Nairobi, 11 Feb: Indian golfer Diksha Dagar’s fine five-under 68 on the final day helped her to finish in the top 20 of the Magical Kenya Ladies Open here on Sunday.
Diksha, who was third on the LET order of Merit in 2023, signed off at tied 19th with a four-day total of 292.
Pranavi Urs, who was in the running at Tied-eighth after three rounds, collapsed to three-over 76 in the final round and ended T-23rd, while Vani Kapoor (73) was T-36 at the opening event of 2024 on the Ladies European Tour (LET).
The event produced a stunning result as Singapore’s 19-year-old Shannon Tan, making her LET debut, beat the field by four shots to become the first woman pro golfer to win on the Tour.
Playing at the Vipingo Ridge, Tan, who is also the first Singaporean to compete on the LET, produced one of Singapore golf’s finest moments by staging a remarkable debut victory with a 12-under 280.
Sharing the lead with Italian Alessandra Fanali, at 9-under after three rounds, Tan carded 3-under 70 as Fanali carded 74 and finished second and four shots behind.
Starting on the back nine, Diksha was on fire with five birdies on the back nine of the course. She had one more birdie and a bogey on her second nine.
Pranavi had an up-and-down day with an eagle, two birdies, five bogeys and a double bogey in her 76 as she slipped down the leaderboard to Tied 23rd.
Vani Kapoor had two birdies and two bogeys.
Last year, Lyn Yeo, former Singapore Ladies Golf Association president and founder of the Singapore Ladies Masters and Singapore Junior Development Tour, gave Shannon, then an amateur, a special invite for the Singapore Ladies.
Shannon went on to win the event, sparking off an Olympic dream, which is now very close for the teenager, who quit college at Texas Tech University, to become a pro.
Tan then earned a card on the prestigious 2024 LET through a top-20 finish at the Lalla Aicha Q-School last December.
This was only her third pro event and she was second in a mixed event at the Webex Players Series’ Murray River in New South Wales in January, where the overall winner was Kazuma Kobori of New Zealand, who is also playing his first season as a pro.
Shannon was then eighth at the Vic Open in Australia. This week she made her debut on the LET and won the title, which secures her card till the end of 2026. (PTI)