Pamela Pretswell's hopes of back-to-back wins playing as an amateur on a developmental pro tour were blown away by a 30mph north-easterly wind at Kiev Golf Club in the Ukraine today.
The 23-year-old Bothwell Castle GC member from Hamilton had a third and final round of five-over 77 - which was just about par in the conditions - for a final total of six-over 222 which earned her third place in the Golf Stream Women's Open, one of the Ladies European Tour's Access Series events.
Pretswell had a double bogey 6 at the third and dropped another shot at the fourth but the real killer to her hopes was a string of five bogeys in six holes from the eighth to the 13th.
But the only Scot in next month's GB and I line-up for the Curtis Cup match at Nairn came back off the ropes to birdie the short 17th and long 18th to grab third place which will help her consolidate second place in the LETAS Order of Merit - the top three at the at the end of the season will gain automatic promotion to the 2013 Ladies European Tour without having to go to Tour School.
Winner by four strokes at Kiev was Russian Anastasia Kostina whose two-under-par last round of 70 for a four-stroke win with one-under 215 was a brilliant wind-taming example. She birdied four of the last six holes for an inward half of 32.
Gemma Webster from Glasgow finished a creditable ninth on 231 with scores of 77-76-78.
Pamela Feggans from Patna, Ayrshire tied for 10th place despite having three 7s on her final card in rounds of 75-74-84 for 233, She required 45 shots to cover the last nine holes.
Carnoustie's Katy McNicoll did not cope with the North-east wind as well as might have been expected. She ran up an 11 at the par-5 13th and she also had two 7s in a closing effort of 86 (45-41) for a share of 22nd place on 236.
The fifthScot who made the cut, Heather MacRae (Gleneagles) finished 27th on 237 with a final round of 78, her inward half of 41 including a 7 at the 13th.
GOLF STREAM WOMEN'S OPEN
Kiev Golf Club, Ukraine.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)
215 Anastasia Kostina (Rus) 75 70 70.
219 Benedicte Toumpsin (Bel) 73 68 78.
222 Pamela Pretswell (Sco) 77 68 77
224 Viva Schlasberg (Swe) 71 75 78
226 Rachel Bell (Eng) 74 77 75.
SELECTED TOTALS
231 Gemma Webster (Sco) 77 76 78 (9th).
233 Pamela Feggans (Sco) 75 74 84 (T10).
234 Sarah Jones (Wal) 79 78 77 (T13)
235 Danielle McVeigh (Ire) 80 78 77 (T15).
236 Katy McNicoll (Sco) 72 78 86 (T22).
237 Heather MacRae (Sco) 80 79 78 (27th).
