Pranavi returns from injury, Diksha and Tvesa ready to make mark at Scottish Open

Ayrshire (Scotland) July 23 (IANS) Mysuru golfer Pranavi Urs will be back in action this week at the US 2 million Dollars ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open at Dundonald Links this week, after a long layoff due to injury back in May this year.

The other Indians in the field are the in-form Diksha Dagar and Tvesa Malik as rookie Avani Prashanth and Hitaashee Bakshi failed to make the field.

Pranavi, who won the Hero Women’s Order of Merit in India in 2022 with five wins in a single season, was the top Indian on the Ladies European Tour in 2024. This season she was in the Top-15 at the Ford NSW Open in Australia and Investec SA Women’s Open, she played and made the cut at Aramco Korea, but hurt her wrist. It got worse and she withdrew after the first round in the following week at the Dutch Ladies Open. She has not played since and is now 81st on the Order of Merit.

Diksha has been having a good season that began with a runner-up finish at the Lalla Meryem Cup and she had four other Top-10 finishes and two more in Top-15. She is lying 13th on the Money List.

Pranavi Urs plays with Kim Metraux of Switzerland and Spain’s Fatima Fernandez Cano in the morning, while Diksha Dagar tees off with Miranda Wang of China and Korea’s Sei Young Kim in the afternoon.

Tvesa Malik will play alongside China’s Weiwei Zhang and Norwegian Dorthea Forbrigd.

The 2025 Women’s Scottish Open at Dundonald Links is the ninth edition of the tournament since it became co-sanctioned with the LPGA Tour and the fourth consecutive year that Dundonald has hosted.

A field of 144 players representing 32 nationalities will compete in a 72-hole stroke play competition with a cut to the top 65 players and ties after 36 holes.

Lottie Woad will make her professional bow. The English star turned professional after securing her LPGA Tour card through the LPGA Elite Amateur Pathway (LEAP).

Woad, the former world number one amateur, stormed to a six-stroke victory at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open at the start of July.

The 21-year-old then headed to the Amundi Evian Championship needing just a top-25 finish to secure her final two points to earn her LPGA Tour card.

But Woad’s scintillating form continued as she produced rounds of 68-69-70-64 to secure a T3 finish in the fourth major of the year.

Scotland’s Hannah Darling, who played for Team Europe at the 2019 PING Junior Solheim Cup, will be making her professional debut this week.

--IANS

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