Nuria Itturios © Tristan Jones / LET

Nuria Iturrios won her third LET title, signing cards of 68, 67 and 71 for a total of 206 (-10) on the famous Faldo course of the Emirates Golf Club, where Sir Nick Faldo had integrated floodlights from his conception so that it can be played at night.

The 23-year-old, from Palma de Mallorca, finished one step ahead of her German colleagues Esther Henseleit and Olivia Cowan, while Karolin Lampert placed fourth.

"It's amazing to win again and I'm so excited"said Nuria Iturrios, who became the first player to win back-to-back titles since Aditi Ashok at the India and Qatar Open in 2016. “Congratulations to Esther, Olivia and all the players in the peloton. That was too cool. I loved playing in the first day-night tournament and hope to come back next year. "

The LET leader of the order of merit started the final round tied with Henseleit, but the pro Rookie admitted feeling the pressure on the first start as she contested her first title.

Nuria Iturrios hit the second and third holes to quickly take a three-stroke lead, but bogeyed the sixth and then shared the lead with Irishman Leona Maguire after a brace in the seventh, where she found the right one. length at the start. However, she regained the advantage on the turn with a single birdie putt on the ninth green. She then birdied again on the 10, but then made the 11th in 3 putts before bouncing back in the 14th.

She came to the last hole with a one-stroke lead and both Henseleit and Cowan had birdie putts to force a play-off, but Iturrios completed his run in 2 putts to secure the title, an Omega watch and the famous Dallah trophy, as well as life membership of the Emirates Golf Club.

As Iturrios moved further in the order of merit and climbed to fifth on the points list for the European Solheim Cup squad, whose top three players will qualify after the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open, Henseleit took a lead in the Rookie of the Year, moving up to fifth in the order of merit with five top 10s in six starts during the 2019 season.

Thinking about her performance, the young 20-year-old woman from Hamburg said: “Before I started I wasn't really nervous but when the first tee came my hands were shaking a bit and the first holes were quite difficult for me. I also did two bogeys, then a triple bogey on the 8 and I was 5 strokes behind, so I thought, okay that's it for today. I just tried to focus on my rhythm and my swing. I did a good birdie on the 10th and felt better again, then I almost got the ball in with my driver on the 13th which was great. Suddenly I was only two strokes behind at this point, then unfortunately I had a triple putt on the 14th or 15th, then I birdie, birdie and a good tee shot sweat on the 18th, but the putt didn't turn out the way I expected. Nevertheless, it's always good to play in the last group and get used to it and next time maybe I won't be so nervous and can play well from the start. "

Cowan, 23, from Hamburg, was also disappointed to miss his first LET title and commented: “I'm disgusted that I didn't finish it and didn't win. It was very tight and intense all day and I think I was a little nervous at the start because I missed a few stupid shots and made some ridiculous mistakes. "

“Overall it was a great week and I can be proud of myself. I think the tournament has been great and we should resume it. It's always great to come back to Dubai and they put on an amazing event every year. I thought it was cool to end up in the spotlight and it was a big event. "

Playing in the spotlight proved to be a popular innovation with players and fans alike, as the event showed how Dubai has become an incredible destination with an extended golf season every year.

On the Blue side, the performances were not there, Isabelle Boineau, Camille Chevalier and Astrid Vayson de Pradenne finished tied for 43rd, Manon Molle brought up the rear in 57th position.

To see the full ranking: click here

To read our article on the presentation of the event: Omega Dubai Moonlight Classic: the first professional day-night golf tournament