Olivia Jordan-Higgins (Jersey, U.K.) captured her third win on the Epson Tour at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic besting Yu Liu (Beijing, China) and Christine Song (Fullerton, Calif.) by a shot.
“It feels really good,” Jordan-Higgins said. “I don’t think I can really put into words how it feels yet. This has been 18 months’ work all put together. I couldn’t ask for a better start right now.”
With Jordan-Higgins sitting tied for the lead at 7-under par through 8-holes play was halted at 3:23 p.m. due to inclement weather in the area. Following a one hour and 52-minute rain delay, Jordan-Higgins returned to the course refocused and primed for the victory.
“The key today was patience,” Jordan-Higgins explained. “I was a little tense on the front and trying too hard to make things happen that just weren’t happening and I did make some a mistake on seven. It just came down to patience and knowing that I had a lot of birdie changes left after my double on seven.”
Coming back after the rain delay, Jordan-Higgins carded three birdies and no bogeys to finish at 10-under and seal the victory. The 7th year pro took the lead for good with a clutch 6-foot birdie putt on the par-4 16th. A pair of tap in par putts coming in allowed the Jersey native to celebrate her victory on the 18th green with her caddie.
“One of my things was that I wasn’t going to scoreboard watch just because it means I’m focusing on other people and not what I’m doing so I actually didn’t know where I really stood until I finished. It was a nice surprise,” Jordan-Higgins admitted with a smile.
With the win, Jordan-Higgins earns $18,750 and takes the early lead on the Volvik Race for the Card Money List.
“I can’t ask for better honestly,” Jordan-Higgins said. “I feel pretty confident about this year and having this win early on makes life a lot easier.”
The quick start to the year is big for Jordan-Higgins who fell just $114 short of an LPGA Tour card in 2013, and finished in the top 20 on the money list each year from 2012-2014. The seventh-year pro is hoping this year will be the year she makes the jump to the LPGA Tour.
“I want it more than anything,” Jordan-Higgins said of making the LPGA. “This is what I’ve wanted since I started playing golf. The key for me is to let it happen. I have all of the tools I need and all of the support I need so it’s just a matter of accepting whatever happens.”
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