England's Rhodes holds nerve to claim maiden LET victory
-17 M Rhodes (Eng); -15 K Rudgeley (Aus), A Fanali (Ita); -14 S Kouskova (Cze); -11 K Metraux (Swi), B Fernandez (Spa), M Folke (Swe), N Iturrioz (Spa)
Selected others: -7 D Harry (Wal), A Foster (Ire); -6 C Gainer (Eng); -3 K Henry (Sco), A Fuller (Eng); -2 H Screen (Eng), L Walsh (Ire)
England's Mimi Rhodes held her nerve to claim her first Ladies European Tour victory at the Women's NSW Open in Australia.
The 23-year-old rookie led by one heading into the final round in Wollongong and produced a composed final day to beat Australia's Kirsten Rudgeley and Italy's Alessandra Fanali by two shots.
Competing in just her fourth event as a full LET member, Rhodes went bogey free on Sunday, carding a two-under 69 to finish on 17 under.
"I'm honestly still in shock, but I'm so happy," she said. "I've worked really hard for this."
Victory came a week after Rhodes missed the cut at the Australian Women's Classic in Coffs Harbour.
After heading down the New South Wales coast to Wollongong, she fired a course record on Friday, hitting a nine-under 62 to take a share of the lead with Sara Kouskova.
During Saturday's round of 68, Rhodes gained the outright lead and did not relinquish it on the final day.
After birdies at the second and fourth holes, Rhodes carded 14 straight pars as Rudgeley and Fanali put the pressure on.
Home favourite Rudgeley had five birdies en route to a three-under 68 while Fanali's third birdie of the day on the par-3 17th put her one off the lead.
But the Italian pulled her tee shot on the closing par-five 18th, forcing her to take a penalty drop, allowing Rhodes the comfort of two-putting to secure victory.
"I had a difficult week last week - I went through a swing change and it obviously worked," added Rhodes, who said she would celebrate with family and friends in Sydney.
"I was fine on the front nine but when it started to get tight, I got a bit stressed. I kept breathing and tried to remain focused. It's difficult in those situations but I'm just really glad I got it done."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
a day ago
- USA Today
Bunny Shaw awarded No. 9 jersey for Manchester City
Former Tennessee soccer player Bunny Shaw was awarded a No. 9 jersey by Manchester City Women's Football Club. Shaw played for the Lady Vols from 2017-18. She won the Golden Boot award for a second consecutive year with Manchester City during the 2024-25 season. Shaw won the award for a second consecutive season despite having back-to-back campaigns end prematurely due to injury. She totaled 12 goals, while appearing in 14 top-flight matches. Shaw led the Women's Super League, averaging 0.85 goals per game. She shared the award with Arsenal's Alessia Russo. The former Lady Vol previously wore No. 21. No. 9 is traditionally associated with a center forward or striker, a player who typically leads an attack for scoring goals. Shaw has scored 106 goals in 91 games for Manchester City. She previously played professionally in France for Bordeaux. Manchester City opens its regular season versus Chelsea on Sept. 6. Kickoff is slated for 8:30 a.m. EDT. More: Mia Binkowski commits to Tennessee soccer Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Associated Press
New America's Cup protocol sees female sailors, battery power in 'seismic change' for the Auld Mug
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New rules for the America's Cup sailing regatta announced Tuesday have been described as a seismic moment for the historic event and the 'boldest change in 174 years of the Cup.' Crews competing in the 38th Cup regatta in Naples, Italy in July of 2027 will comprise five members, including at least one woman. Under new criteria, at least two members of each crew, including a female, must be nationals of each team's country of origin. Each 76-foot America's Cup boat will also carry a sixth 'guest' crew member who could be a celebrity, influencer, media representative or sponsor. The America's Cup will now be contested every two years and the protocol or governing document for the event now establishes a system of governance under which all competing teams will have equal responsibility for organizing the event on and off the water and for the control of media and commercial rights. Most functions of the boats will now be powered by batteries, rather than the brute strength of their crews. The moves to modernize the Cup have mostly been well received by competitors and key shareholders. 'As the founding Trustee of the America's Cup, we are completely supportive of the move to modernize the oldest sporting trophy in the world,' said Jay Cross, commodore of the New York Yacht Club. The NYYC was the first to win the America's Cup when its schooner America — from which the trophy takes its name — beat 15 yachts representing Britain's Royal Yacht Squadron in a race around the Isle of Wight in 1851. The United States held the trophy until 1983, when the challenger Australia II ended the streak. Team New Zealand has dominated the recent regattas. 