Pranavi 26th, Tvesa 50th on LET Order of Merit; Diksha set for China

Deauville (France), Sep 29 (PTI) Diksha Dagar stayed as the top Indian golfer on the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit at 20th place with Pranavi Urs at 26th and Tvesa Malik in 50th position after the Lacoste Ladies Open de France here.

This week in France, Dagar skipped the event, while Pranavi and Tvesa, both multiple winners on Hero WPG Tour at home, missed the cut.

Diksha will feature in next week's Aramco Series in China.

Meanwhile, a dramatic finale at the Lacoste Ladies Open de France ended with Chiara Tamburlini winning a playoff over Kirsten Rudgeley.

With the pair locked at seven-under par it was back to the 18th hole at Golf Barriere where the Swiss rookie, Tamburlini, produced an excellent birdie after her Australian opponent's effort came up short.

The victory is Tamburlini's second of 2024 after she dominated in South Africa to claim the Joburg Ladies Open.

Tamburlini started the day one shot clear of Annabel Dimmock with Rudgeley four shots behind in Deauville. A nervy start saw the Swiss star drop three shots on the front nine, however.

Three birdies in a row on the 8th, 9th, and 10th moved Tamburlini two clear before Rudgeley lit things up on the back nine by making four birdies on the 11th, 12th, 15th and 16th to move into the lead.

Then came the shot of a champion, Tamburlini stiffing her approach on the par-3 17th to tie things up and force a playoff with an even par round of 71.

After a round of 72 Dimmock finished in a tie for fourth alongside Finland's Noora Komulainen and Italy's Virginia Elena Carta. France's Lois Lau ended the week as the best placed amateur, finishing T-15 on one-under par.

With the victory, Tamburlini moved to 1,918.44 points on the LET Order of Merit, extending her lead to 393.98 points over Manon De Roey. The Belgian had a wonderful Saturday herself, carding a round of the day 66 (-5) to finish third on six-under par. PTI Cor AH AH