Linn Grant retains slender guide over Maja Stark in Race to Costa Del Sol title battle at Open De Espana

Linn Grant edged forward of Maja Stark in their own duel for the Race to Costa Del Sol title at the Andalusia Costa Del Sol Open De Espana.

The two Swedes arrived at Alferini Golfing with seven wins between them on the Girls European Tour this season – Grant four and Stark three – and with the Race to Costa Del Sol an productive match play fight.

The year-ending prize will go to whoever finishes in entrance, and it is most likely to go down to the wire judged on Thursday’s opening round.

Grant began the day with a slender guide more than Stark, and her round of 67 was enough to safe a one particular-stroke benefit about her good friend and rival immediately after 18 holes.

Grant built a sluggish start off and was two-around just after a few holes, which came as a shock as she had spent the earlier few of months on the Costa Del Sol in planning for the function.

If Stark was tired, it did not present early in the spherical as she manufactured a few birdies on the front 9 to get to three-underneath.

To start with Spherical Leaderboard

• 1. Cara Gainer, 7-below
• 2. Carlota Ciganda, 6-underneath
• T3. Morgane Metreaux, 5-under
• T3. Anais Meyssonnier, 5-below
• T3. Leona Maguire, five-under
• T3. Linn Grant, five-beneath
• T7. Jessica Karlsson, 4-less than
• T7. Hannah Burke, 4-underneath
• T7. Cassandra Alexander, 4-below
• T7. Nuria Iturrioz, four-below
• T7. Alice Hewson, 4-less than
• T7. Anne van Dam, 4-below
• T7. Azahara Munoz, four-underneath
• T7. Lee-Anne Rate, 4-beneath
• T7. Maja Stark, four-below

The just one flaw in Stark’s game at this fledgling phase of her career is her putting, and it reared its head on the inward 9.

On the 10th and 11th, she wildly a few-putted – on just about every occasion blasting the birdie putt way past the hole and missing the return hard work. Individuals errors came as a surprise, as she seemed in entire management of her game.

When Grant built a birdie on the 11th, she experienced overturned the deficit to Stark and received in front but the latter steadied the ship with a birdie on 13.

They each birdied the par-5 17th, but Grant secured a slender little bit of daylight when building a birdied on the last hole – as Stark had to settle for a par soon after blasting her exertion for a two earlier the gap. She created the return putt for par on this celebration.

Absent from the struggle for the Race to Costa Del Sol title, Cara Gainer produced an outstanding start out to just take the guide of the match after 18 holes. The English participant produced 9 birdies and two bogeys in a spherical of 66 to get to 7-beneath.

Leona Maguire built an eagle and four birdies in a spherical of 68 to get in just two shots of the guide at 5-underneath.

Carlota Ciganda was the other player in the group with Grant and Stark, and the defending champion birdied her last 6 holes to get to six-underneath.