The final of the Ladies European Tour School kicked off this Monday in Marrakech. The first of five days of competition has taken place. More than 200 golfers spread across two courses are in pursuit of one of the 20 cards on offer. The venues are the Royal Golf Marrakech and the Al Maaden Golf Marrakech. A total of 15 Spanish players are in the fray. The start has been positive: three in card position and seven within the cut of the top 65 and ties that will occur after the fourth day.
The Madrid native Blanca Fernández (-6) sets the pace after the first 18 holes. She shot 67 at Al Maaden, par 73, with seven birdies and a solitary bogey, placing her in second place, just one shot behind the leader, Ecuadorian Daniela Darquea (-7). Remember, Blanca reached this final school directly from another, the LPGA Tour, where she made the cut and came very close to securing the card after a tough week extended due to rain suspensions.
Neither jet lag, nor fatigue, nor distractions. Blanca has brushed perfection and demonstrated that she was playing well, and only the putter in Alabama deprived her of a better result. This is just the beginning, there is still a long way to go, but the first tasks of the week are more than well done by the golfer from Texas A&M University.
The other two Spanish players among the top twenty and tied, those who will secure the card, are Amaia Latorre (-4) and Marta Pérez (-4). The score of -3 currently marks the top 20 cut. Latorre has signed a great bogey-free card, while Pérez has made six birdies and two bogeys. Both also played at Al Maaden, a course that proved a bit more accessible today than Royal Golf Marrakech. Indeed, of the top 41, 24 played Al Maaden and 17 Royal Golf.
The first goal this week is to make the cut after the fourth round. It includes the top 65 and ties. Currently, Marta Sanz (-2), Natasha Fear (-2), Teresa Toscano (-2), and Paz Marfá (-1) are also within it. The cut for the top 65 is at PAR at the moment. Marta, Natasha, and Teresa played Royal Golf today, while Paz played at Al Maaden.
Seven of the fifteen Spanish players, nearly half, are within that first major cut. The rest need to climb up, although most are not far off. One shot away from that 65th position are Clara Moyano (+1), Marina Escobar (+1), Teresa Díez Moliner (+1), and Harang Lee (+1), while at +2 are Laura Gómez and María Parra. One shot further back is María Herráez (+3), and a bit more adrift and in need is amateur Miriam Ayora (+6).
