The Pre-Qualifier Marrakech is complete with 101 players progressing to the Final Stage of Lalla Aicha Q-School after the 54-hole competition.
American Annika Borrelli won by five shots at Noria Golf Club with New Zealand’s Amelia Garvey and French amateur Vanessa Bouvet topping the leaderboard at Golf Club Rotana.
Ireland’s Anna Foster, American Zoe Slaughter and Welsh amateur Darcey Harry shared first place at Palm Golf Ourika, meanwhile Australia’s Justice Bosio, Nigeria’s Georgia Iziemgbe Oboh and Iceland’s Ragga Kristinsdottir ended the week in T1 at Samanah.
Here is a more in-depth look at the final day of the Pre-Qualifier Marrakech.
BOSIO, OBOH, AND KRISTINDOTTIR FINISHED TIED AT THE TOP AT SAMANAH
There was a tie at the top of the leaderboard in the final round of the Pre-Qualifier at Samanah with Australia’s Justice Bosio, Nigeria’s Georgia Iziemgbe Oboh, and Iceland’s Ragga Kristinsdottir all on four-under-par after 54 holes.
2024 marks Bosio’s first time at LET Q-School, with the 20-year-old carding four birdies in a bogey-free final round.
“It was a really good day, I think I hit it my best today,” said Bosio. “The irons were really good and I hit a few shots pretty close. The weather has been much better today, I’ve been wearing two pairs of trousers the last two days.
“I’m from Queensland, which is a hot state, so I’m very used to playing in a skirt, so that was nice, and looking forward to even warmer weather next week.
“My mindset is just the same as this week. I’m just going to go out, see what the courses are like and then, just play my game. Hopefully something will drop, and I’ll hit it straight.”
Nigeria’s Oboh also rolled in four birdies in the final round, with back-to-back birdies on the 8th and 9th holes to be tied at the top.
“It was a great day, the sun came out today,” said Oboh. “I stayed patient and focused. I’ve loved having my Mum on the bag this week. She really makes a lot of effort to keep me calm and just focusing on the things I can control and being more disciplined with my thoughts.
“Now I need to start all over again ahead of next week. Take it one shot at a time at both courses and I’m really looking forward to it. I’ve played the courses before so I’m fairly familiar with them.
“It’s just going to be a question of staying patient and staying focused on the golf course.”
Iceland’s Kristinsdottir also is tied atop of the leaderboard on -4, having had back-to-back birdies on the front and back nine.
This year marks the first time at Q-School for Scotland’s Lorna Mcclymont and she also fired a great final round of 70 (-2) to progress to next week and finish in solo fourth place.
“I got off to a bit of an unsteady start but once I started to really focus on one shot at a time, I stayed patient,” said the University of Stirling graduate.
“Heading into next week I just want to try and enjoy it, stay in the moment. I played the courses a few weeks ago to see what they’re like so we’ll see what happens.”
South African amateur Kaiyuree Moodley finished only one shot behind the Scot on two-under par and alongside England’s Rosie Belsham.
“Today was really good, I was really consistent throughout the tournament. Yesterday I was pretty frustrated because I played well on the front nine but fell [away] on the back. However, today I was able to keep consistent and finish strong, so I was really happy,” said the 23-year-old amateur.
“I made some really long putts. I think my longest part was a 30 foot today. It was pretty chilly in the morning, so I knew the ball wasn’t going to travel as far, but as the day went on and the layers started coming off. It became a lot easier to hit the ball as far as they usually do.
“Leading into next week, my mindset will be the same, it’s such a surreal experience to be here and to be surrounded by all these players that, one day I’ll be playing with when I get on the LET. I’m really excited to keep going.
“I’ve never been to Morocco. This is my first time, I know I’m from South Africa, so it’s definitely not far away, but never played next week’s courses so excited to play them.”
Germany’s Sophie Hausmann finished in solo seventh place with Spanish duo Miriam Ayora and Paz Marfa Sans in T8. A total of 24 players made it through to the Final Stage of Lalla Aicha Q-School from the Pre-Qualifier at Samanah Golf.
The full leaderboard can be found here.
GARVEY AND BOUVET FINISH TIED AT THE TOP AT ROTANA
Amelia Garvey fired an excellent final round of 65 (-7) which included two eagles to finish in a share of first place at the Pre-Qualifier held at Golf Club Rotana.
The New Zealander began the third day in a share of sixth place but had a great finish to her pre-qualifying campaign in Morocco.
Garvey made an eagle on the second hole with birdies on the seventh and 10th before she recorded another eagle on the 13th and finished in style with birdies on holes 14, 15 and 18 to end the week with a total of nine-under-par.
“I’ve found the pre-qualifier great,” said Garvey. “The course has been set up very well and I’ve been able to take advantage of my length especially on par-5s by taking on some aggressive lines off tees.
“The eagles were both good, I hit driver, 5-iron into both the second and 12th to about 20-foot and holed the putt. I played really solidly all day. It was stress-free which was really nice knowing that I was comfortably inside the cut line, so I wanted to go and test myself and go low in preparation for next week.
“I came to LET Q-School because I have had three years on the Epson Tour now and not been able to make it to the LPGA that way, so I was looking for a change of scenery. My family is originally from England and my cousin Jamie tipper, who is caddying for me this week, has caddied a fair bit on LET and said that he thinks I would like the Tour and that the courses would suit me, so I just wanted to give it a go.
“I’m feeling great heading into next week especially, after today’s round. It has been nice to compete again this week after about five weeks off in prep for final stage. However, that is behind me now and I’m looking forward to seeing the two new courses we will be playing and getting a little bit of rest tomorrow.”
