Morgane Metraux had a five-stroke lead coming into Sunday’s final round. This afternoon she carded a 1-over par with three bogeys and two birdies. Metraux’s second birdie of the day came in clutch on No. 18, as she had to make it to force a playoff with Liu. She made par on the first playoff hole but missed a birdie putt on the second playoff hole to continue play.
“I was really calm. I surprised myself how calm I was. I was actually more nervous during the actual round that I was during the playoff,” said Metraux. “I guess because I was just happy to be in the playoff after making that putt on 18 (in regulation). I hit some good shots and good putts so there is nothing to regret.”
After her second-place finish at the Casino Del Sol Golf Classic, Metraux took home a check of $18,940. This moved her up the money list and she now sits at No. 5 in the Race for the Card. Despite not having the outcome she had hoped, Metraux was happy to have her mom on the bag for the week.
“It was fun. She doesn’t caddy that often for me. t was fun to just talk about other things as well on the course. She plays but she is not giving me advice or anything for the actual golf part. We just talk about other things and that was quite cool,” said Metraux. “Sometimes I have another caddy, sometimes I am on my own, but it was fun to share these memories with her that we can talk about. I wish it was a win we could talk about but maybe next time.”
Race for the Card Standings After Week Three
Following the third tournament of the 2021 Epson Tour season, the Race for the Card money list welcomes a fresh top five.
Here is a look at the current top-10 heading into the fifth annual IOA Championship presented by Morongo Casino Resort & Spa hosted by Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon in Beaumont, Calif., from Aug. 21-23:
- Ruixin Liu - $64,558
- Sophie Hausmann (Nottuln, Germany)- $30,696
- Fatima Fernandez Cano (Santiago de Compostela, Spain) - $26,244
- Sophia Schubert (Oak Ridge, Tennessee) - $20,745
- Morgane Metraux - $20,344
- Haylee Harford (Leavittsburg, Ohio) - $18,770
- Maude-Aimee Leblanc (Sherbooke, Quebec) - $16,919
- Gigi Stoll (Beaverton, Oregon) - $16,732
- Esther Henseleit (Hamburg, Germany) - $12,097
- Isi Gabsa (Munich, Germany) - $10,957
NOTABLE QUOTES
Gigi Stoll (-13, 3) on her birdie putt on No. 17 and the week in general:
“It was on the last roll and I saw it really well. I felt like I could make anything out here today and that was really the biggest part of my game this week, my putting. It was nice to be confident out there and play well with four rounds under par. I had a good one today on the back nine and it was just fun to be out here.”
Lilia Vu (-11, T4) on improving her mental game going forward:
“I play my best golf when I don’t know where my score is. I think the past two days I got in my head and compared myself and look at the leaderboard. I think for the next event I am just going to tone it down and really focus on the shot in front of me. This is my first top-5 on the Epson Tour, I will take away some confidence from that. I lost all my confidence almost two years ago on the LPGA Tour. I didn’t have a good season at all so to build it back up really means a lot to me because I have been working so hard.”
Katelyn Dambaugh (-11, T4) on getting her 2021 season started:
“Honestly, I think it was just me getting back into the competitive mindset. This was my first tournament this year. I think it just took a little time to get comfortable. Today showed me what I can do for sure. It’s been a while since I had confidence. Since my surgeries in 2019 it’s been a rough year and a half. This week has really put me in a positive mind set.”
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