handled it by just focusing on one shot at a time, trying to hit it as good as I could,” said Samuels. “I tried to forget about the score.”
Despite trying to blank out the details of her predicament, Samuels was clearly well aware of what she needed to do. She got within one of the win on 16 and then came to the point at which she drew level for the first time in the match.
“The turning point was probably on 17, the putt,” she said. “It was about 10 feet. I really had to drain that or, yeah, it would have been over.”
On 18, she needed all of her 3-wood from over 200 metres out to get to the green of the par-5 hole.
In the end, she had a must-make birdie to win the match, and she holed it with great confidence.
“On that final putt, I was just thinking, just don’t miss,” she said. “I had to think that it was just like I practise. It’s not any different.”
Other than thinking about a milkshake, Samuels has clear goals for the future. “I want to get my swing speed up and make as many cuts as possible,” she added..
ENDS
Contact details:
Tom Vale, Press & Media Manager
Tel: 07912 240850
Email: tom.vale@englandgolf.org
www.englandgolf.org
Contact details:
Tom Vale, Press & Media Manager
Tel: 07912 240850
Email: tom.vale@englandgolf.org
www.englandgolf.org