Garvey finished tied at the top of the leaderboard alongside French amateur Vanessa Bouvet who carded a 69 (-3) on the final day.
The 25-year-old had six birdies on her scorecard, as well as a double bogey and a bogey, to finish on nine-under-par.
“My golf game today was pretty solid again, however, I did have a bit of a poor finish going out of bounds on 17 and into the hazard on 18 trying to force a couple of shots,” said Bouvet.
“My caddie and I were again really on point with club selection for approaches. However, I thought that the course played a little tougher today with the wind and with harder pin positions. I think the best part of my game was putting as I made a lot of putts today, especially to save par.
“It feels pretty good to make it through the final stage and I’m really excited for the challenges to come and to get that LET card! I think coming in with the same mentality of playing with no fear, focusing and committing to every shot is how I will prepare for next week.”
England’s Ellen Hume made it safely through to the Final Stage with a final round of 71 (-1) to finish in third place with Finland’s Elina Nummenpaa in fourth and India’s Amandeep Drall was fifth.
Singaporean amateur Aloysa Atienza finished in T6 on even par alongside France’s Agathe Laisne and Sweden’s Corinne Viden.
A total of 27 players made it through to the Final Stage of Lalla Aicha Q-School from the Pre-Qualifier at Golf Club Rotana.
The full leaderboard can be found here.
FOSTER, SLAUGHTER, AND HARRY SET THEIR FOCUS TO NEXT WEEK AFTER FINISHING TOP AT PALM OURIKA
Ireland’s Anna Foster, America’s Zoe Slaughter, and Wales’ Darcey Harry all sit top of the leaderboard at the end of the Pre-Qualifier at Palm Golf Ourika.
Foster started the day on T7 and had a bogey-free final round with six birdies, so the 21-year-old finished tied at the top on six-under par.
“Definitely very relieved to be done,” said Foster. “This week was stressful but today I got off to a nice start. I was able to make a few birdies early and kept the momentum going into the back nine.
“I wasn’t really trying to get to a number. I was just trying to keep it simple, hit the fairways and greens, and make the putt.
“I had a nice group too which makes a huge difference. I was in a good headspace to begin with and let me swing free. I wasn’t trying to force or do anything special, I just needed to trust myself and stay patient.
“I’m looking forward to playing on next week’s courses, completely different but really good in their own ways.”
America’s Slaughter also finished the final round on six-under par. Despite having three bogeys on her scorecard, these were cancelled out by her three birdies on the 7th, 10th and 15th holes.
“I played very differently today, it was very windy yesterday and mild conditions but I was able to scrape it around today so pleased with that,” said Slaughter. “My driver put me in a lot of good positions, I had a lot of wedges in there. I missed a couple of putts, but my driver was helping me a lot.
“I’ve played Al Madden before but not Royal. I think it plays pretty similar to this, just hit it out there, wide open, so you just need to be confident.”
Welsh amateur Harry also finished the week on six-under par and progresses to Final Stage next week.
Harry said: “It was super tough out there again, so I just went out with the mindset of hitting as many fairways and greens as possible, in the hope I’d make the putts. It was a steady front nine and the back nine got a bit tense.”
The 21-year-old has Paul Williams on her bag this week and explained this has been a huge help.
She added: “All throughout amateur golf you don’t really have anyone on your bag, and then professional golf is a whole new learning experience. I’m hoping to stay professional now going into the last stage. It’s so important to have someone talk through shots with you and making smart choices.”
Korea’s Ayeon Yang, Thailand’s Bunnabodee and Italy’s Anna Zanusso all finished in T4 on three-under with Sweden’s Louisa Carlbom in seventh place on one-under.
A total of 25 players made it through to the Final Stage of Lalla Aicha Q-School from the Pre-Qualifier at Palm Golf Ourika.
The full leaderboard can be found here.
BORRELLI WINS BY FIVE SHOTS AT NORIA
Annika Borrelli produced another consistent day at Noria Golf Club to win the Pre-Qualifier there by five strokes.
The American held a three-shot lead at the start of the day and extended it further with a birdie at the first and fourth holes.
Despite a couple of dropped shots on the scorecard, Borrelli rolled in three further birdies on the 10th, 13th and 15th holes to win with a score of 10-under-par.
“I was really happy with my round,” said the 24-year-old. “I started off with a nice putt for birdie, which shook off some initial nerves and helped propel my morning forward.
“I was able to convert some good putts for birdie and put myself in good positions throughout the round. I also enjoyed my group and caddie!
“I’m really happy with how this week played out. I took a lot of time the last few weeks to regroup from my season this year and prepare for this event. It feels really incredible to see that work pay off and give me confidence for next week.
“I’ll continue the mindset and routine that’s worked this week into next week. I really like what I found physically and mentally to prepare and want to keep that going for the next few days.”
Hong Kong’s Ginnie Ding finished in outright second place on five-under-par after rounds of 70-73-71 at Noria.
The 22-year-old had five birdies on her scorecard on the final day to seal a round of two-under and safely progress to the Final Qualifier.
Argentinian amateur Ela Anacona ended the week in solo third place on three-under-par with a final round of 73 (E) that included one birdie and one bogey.
Japan’s Reina Fujikawa and India’s Sneha Singh finished in T4 on two-under with Czechia’s Patricie Mackova in sixth on one-under.
Denmark’s Cecilie Finne-Ipsen fired a final round of 69 (-4) which included five birdies to cement her place in next week’s Final Stage with a seventh-place finish.
Meanwhile, a total of 25 players made it through to the Final Stage of Lalla Aicha Q-School from the Pre-Qualifier at Noria Golf.
The full leaderboard can be found here.
