Marta Martín (-7) has finished the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España in 16th place with a final round of 73 strokes at the Real Guadalhorce Club de Golf. Usually, this would be considered a good result, leaning towards remarkable, but on this occasion, it has been disastrous.
The Madrid native arrived in Málaga with a dual objective in sight. The first, and most difficult, was to finish the year among the top ten in the order of merit to qualify for the Final Stage of the LPGA Tour. To achieve this, she needed to finish among the top three. A very demanding challenge.
The second was called the Women’s British Open, one of the five majors in women’s golf. The top fifteen in the LET ranking at the end of the year secure their qualification for this tournament. Marta arrived in Guadalhorce in 16th place and needed, at a minimum, to finish in sole 16th place to surpass Perrine Delacour, the 15th ranked player in the LET and absent from this Open de España. Well, it wasn’t to be…
Martín finished 16th, but tied with five other players. As it stands, she has earned 48 points, an insufficient haul to surpass Delacour. She fell short by less than four points to the Frenchwoman. That’s what she needed to have already secured the British Open. Cruel.
The worst part is that Marta was in the British for a good part of the day. She started with two birdies on holes 3 and 4, followed by two consecutive bogeys, but responded again with two consecutive birdies on 7 and 8. With that two-under-par score, she was more than in the British. However, a poor finish to the round, with three bogeys on holes 14, 17, and 18, has left her out for now…
It was a painful finish, as with a par on either of the last two holes, Marta would have finished in 14th place and would have earned enough to surpass Delacour and finish 15th. Just one stroke. As it stands, fateful final bogeys and a fateful 16th place, both in the tournament and in the order of merit.
Be that as it may, not all is lost, Marta will have more opportunities during 2025 to achieve her qualification for the British. It’s not a closed door. It becomes a challenge for next year. Already in 2024, she qualified through her victory in the LET and was able to debut in the Majors. She first played the Evian and then the British. In both, she made the cut. Her third Major is not yet secured, but it is already the main goal for 2024.
In any case, Marta bids farewell to her best year as a professional. She has won her first tournament and has finished higher than ever in the LET ranking. She has many positive things to focus on.
On the other hand, the best Spanish player in the LET ranking in 2024 is definitely María Hernández. The Navarrese finishes the year in eighth place. Remember that the top ten qualify to play the Final Stage of the LPGA Tour next week, although María, as we have mentioned in TenGolf, will not play it because she has decided to stay in Europe. Hernández has indeed secured the British for next year.
