Lily Reitter savoured the biggest win of her young career after a hard-earned victory in the Final of The R&A Girls’ Amateur Championship at sun-drenched Conwy.
The 16-year-old from France had forged a commanding lead over England’s Charlotte Naughton during the morning’s opening 18 holes and eventually staved off the challenge of her rival to win by a 4&2 margin in the 96th staging of the Championship.
Naughton, the winner of the German Girls’ International Amateur Championship earlier this season, deserved great credit for a spirited effort as the 17-year-old tried her best to claw back a five-hole deficit in Wales.
A burst of terrific scoring between the 9th and 14th during the afternoon’s second round underlined the quality of the contest. Both players were five-under for those six holes as they exchanged blow and counter blow.
Amid that blizzard of birdies, Reitter still managed to hold onto a three-hole lead and Naughton’s admirable assault came to grief on the 34th when her drive disappeared in the bushes and she eventually conceded on the green.
The trophy, and the spin-offs that come with victory, belonged to Reitter. As well as etching her name on to a roll of honour of considerable distinction, Reitter also earned invitations to next year’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur, The Women’s Amateur Championship and the US Girls’ Junior Championship. She also gets an exemption into Final Qualifying for the AIG Women’s Open.
“I’m so proud of myself,” said Reitter after becoming he first French champion since Alexandra Bonetti in 2010. “I did have a big lead through 18 but it’s always tough to maintain that kind of advantage. I always prefer to be in a spot where I’m chasing.
“Charlotte really is impressive and it was a pleasure to battle it out against her. During that stretch of holes when we were throwing birdies at each other, I was thinking, ‘oh my goodness, can you stop making as many putts as me.’ She put up a great fight.”
With an easterly breeze adding a new layer of menace to the firm, fiery Conwy links in the morning, it was Reitter who found herself in charge. As Naughton stumbled to four bogeys in her opening six holes, Reitter covered that same opening stretch in one-under-par to be five up.
Naughton already had a mountain to climb but she started to emerge from the foothills with a flurry of birdies which got her a toehold in the match.
Three birdies in a row from the 9th reduced Reitter’s lead to two and Naughton stayed just two behind with a brilliant recovery from the greenside bunker on the 12th which hit the flag as Reitter looked set to pounce. But on the very next hole her short putt lipped out and Reitter moved three ahead again.
Naughton then failed to get up-and-down from the back of the 17th to fall four behind, before a shank from the middle of the fairway on 18 flew into the greenkeepers’ sheds. Reitter moved five clear and into a lead that she defended with vigour.
“This changes my year,” she added. “I wasn’t playing that well, I was missing cuts and if I was in contention I’d crack in the final round. So this shows that, mentally, I have progressed as well.”
The Florida-based golfer may be starting a scholarship at the University of Virginia but she already has Georgia on her mind. “I’m super excited about the Augusta National Women’s Amateur,” she added. “I told my brother that the winner of this gets an exemption and he said ‘you’d better go and win’ as he wants to caddie for me. I just phoned him after winning and told him to take the first week in April off.”
Naughton conceded that she gave herself an uphill task but was proud with the determined fight she put up. “I did give myself a bit too much to do,” she said. “But I tried my best. The way I played in the afternoon, I could’ve won it on another day. I had a hard run of matches this week, playing two of my England team-mates, so it’s been physically and emotionally hard too. But I’m proud of myself.”
After a successful staging of the Curtis Cup in 2021, those involved at Conwy Golf Club were delighted to host this week’s Championship.
“It’s been a privilege,” said Matthew Parsley, the General Manager at Conwy. “Women and girls’ golf is such a big part of the club’s strategy so to have this significant girls’ event here makes us very proud.
“We are a championship course. We love hosting events and it all helps to raise awareness of where we are and what we do. We learned a lot from the Curtis Cup and this was a good opportunity to put those things into practice. It’s been a win-win for Conwy Golf Club and The R&A.”
About The R&A
The R&A group of companies was formed in 2004 to take on The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews’ responsibilities for governing the Rules of Golf, staging The Open, golf’s original championship, and developing the sport. The R&A World Golf Museum in St Andrews is part of The R&A group.
Together The R&A and the USGA govern the sport of golf worldwide, operating in separate jurisdictions with a commitment to a single code for the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status and Equipment Standards. The R&A, through R&A Rules Ltd, governs the sport worldwide, outside of the United States and Mexico, on behalf of over 108 million golfers in 148 countries and with the consent of 167 organizations from amateur and professional golf.
The R&A has responsibility for running a series of world class amateur events and international matches in women’s and girls’ as well as men’s and boys’ golf. The R&A stages the AIG Women’s Open and works with the DP World Tour to stage the ISPS HANDA Senior Open presented by Rolex.
