Aditi Ashok finishes T42 behind Frenchwoman Boutier at Evian Championship

Aditi Ashok finished in a tie for 42nd place at the 2023 Amundi Evian Championship om Sunday with rounds of 71-72-74-68 for a total of 1-over 285 as Frenchwoman Celine Boutier created history by becoming the first home player to claim the event since it became one of the five major championships.

The Bangalore golfer shot a 3-under 68 on Sunday to go with earlier cards of 71, 72 and 74 as Boutier came home in 14 under par 270 with Canada’s Brooks Henderson taking second place on 8 under 276 ahead of a five-way tie for third place.

Over the next three weeks, Aditi and Diksha Dagar, both winners this year on the Ladies European Tour, will play the Scottish Open, the AIG Women’s Open and the ISPS Handa Invitational. All three events are co-sanctioned with the LPGA.

Aditi birdied the first and second holes and added a third on nine to turn in 3-under. She bogeyed 10 for her only dropped shot of the day but got a birdie back on 17 to gain substantially on the leaderboard. Conditions once again were not easy, but this time she handled them better than on previous days.

At the top, Boutier became the first player from France to secure the Amundi Evian Championship since the event was designated a major. It was a second win on home soil for Boutier in two years after she won the 2021 Lacoste Ladies Open de France.

Brooke Henderson, the 2022 winner, produced a final round of 70 (-1) to finish in outright second place on eight-under-par. The five a share of third place were Norway’s Celine Borge, Mexico’s Gaby Lopez, Japanese duo Yuka Saso and Nasa Hataoka, and Korea’s A Lim Kim on seven-under-par.

Spain’s Ana Peláez Trivino still leads the way on the Order of Merit with 1,409.20 points with Aditi Ashok in second (1,278.81) and Sweden’s Linn Grant third (1,105.83). Diksha Dagar is sixth with England’s Cara Gainer in seventh and Spain’s Carmen Alonso in eighth place.

“It was definitely not easy,” Boutier told the LET website later. “But the conditions were so tough I felt like it could go either way really fast, so I just tried to stay focused on each shot and hole at a time. It was pretty challenging with the wind.

“The start was pretty unexpected. I definitely felt like I handled the first few holes really well. I had a good opportunity on one and the putt on two was definitely a bonus.

“In golf, you can always play better. I definitely feel like I was very steady with all four rounds, which is very positive. Especially with the tougher conditions, I’m very satisfied with my level and with my game this week.

“It honestly has been my biggest dream ever since I started watching golf. This tournament has always been very special to me, even watching as a teenager. To be able to hold this trophy is pretty unbelievable.

“To have my family here made it even better. I feel like they definitely helped me this week to stay grounded and keep my mind off of golf off the golf course. It’s really sweet to be able to share it with them and I wouldn’t be here without them.”