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Lee-Anne Pace claims two worldwide victories

Lee-Anne Pace

South Africa's top women's golfer and First Car Rental brand ambassador, Lee-Anne Pace, delivered an outstanding performance during October.

Pace won the Cell C SA Women's Open and then went on to claim victory in the Blue Bay LPGA in China a week later.

Lee Anne Pace

A victorius Lee-Anne Pace after the Cell C SA Women's Open.

She is only the second South African-born player to win on the LPGA Tour, following in the footsteps of golf legend Sally Little, who won 15 LPGA titles over a professional career spanning 30 years, including two majors.

Heading into the final round of the Cell C SA Women's Open, held at the San Lameer Country Club in KwaZulu-Natal from 16 - 19 October, Pace still had some work to do as she was positioned four strokes off the lead.

Nail-biting playoff

Says Lee-Anne Pace, "We came up short on some of the holes and then thought, ‘Well, let's just go for it'. So I started playing more aggressively."

Her success began with an eagle on the par-five 13th when she hit a five wood to 20 feet and made the putt. "I don't think a lot of people went for that green, and it turned out great."

Lee-Anne Pace

Lee-Anne Pace celebrates

On the short 16th, Pace hit a seven iron to 12 feet for a birdie. Then she lipped out for a birdie on 17, but closed with a birdie on 18 to force the playoff with England's Holly Clyburn.

Pace and Clyburn then parred the 18th the first time around, but when Clyburn hit a poor approach, Pace put hers three feet from the hole for a birdie to take the title - her ninth Ladies European Tour (LET) victory.

"I was just trying to have fun in the playoff. I thought to myself,'You've won two playoffs in your career already'.

"So I was feeling quite confident out there," she said.


"I am so proud to be South African today," said an emotional Pace.

Lee-Anne Pace

Lee-Anne Pace and Lizzie Currie at the SA Women's Open

Pace breaks SA's 26-year LPGA drought

A week after the Cell C SA Women's Open, Pace broke a 26-year LPGA Tour drought for South Africa when she claimed a three-stroke victory at the rain-shortened Blue Bay LPGA in Sanya, China.

This was Pace's first LPGA title and second worldwide victory in nine days.

"I can't actually believe it," Pace said.

"I'm still so in the moment of one shot at a time that I think it's going to hit me. It's like, literally, now I can relax. It's amazing. Obviously, one of my life goals, not only on the golf course, but to do something like that - very special."

All photos: Justin Klusener Photography.

Read First Car Rental's Q and A with Lee-Anne Pace by clicking here.