After an exhilarating day on the Judge Course at Capitol Hill, Fatima Fernandez Cano came out victorious at the Guardian Championship to capture her third Epson Tour win. The Spaniard came from one-shot back to defeat Ingrid Lindblad who had a putt on the 54th hole of the tournament to tie Fernandez Cano and Cydney Clanton who held the 36-hole lead with Lindblad but faded out of contention during the back nine.

A win has been long overdue for Fernandez Cano after finishing runner-up last week at the Four Winds Invitational. The runner-up was just one of an impressive string of events, dating back to mid-July where she finished T4 at the Twin Bridges Championship. The 28-year-old then added a third-place finish at the Hartford HealthCare Women’s Championship making it four top 5 finishes in her last five starts. The win moves Fernandez Cano to No. 3 in the Race for the Card and puts her in prime position to earn her place on the LPGA Tour for 2025.

The day started out as well as it could for Fernandez Cano, rolling in a birdie on her first hole of the day, tying the lead immediately. She hung around the lead with pars on holes 2-4, before a second birdie finally dropped on No. 5. A bogey followed on hole No. 7, pulling her a couple shots off the lead. The Spaniard answered back with back-to-back birdies on 8 and 9 to make the turn at 12-under and one-shot off the lead again.

The back nine was when her experience began to shine, going bogey-free and making crucial par putts and two birdies on her way to a 5-under 67 in the final round to secure the victory.

“I'm think this could be the most special one,” said Fernandez Cano on her third Epson Tour win. “The first one is a special sand the second one was great. But this one, I've been through a bit of a tough time the last couple of years. I had surgery last year, but it is so funny because, a year ago today, I thought I was quitting golf. So, you know, kind of putting it in perspective to be here holding a trophy today, to be here in Alabama, where I now live. I don't know, it's just super special.”

Lindblad finished the tournament in the runner-up position for the second time in her young professional career. The Swede has already made waves at the professional level, finishing in the top 10 three times in just six starts and skyrocketing up the Race for the Card standings. The rookie showed astounding composure throughout the day, despite being in the final pairing for the first time in her professional career. She was bogey-free until a wayward tee shot on No. 18 put her in the fescue, forcing her to lay up on the par 4. The approach shot came up 20-feet short, leaving her a putt to force a playoff. The putt slid by the hole, moving Lindblad into 2nd place for the tournament.

“It was nice because I haven't really been in contention before,” said Lindblad. “I finished runner-up at Island Resort but I kind of just jumped up the leaderboard on the last day. So, coming out today, I was a little bit nervous. I missed the green on the first all but made good up and down. Then unfortunately my drive on the last hole was just out in the thick stuff and just had to punch it out and almost made the par but wasn't really there for me this week.”

Fatima Fernandez Cano Secures Her Third Epson Tour Victory at the Guardian Championship

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