PowerPlay Golf’s inaugural Tour-style event – officially titled PowerPlay Golf driven by Saab: IGNITION – was won by rising Swedish star Caroline Hedwall, in a gripping finish that saw her win by three points from fellow Swede Helen Alfredsson.
Hailed as golf’s equivalent to Twenty20 Cricket, in that it delivers a high-excitement version of the sport in a short time frame, PowerPlay Golf’s two-flag ‘risk and reward’ format was played out on nine specially selected holes on The Celtic Manor Resort’s Twenty Ten course.
Paula Creamer and Victor Dubuisson set the early pace but Hedwall finished with three PowerPlay birdies for 6 points each to sprint from the pack and take victory.
“That was a lot of fun. I was in the middle of the pack with three to play but knew I still had a chance with PowerPlays in reserve. I was very nervous on the first tee but playing with Ian Poulter and Helen Alfredsson was a great experience,” said Hedwall, who picked up a £100,000 first prize – 50% of which she is donating to the Swedish Golf Federation.
The victory caps a memorable few days for Hedwall who secured her first Ladies European Tour victory yesterday at the Allianz Slovak Ladies Open.
Fans at Celtic Manor and at home on TV saw a stellar 12-player field alongside Hedwall, Alfredsson and Creamer including golfing legend Gary Player, U.S. Open Champion Graeme McDowell ,Major Champions John Daly and Ian Woosnam plus Ryder Cup stars Ian Poulter and Paul Casey and several other big names.
For more information on PowerPlay Golf and to watch the TV coverage again visitwww.powerplay-golf.com.
Final scores:
Caroline Hedwall 32
Helen Alfredsson 29
Paula Creamer 27
Ian Poulter 27
Victor Dubuisson 26
Ian Woosnam 25
Maximilian Kieffer 22
Paul Casey 20
Gary Player 18
Thongchai Jaidee 16
Graeme McDowell 15
John Daly 15