'As the three-time successive winner and defender of the America's Cup and along with the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron as current Trustee, we feel the responsibility to continue to drive the growth of the America's Cup event,' Team New Zealand chief executive Grant Dalton said. 'Although the America's Cup is the oldest trophy in international sport and the pinnacle of sailing, its Achilles heel has always been its lack of continuity,' he said. 'So this transformation now gives all teams collective stewardship and we are introducing a new executive management team to be headed up by a new independent CEO.' In a move to contain costs, a cap of 75 million Euros ($87 million) has been imposed on each team competing in 2027. Teams returning from the last America's Cup will be required to retain the same hulls while new teams will have to either acquire an AC75 hull or build to the same specifications. 'This is a seismic moment for the America's Cup,' Athena Racing team principal Ben Ainslie said. Athena Racing is the Challenger of Record which develops the protocol in partnership with the defender. 'The partnership agreement fundamentally reshapes the governance and organization of the event,' Ainslie said. 'The teams and yacht clubs share a vision to make the America's Cup more inclusive, compelling and financially sustainable. 'This new model marks a unified commitment to that vision. I am excited for the future of the sport.' Tuesday's announcement follows a fractious development process for the protocol during which Athena Racing and the American and Swiss challengers criticized Team New Zealand's management of the event. ___ AP sports:
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
New America's Cup protocol sees female sailors, battery power in 'seismic change' for the Auld Mug
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New rules for the America's Cup sailing regatta announced Tuesday have been described as a seismic moment for the historic event and the 'boldest change in 174 years of the Cup.' Crews competing in the 38th Cup regatta in Naples, Italy in July of 2027 will comprise five members, including at least one woman. Under new criteria, at least two members of each crew, including a female, must be nationals of each team's country of origin. Each 76-foot America's Cup boat will also carry a sixth 'guest' crew member who could be a celebrity, influencer, media representative or sponsor. The America's Cup will now be contested every two years and the protocol or governing document for the event now establishes a system of governance under which all competing teams will have equal responsibility for organizing the event on and off the water and for the control of media and commercial rights. Most functions of the boats will now be powered by batteries, rather than the brute strength of their crews. The moves to modernize the Cup have mostly been well received by competitors and key shareholders. 'As the founding Trustee of the America's Cup, we are completely supportive of the move to modernize the oldest sporting trophy in the world,' said Jay Cross, commodore of the New York Yacht Club. The NYYC was the first to win the America's Cup when its schooner America — from which the trophy takes its name — beat 15 yachts representing Britain's Royal Yacht Squadron in a race around the Isle of Wight in 1851. The United States held the trophy until 1983, when the challenger Australia II ended the streak. Team New Zealand has dominated the recent regattas. 'As the three-time successive winner and defender of the America's Cup and along with the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron as current Trustee, we feel the responsibility to continue to drive the growth of the America's Cup event,' Team New Zealand chief executive Grant Dalton said. 'Although the America's Cup is the oldest trophy in international sport and the pinnacle of sailing, its Achilles heel has always been its lack of continuity," he said. "So this transformation now gives all teams collective stewardship and we are introducing a new executive management team to be headed up by a new independent CEO.' In a move to contain costs, a cap of 75 million Euros ($87 million) has been imposed on each team competing in 2027. Teams returning from the last America's Cup will be required to retain the same hulls while new teams will have to either acquire an AC75 hull or build to the same specifications. 'This is a seismic moment for the America's Cup,' Athena Racing team principal Ben Ainslie said. Athena Racing is the Challenger of Record which develops the protocol in partnership with the defender. 'The partnership agreement fundamentally reshapes the governance and organization of the event,' Ainslie said. 'The teams and yacht clubs share a vision to make the America's Cup more inclusive, compelling and financially sustainable. "This new model marks a unified commitment to that vision. I am excited for the future of the sport.' Tuesday's announcement follows a fractious development process for the protocol during which Athena Racing and the American and Swiss challengers criticized Team New Zealand's management of the event. ___ AP sports: Steve Mcmorran, The Associated Press
