At the end of the season, we have to say many goodbyes and this year we also have to say goodbye to the second longest running tournament in the LETAS schedule, the fantastic Flumserberg Ladies Open.
After 10 amazing years at Golf Club Gams-Werdenberg the tournament has come to an end and the event will be sorely missed next year.
Set in the stunning Swiss mountains, this event will be remembered for its family run professionalism, ingenuity, and the golf course’s incredibly difficult rough!
To mark the end of this tournament, let’s look at some of the best moments in its 10-year rich history.
1. THE 2023 MATZLER MIX FORMAT
The Flumserberg Ladies Open never dared to be different and this year saw an entirely new format named the “Matzler-Mix” named after the inventor and tournament promoter Guido Matzler.
It saw two days of stroke play after which the top 48 players qualified for a match play format on the final day. The top six from the first round on nine-hole match plays progressed to the semi-final where from that the three winners played a three-way match play competing for points.
The formula received the go-ahead in 2020 from WWGR and the tour and was originally designed to entertain both seasoned spectators and those who were new to the game.
The pioneering format certainly did exactly that as crowds flocked despite the rain to watch the thrilling finale.
2. 2023’s THRILLING FINALE
The 2023 final was a glorious way to send out the tournament. Three of LETAS’ best battled through two rounds of stroke play and two nine-hole matchplay rounds to wind up in the final.
The three that made it were home favourite and LETAS’ top ranked Swiss player Elena Moosmann, who won the tournament in 2019 as an amateur and two Danes, Sofie Kibsgaard Nielsen who later went on to win the 2023 Order of Merit and underdog Fie Olsen.
It was a good day for Olsen however as she came from behind to win by three points over her fellow Dane with her close friend, Carolina Sandstrom acting as her caddy on the bag.
Famously during the final the rain never stopped, and Olsen paved her way to victory without an umbrella and clinched a win that no one was expecting, including herself.
3. A STEPPING STONE FOR THE STARS
In its 10-year history, the Flumserberg Ladies Open has provided many now famous faces with an opportunity to secure professional wins.
The first winner of the tournament which was then called, the Association Suisse de Golf Ladies Open was was none other than Wales’ Amy Boulden who clinched victory after an epic six-hole play-off against Kelly Tidy.
Boulden has since gone on to win on the Ladies European Tour, again in Switzerland in 2020 at the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open.
Germany’s Olivia Cowan who won the LET’s Hero Women’s Indian Open in 2022 and plays on the LPGA also won the second edition of the tournament back in 2015.
Other notable winners include Finnish professional golfer, Sanna Nuutinen who plays between the LPGA and the Ladies European Tour.
4. PEGOVA’S REVENGE IN 2021
Nina Pegova has a lot of history with the Flumserberg Ladies Open and in 2017 lost out on securing victory at the tournament after losing a playoff to Finnish player Linda Henriksson.
In extraordinary fashion Pegova got her comeback three years later as she beat German amateur Charlotte Back in a two-hole playoff to clinch her second LETAS win.
Interestingly, the Flumserberg Ladies Open has seen 50 percent of the tournaments in ten years finish with a play off.
5. HOME GROWN TALENTS
One noticeable feature throughout the years at Gams-Werdenberg is the home-grown Swiss talent that has shone in the scoreboards.
One big name that has become synonymous with the tournament is budding Swiss star, Elena Moosmann who became champion in 2019 when she was still a 17-year-old amateur.
The tournament was the building blocks for the now 21-year-old to step onto the bigger stage after securing her LET card for the 2024 season this year through LETAS.
The opportunity the tournament has provided for amateurs to pitch themselves against seasoned professionals has been remarkable and kept the tournament a huge lure for Swiss hopefuls coming through the ranks.
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After 10 fantastic years all that is left to say is thank you to the Matzler family who have played in and promoted the tournament for 10 years alongside Gams Werdenberg Golf Club.
