England’s Mimi Rhodes secured her first professional victory at the Lavaux Ladies Open a mere 16 days after leaving the amateur ranks.
The Wake Forest graduate carded rounds of 68, 68 and 64 to find herself tied at the top of the leaderboard after fellow English player Billie-Jo Smith forced a play-off with a magnificent birdie on the 18th.
The duo headed back down the first and it took until the third hole to separate them.
Rhodes under pressure produced a stunning birdie to take victory whilst it was a heartbreaking finish for Billie-Jo Smith who lost out in the play off last week to Australia’s Kelsey Bennett.
Speaking about her debut victory, Rhodes said: “I’m super happy and over the moon. It makes me very excited for the future.
“I was feeling all the emotions in the play off; stress, nerves, excitement but I was just happy to be there and that all my work has paid off.
“Billie-Jo played great out there today. I knew I had to make a birdie to seal the deal and it’s been a long time coming.”
Rhodes, who first learnt to play the game through her grandma, has had a glittering amateur career ending it on a high by being part of England’s triumphant 2024 Curtis Cup team.
Supported by her mum, Penny on the bag, Rhodes has loved getting to experience the winning feeling with her.
“She’s just really amazing and always supporting my sister and I. She’s not much of a caddy she’s mainly there for support and to chat to me and keep me happy.
“To celebrate I think we will have a nice dinner on the road and then it’s just on to the next one.
“My phone is currently broken so I might have to buy a new phone with the cheque.”
Rhodes, who is currently suffering a neck injury nearly pulled out of the tournament.
“I was not actually going to play this event but I’m so glad I did. I’m going to see a physio on Monday and hopefully I will be able to play in Spain.”
Norway’s Tina Mazarino finished third on 12-under-par after an amazing final round of 64(-8).
Iceland’s Gudrun Bjorgvinsdottir and Italy’s Alessia Nobilio finished tied fourth on eleven-under-par.
LETAS Order of Merit leader, Sweden’s Kajsa Arwefjall sits in solo sixth.
Day One and Two leader Slovakia’s Katarina Drocarova finished seventh on eight-under-par whilst Austria’s Katharina Muehlbauer and France’s Ariane Klotz finished tied eighth on seven-under-par.
Every point is vital now on the LETAS Order of Merit with fourth to seventh spots becoming super competitive.
LETAS now has a 12-day break before returning to Spain for the Calatayud Ladies Open, the final event of the season.
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