Carla Bernat Escuder leans on her Spanish roots to win Augusta National Women’s Amateur

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Carla Bernat Escuder wasn’t worried about anyone behind her, only those who were ahead. Thanks to a flop shot she only recently mastered, birdies on all the par 5s and a nervy 4-foot par putt to finish, the Spaniard stood alone at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

Bernat Escuder rallied from a two-shot deficit against defending champion Lottie Woad and held off a late charge from teenager Asterisk Talley, closing with a 4-under 68 to add to the Spanish heritage at the home of the Masters.

“As of right now, I don’t think my brain has processed that I won,” said Bernat Escuder, a senior at Kansas State.

She grew up in the same region as Masters champion Sergio Garcia, and his father still coaches and encourages her. She was so nervous meeting two-time champion Jose Maria Olazabal last year that she got his name wrong.

Key to this win was U.S. Amateur champion Jose Luis Ballester — also from Castellon — who makes his Masters debut this week. They have been friends since age 7, and she went to him with help on her chipping.

It paid off in a big way with her flop shot from a dangerous spot right of the 10th green, setting up a par that kept her momentum all the way to end.

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She left her approach right of the bunker, with the golf ball slightly above her feet. Bernat Escuder hit a marvelous flop shot to 12 feet and holed the par putt.

“If there was one shot that you’re going to need the hands back to hit it higher, as he tells me, it’s this one,” she said. “So yeah, I appreciate that tip.”

She has watched the Masters enough to have ingrained in her mind that it doesn’t start until the back nine. And there she was, leading by one after a 33 on the front nine and starting at a probably bogey until her flop shot came off beautifully.

The 10th hole was more pivotal than she realized.

Woad was looking to become the first back-to-back winner of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. She was tied for the lead with Kiara Romero going into the final group, birdied the first hole and led by two early. But it all came undone on the 10th.

From the fairway, she was aggressive with her approach and tugged the shot left and over the green, into a bush. Woad had to take a penalty drop, chipped on and missed the putt, giving her a double bogey and leaving her three shots behind.

“I put a good swing on it, it was just the wrong club,” said Woad, who went with a 5-iron. “Thought it was meant to be into the wind, and off the downslope it came out a bit too flat, so probably should have just hit one less club. Then got in an unfortunate position, so probably was always going to make 6 from there.”

She had to chase, just like a year ago when she delivered a memorable back-nine charge. This time, she could only manage two birdies and closed with a 72 to finish third.

“Pretty frustrated,” Woad said.

The charge came from Talley, the U.S. Women’s Amateur and U.S. Junior Girls runner-up, who began the final round by holing out from the first fairway for eagle.

Coming off a birdie at the 16th to get to within three shots, Talley hit a remarkable recovery from under the pines left of the 17th fairway. The ball stayed under the limbs and rolled up along the edge of the bunker, using all of the slope to get to about 18 feet behind the hole.

Instead of scrambling for par, she holed the putt for birdie to give herself a chance.

Talley, however, was too strong with her approach on the 18th, leaving the ball on the top tier with the hole some 40 feet away in its typical Masters Sunday location. She did well to two-putt for par and a 68.

“I was just trying to shoot my score and having a lot of fun,” Talley said.

In the group behind was Bernat Escuder, who also was in the trees on the 17th, put it in a bunker and made bogey. That cut her lead to one shot with one hole to play.

The Spaniard found the fairway, also hit onto the top tier and navigated a 4-foot par putt to finish at 12-under 204 and claim what already has become as prestigious as any women’s amateur event in the world.

Eila Galitsky started seven shots behind, shot 31 on the front nine and closed with the low round of the day at 66 to tie for fourth with Catherine Park (67).

How to celebrate? Bernat Escuder planned a nice dinner with her coach and all her support.

“And maybe a tattoo. We’ll see,” she said. “I was thinking maybe the flower of Augusta, but I need to decide on that. It’s a big decision.”

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