British Girls Championship:
Home Trio Fight On
By Peter Donald
Electronic Telegraph

WELSH champion Kate Phillips, Scotland's Laura Wells and England's Rachel Bell are left to carry the home hopes of ending the continental monopoly of the British Girls Championship at Blairgowrie. They are through to the last eight where they are joined by two Italians and one each from France, Sweden and Holland.

But the two favourites for the title are still there in opposite halves of the draw. They are Tullia Calzavara, the Italian under-21 champion, and Audrey Riguelle, holder of the French women's title.

Phillips will face Calzavara, the No 1 seed, who needed only 28 holes to eliminate her two opponents yesterday.

It will be a tough test for the 17-year-old Cardiff girl but she showed fighting qualities in beating Germany's Jessica Issler in the second round.

The two girls shared six birdies. Phillips birdied the two opening holes and won the third in par to be three up. Birdies by her opponent pulled her back to square by the 13th. She went one down to another Issler birdie at the short 15th but then hit back with a four at the long 16th and a safe par at the 18th settled the match after the German girl had hit a slack tee shot.

Wells, who has completed one year at Iowa State University, had to go all the way to win both her games against Spain's Inez Diaz Negrete and then England's Danielle Masters. She who was a quarter finalist in this event last year.

Like Phillips Wells got off to a good start against Masters with a couple of birdies in the first four holes. Although she collected three more birdies in the match she was pulled back to square by the 14th.

The Scot however administered the final telling blow with her fifth birdie at the long 16th and Masters saw her hopes disappear when she found the heather at the last.

Wells will now face Bell, who won through at the 22nd against Switzerland's Niloufar Azam.

BRITISH GIRLS OPEN AMATEUR CH'SHIP (Rosemount course, Blairgowrie).-1st rd: T Calzavara (Italy) bt A Zwanck (Spain) 6 & 5; A Orholm (Denmark) bt C Alonso (Spain) at 19th; K Phillips (Cardiff) bt S Giquel (France) 2 & 1; J Issler (Germany) bt I Baon (Spain) 2 & 1; L Stahle (Sweden) bt S Walker (Kenwick Park) 7 & 5; I De la Lama (Spain) bt L Sibille (France) 6 & 5; E Zoethout (Netherlands) bt P Laisne (France) 1 hole; M Recasens (Spain) bt A Vilatte (France) 5 & 4; A Riguelle (France) bt L Soellner (Germany) 6 & 5; R Ruiz del Portal (Spain) bt C Cervera (Spain) 4 & 3; A Highgate (Cottrell Park) bt D-C Schreefel (Netherlands) 3 & 2; C Grignolo (Italy) bt M Dunn (Ireland) 3 & 2; L Wells (Dumfries & Co) bt I Diaz Negrete (Spain) 1 hole; D Masters (Rochester & Cobham) bt M Bazin de Jessey (France) 4 & 2; R Bell (Ganton) bt O Briggs (Delamere Forest) 2 holes; N Azam (Switzerland) bt L Saether (Norway) 2 holes. 2nd rd: Calzavara bt Orholm 4 & 3; Phillips bt Issler 1 hole; Stahle bt De la Lama 2 holes; Zoethout bt Recasens 2 & 1; Riguelle bt Ruiz del Portal 4 & 3; Grignolo bt Highgate 3 & 2; Wells bt Masters 1 hole; Bell bt Azam at 22nd.