By: Max Bechtoldt
In 2024, we have become accustomed to Lauren Coughlin playing terrific golf, with her seven top-10 finishes and now two wins. But we haven’t quite seen her play like she did on the back nine Sunday.
Coughlin was an assassin Sunday afternoon at Dundonald Links. After two bogeys in her first four holes, she quickly recovered getting back to even par before the turn. On a day where low scores were hard to come by, Coughlin stayed consistent, and didn’t give anything back.
On hole 12, while holding on to a two-stroke lead, Coughlin made an incredible up-and-down from a greenside bunker for par. It required a long putt that found the heart of the cup. On the par 5 14, Coughlin missed the green in two, but hit an incredible chip that left her with a tap in. The next hole, she nearly made an ace.
16 she found a bunker once again, but managed a fantastic par save again thanks to a long putt. 17 bunker issues forced a lay up, after Esther Henseleit, who was three back, hit a tight shot in to make it interesting, Coughlin almost holed out from the fairway.
The theatrics from Coughlin were great, not known as the flashiest of players, she hit an incredible shot on almost every hole down the stretch. That includes a long putt for birdie on 18, her seventh consecutive one putt.
Finishing in second for a second week in a row was Germany’s Esther Henseleit, though this week there was no silver medal to play for. The positive for Henseleit is that if her performance last week didn’t solidify her Solheim Cup spot, this week certainly did.
Speaking of Solheim Cup, in about a month’s time, Coughlin will be representing the United States as one of its strongest players. A statement that would have seemed impossible at the beginning of the season.
